The First Valentine / Emily McDowell on life

Help saying the things you want to say. ALSO BOOK GIVEAWAY!!!

There are some things we just don’t know how to say but are deeply longing to do so. This week, I chatted with Emily McDowell on how to talk to people when there is no guidebook. This podcast is for folks who want to be a better communicator and supportive friend, understand the signs life sends you, and also know when to walk away. Emily’s first card went viral, listen for how it leads her on a path of merging her love for being both a writer and illustrator.

If you don’t have time for the whole thing, we are trying out this new format of small chunks of the juicy stuff. The one below is short and sweet about how Emily got her start and her interest in human connection:

Both Emily and I share the same idea, that we want to use cards as a conduit for connection. Saying what we long to say but don’t know how. We both started our businesses at the same time out of the same desire but we both have gone down very different paths with our businesses. In the audio version, Emily takes us through the exact steps that brought her to where she is today.

This last one is about knowing when to quit. Emily co-hosts a podcast on quitting called Quitted with Holly Whitaker. I don’t know about you, but right now, I am struggling with when to know when you stay with something or let it go. A favorite episode of mine is this one where Mar Grace quits trying to be someone.

There are so many reasons to love being around Emily and trust me, you will feel it after talking with her. She leans into her body when making decisions and I look to her as a guide on how to live a good life (she might hate me for saying that).

Her substack is here. It’s called Unqualified. I highly recommend it.

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LASTLY, but definitely not least, the book giveaways are back! This week, I have TWO copies of Alain de Botton’s new book A Therapeutic Journey. Just so you know, I am a fan. Wait, it would be more accurate to say that I am obsessed with Alain de Botton. It started with Art As Therapy and with his article, “You Will Marry The Wrong Person.”

Marion Fayolle

If you are going to get one of Botton’s books, this one is a great summary of all the stuff the School of Life has been up to over the past few years. Even my mother-in-law loved it. I wanted to end this week with a quote from him.

“One rarely falls in love without being as much attracted to what is interestingly wrong with someone as what is objectively healthy.”
― Alain de Botton

Comment here if you are interested in getting a copy of A Therapeutic Journey: