Favorite Friday Finds 35.0
“When I dare to be powerful, to use my strength in the service of my vision, then it becomes less and less important whether I am afraid.”
Hello and Happy Friday! Boy, do I have the best finds for you this week- not only fun and interesting stuff, but some straight-up darn useful stuff for the upcoming holidays!
How unbelievable is it that Thanksgiving is less than a week away now? It's hard to believe that we are already in full-on holiday season mode now, but I actually am already feeling the holiday spirit. I love seeing the holiday Starbucks cups all around, the lights and decor going up, gift guides, and other festive cheer. I think we could all really use the giving spirit of the season in many ways this year after a rocky November for a lot of people in light of recent worldly happenings.
I always love sharing these Favorite Friday Finds with you guys, because I hope you walk away feeling inspired, informed, and uplifted from these reads and links! All my friends know that I'm a major deal-hunter and am always sharing promos and such (NYC living, gotta be smart when you can!), so I need to share this before we begin:
Amazon PRIME is having a 1-DAY SALE ending at midnight tonight!
You get a year of Amazon Prime for $79 ($99 reg.) which is the best investment ever for me personally. The amount of stuff I order off there is honestly a bit embarrassing, but you can't beat that free 2-day shipping, early access to deals (hello, Black Friday is next week + some deals are already live), movie/tv streaming, ad-free music streaming, books, Audible, AND for you bloggers, unlimited photo storage for yourself + 5 family/friends!
That's less than $7/month for all this stuff. Sign up HERE.
Now let's get to it!
Here are 8 things that I was inspired by, learned from, and laughed/smiled at:
INSPIRED BY
1. Gratitude Reminders
Jacquelyn over at Lark & Linen shares free monthly desktop wallpaper (I'm such a nerd for this kind of stuff) and this month's by Saffron Avenue is perfect for the holidays. I've had this "Thankful" one up for the past few days, and it's a nice reminder every time I see it.
2. 25 Famous Women on Dealing with Anxiety and Depression
The stigma surrounding mental health issues like anxiety and depression still heavily exists, and it shouldn't. I am so proud of and thankful to these women who have spoken out about their battles with anxiety and depression, because silence is not the answer. It's important to not feel shame about your battles, and to get help where and when you need it- it is brave, not shameful!
3. Blogger Copycat: Imitation is the Sincerest Form of Flattery? NOT.
Oh jeez. I follow Lauren @gysealust for her dreamily gorgeous travel photos, but apparently one of her followers is taking her love to a new level. These photos are disturbingly exact imitations, and it is NOT okay.
I'm sure you bloggers who have seen or experienced this feel the same way. I once had a girl who asked me to show her the ropes of social media and blogging, then found that she was replicating my shots and even stealing some of my captions. It's truly unsettling, and is one of the downfalls of having a public career! Anyone else experience this before?
LEARNED FROM
4. Actions to Take Post Election
I'm all about putting your actions and money where your mouth is. All talk and no action is certainly not the way to incite change, and I loved the Man Repeller's roundup of organizations to take action for. There are also some great organizations in the comments section too!
5. 7 Insanely Powerful Lessons My Mentor Taught Me
(Which I didn't Realize Until Later)
Loved this unique list of lessons learned from a mentor, that is helpful for all of us go-getters.
1, 6, and 7 are definitely ones I've learned a lot about over the years.
6. How to Make 15 Spare Minutes Count
Great quick read on a breakdown of how to utilize 15 spare minutes. It's actually astonishing how much some of these can add to your productivity and set you up for a better rest of your day- identifying tasks versus projects is largely important for all us entrepreneurs out there!
LAUGHED AND SMILED
7. The Cutest Christmas Ad
Heathrow airport for the win and alllll the good feels for the holidays!