Hello,
Welcome to the flurry of newcomers, and of course welcome back to my long-term subscribers and supporters. It turns out getting back into the writing habit has been more of a slog than I’d hoped or expected. Expectation, now there’s a topic for a future issue.
This month I’m facing the reality that on the 27th I’ll have been in my part-time job for a whole year. While I’m very much settled there, and enjoying it, I don’t feel I’ve got the hang of the new cadence for my freelance work. Maybe rediscovering my rhythm for writing to you will help. We’ll see.
Enjoy today's Gathered Thoughts and as ever just hit reply to let me know what you think.
Emma
Some people, like my Nan, collect frogs. Others collect fridge magnets, 12” records or Pokémon cards. When I was a kid I collected empty shotgun cartridges (don’t ask!) and football stickers. What’s my thing now? Questions.
Questions run through every aspect of my work. Knowing what question to ask at the right time is a skill and it requires a broad knowledge of different topics and types of questions. So when I hear a good question, one that really makes me stop and think, I write it down.
One day I’d like to share my database of questions in some way, but for now, let’s revisit a couple of my favourite questions. These are the questions that I come back to again and again to ask myself and to help others who are feeling stuck:
Are there any questions you find yourself returning to often?
Issue 9 of the Own Your Web newsletter is about the RSS renaissance. Talking about how RSS is the cornerstone of podcasting, Matthias writes:
this open format allowed everyone to participate by simply publishing a feed anywhere on the web, without being restricted by platform requirements, closed APIs, and paywalls
If you have a website, blog or newsletter I’d encourage you to check that it has an RSS feed and make it visible. Don’t keep your content locked in a silo.
One of the blogs I subscribe to in my feed reader is Scott Nesbitt’s Random Notes. His posts always make me think. Recently, I added his post, Speed Versus Reflection to my bookmarks folder called wise words. It succinctly captures the purpose, and great benefits, of taking time to reflect.
In this interview with the Creative Independent, Jacqueline Suskin shares how she uses the cycles of nature in her creative practice. As we edge into summer, I’m noticing a big difference in my energy levels and desire to create. Reflecting on this has helped me to accept lower levels of output during the winter months and think about what other activities might be more valuable for me to spend this time on.
And finally, I think readers of this newsletter will find a lot to like in Perle Laouenan-Catchpole’s new(ish) newsletter about connections and collective impact.
Our own life has to be our message
— Thích Nhất Hanh