Hello, hello, hello .
If your initial reaction to seeing this email was Who the hell is Leanne Lindsey?, honestly I don't blame you.
It's been a hot minute since I last got in touch and that's usually my first thought when I see a name in my inbox that I don't recognise or haven't seen for a while.
Perhaps, you were added to my mailing list because you downloaded a journaling freebie and you didn't actually want any further emails from me. That's cool, I do that too so feel free to hit unsubscribe below - no hard feelings and I hope you found the freebie helpful. :)
If, however, you're wondering where I've been and why I'm here in your inbox today after all this time, the truth is that I've missed reaching out in this way and it's something I've wanted to do for a while but have been putting off.
Every time I thought I'll write a newsletter today, I didn't end up writing a single word. It was frustrating but I just couldn't get myself to do it. After some reflection, I have an idea why I've been resisting my urge to reach out.
I'm not a fan of clutter - physical or digital - and over the past few years I've decluttered most areas of my life. This has included unsubscribing from many newsletters and attempting to keep my inbox as clear as possible. I also don't like to feel like I'm bothering people and I'm not a fan of small talk.
Recently, I had the realisation that my personal feelings and approach to life were preventing me from doing something I like to do - reach out to you via my newsletters.
We live in a society where we're bombarded with information, advice and other people's voices and I didn't want to add to the noise, especially considering everything we've all been living through over the past twenty or so months.
However, since reducing my newsletter subscriptions to just a handful, I've found that I now read each one (rather than just leave them unread with the best intentions of reading them at a later date and then feeling overwhelmed when my inbox is overflowing). I also look forward to receiving them.
It dawned on me, that my newsletter could be one that you also looked forward to receiving, or at least didn't mind reading. So here I am. :)
Letting go and opting out
Sunday was a Full Moon, which is often thought of as the perfect time for letting go. Yesterday, was Winter Solstice on this side of the world, which is considered by some a time for self-reflection and intention setting.
Something I've noticed myself slowly letting go and opting out of is the notion of how we're supposed to navigate the digital world.
I've always tried to avoid sending newsletters for the sake of it, but then feel bad that I don't send them more regularly, because that's the advice.
Likewise, I've always had a love-hate relationship with social media, but for a long time I stayed there because I couldn't figure out how to share my voice and what I do with people without it.
To be honest, I still don't have that figured out but I'm no longer letting all of the advice, out there, hold me hostage. I'd rather live intentionally and be led by my intuition and instincts than allow external influences to prey on my fears. This is not easy and something I'm working on daily - with the help of my journal, of course.
;)
Over the past few weeks, I've been reading the book Adventures in Opting Out: A Field Guide to Leading an Intentional Life by Cait Flanders. It's been a great tool for self-reflection and given me the opportunity to recognise that I've been cycling through letting go and opting out most of my life. However, on only a few occasions can I honestly say
that in the moment, it was intentional.
More recently, I've noticed a shift and I'm becoming more intentional about what I'm letting go of and where I'm opting out.
By coincidence (or maybe not), this time last year I read Cait Flanders' first book, The Year of Less, which is partly about decluttering your life. Decluttering requires us to let go and what I now see is that it often needs to come before opting out as it allows you to see what really matters and what has been blocking your
path.
So, as we approach the end of another year, I just wanted to share some journaling prompts with you, that offer you an opportunity to pause and reflect on the past 12 months. Addtionally, I hope they help you go into the new year with more clarity on who/what to let go and opt out of as well as who/what to embrace and be open
to.
