Quick Announcements

• It’s December! As someone who likes to use shifts in the calendar and new seasons as opportunities to hit the reset button, I’m looking forward to new year planning. I’ll share a bonus newsletter on the 31st with behind-the-scenes of my reflection and planning process for 2026. If you’d like to access that newsletter and the archive of many bonus newsletters with behind-the-scenes details and deep dives, I invite you to upgrade for $5/month. If you’re already a premium subscriber: thank you!

• On February 7th, I’ll be hosting a virtual workshop in collaboration with Dr. Katy Peplin (who you might know from our recent hit, AcWriMo)! We are meeting minds once again to teach you how to experiment with academic productivity approaches and build a framework that you can adapt to your ever-changing life. Join the waitlist here if this concept is calling your name.

Welcome to my second official update on my theme word for age 39: AGAIN.

As I shared before, I chose “again” as my theme word when I turned 39 because I’m curious about whether it is actually serving me to say yes or say no to the habits that feel second nature to me. I also promised that I’d try out this theme word for a few months and decide if I want to keep using it or do something different, and I’ll share more about that at the end of the month.

I modeled this year’s theme word experiment around goals, which worked well for me when I did my very first theme word experiment in 2018 with The Tending Year. Back then I was focused on my dissertation and learning to live with chronic illness, and this year I’m exploring four new goals:

• Create and utilize a budget so I can save money

• Develop a strength training routine

• Set and hold boundaries around my time and energy

• Try new things outside of my comfort zone

Here’s how things went in November…

Create and utilize a budget so I can save money

One of the cool things about working for yourself is that you get to choose which platforms and processes to use. I tend to get overwhelmed with all of the fancy options out there, so I try to pick one thing and stick with it. This is why I used an Excel file to track my income and expenses for years. In 2024, I started using QuickBooks because of the ease with invoicing and sharing my numbers with my accountant for tax season, but I’m realizing that the tradeoff of automation means I’m not aware of my actual day-to-day spending. Since I want to start saving more money, I’m going to fire back up my Excel tracker, which means blocking off time to enter in each thing I earn or spend. While it might seem redundant so do this and use QuickBooks, I’m feeling excited to see what I discover!

Develop a strength training routine

I knew that November would be a big month for me in the movement front. Listening to Kelly McGonigal, PhD’s The Joy of Movement in October reminded me of how much I love cardio exercise, and her chapter about pairing exercise with music got me excited to give it a try! If you’re new here, I’m someone who thrives with live, external accountability, but I don’t currently feel up to attending a live exercise class. Instead, I looked up a good Indie Running playlist and gave it a try with jogging—and was pleasantly surprised at how much more motivated I felt to keep going! McGonigal also talks about the joy people feel in doing group exercise, so perhaps one day I’ll try something outside my comfort zone and check out an in-person, outdoor running group. For now, I’ll aim for one short run a week.

Set and hold boundaries around my time and energy

This is the place I struggled the most in November. I accidentally took on a little too much and likely should have given myself more permission to move slower once I added new projects to my to-do list! In retrospect, it was a lot to expect of myself to write newsletters, write for my book project, and to draft new copy for website with the help of a copy-editor, but I’m giving myself grace. Plus, I’ve already blocked off time in December for some cozy winter’s rest!

Try new things outside of my comfort zone

I had a mind-blowing realization this month while I was savoring a vegan black bean and sweet potato stew from Make It Dairy Free that Kris found on social media and whipped up for us: I’m not actually sure that I love cooking as much as I love eating really delicious food!

Even as I type that, I know it’s more complex than loving or not loving to cook. I love the sensory experience of cooking—the smell of chopped garlic, the feel of an asparagus stalk snap in my hands, the waft of delicious, steamy air on my face when I check on a simmering pot. I have a handful of recipes I can wow a dinner party with, but I’m noticing more and more that I enjoy the end result of savoring something delicious, not the trial and error and sometimes botched attempt to make something that’s “meh” if not “yuck.”

When it comes to eating, I am here and ready! I love how chefs layer flavors and the surprise and satisfaction of an exquisite combination of textures and smells and tastes. Maybe it’s time to let go of the goal to master the perfect pickled vegetable recipe, and instead plan a pickle tour of New England?

Curiosities

• I was on a coaching call with a client who was typing onto her external keyboard and I enjoyed the sound so much that I decided to check out typing ASMR. I ended up loving it, and I’m finding that it helps me access a state of flow more quickly when I’m working—especially when I’m typing, too! My current favorite is this Creamy Keyboard ASMR by ricecloud on YouTube.

• Kris and I recently watched the documentary Telemarketers and it keeps popping into my head. It’s about a corrupt telemarketing scheme and as someone who loves public scholarship, I was excited to see the documentary evolve over decades of filming, starting with funny homemade clips they recorded at work and leading to freelance journalism and interviews with elected officials. Content warning for drug addiction and drug use on screen, which I found hard to watch at some points. Overall, though, I’m glad I saw the documentary, and it’s definitely stuck with me.

• Remember when I shared my list of names that we almost named our dog, Friday? Well, I thought it could be cute to share with you the other potential dog names I come up with throughout the week, which is a little hobby of mine. Current idea: Filet Mignon, which could be nicknamed Filly or Minny.

Take care and talk soon,

Dr. Kate

Email: kate@katehenry.com

Website: katehenry.com

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