Hello!

It's late while I'm writing this.

I had an idea to write about all week, but it was daunting to talk about it.An idea of vulnerability, and how it shapes our decisions.It shaped mine most recently by not pushing this newsletter out quickly.

Being vulnerable is difficult for anyone.There was a time when I was a lot more brash. I wore my heart on my sleeve - pursued passions on a whim, told people I liked (or disliked) them, and dropped things I didn't enjoy - all in the name of being open about things.Then society took over and told me what is nice and what isn't. I "tamed" this outspoken part of me, and eventually silenced it.Built walls. I buried a bunch of things, that actually over the last few weeks, I've unearthed.

Here's me, trying to break down my walls.

This is going to be a short one.

-Teej

🏝️ Open Waters

Diving into the deep end, I'm back on the job market - not because I'm not enjoying doing what I do, but because I want to create some additional buffer (and a piece of farm) to sit on.

And the job market has been terrible.

I'm torn between the life of an individual contributor, vs a manager.I enjoy both ends of the spectrum. I love to make things. And I love to work with people who make things.I've mentored dozens of builders, interviewed hundreds, and read through thousands of profiles. But now, being on the other side feels very awkward.

In the past, I've tried to build a culture where I've encouraged my team to talk about their struggles to create more collaboration within themselves. My team was never reprimanded for asking questions, like I've said in the past - there are no stupid questions. Creating a space for people to ask for help was always a priority.

If you know someone who can benefit from hiring a web developer, or a manager, please send them my way :)

💃🏻 Life of a Rasika

I started streaming again. :)Wasn't very happy with yesterday's stream, mostly because I got stuck on reading documentation, but it is what it is.

I'll be fleshing out rasika.life. Have plans for tomorrow to create the database, and add a collaboration layer on top of it.

The biggest thing I want to do with this project is make it easy for people to find lyrics for the songs artists are performing, and help people who want to learn too.

All in due time 😄

⚡️ Vulnerability's power

This video by Brené Brown was something that triggered a bunch of these thoughts early this week. My key takeaways from the video were:

* Vulnerability is needed for joy, creativity, love, and connection. As I mentioned, I feel like parts of me were lost with time, and this process of digging up memories has been a journey for me. Here's my way to embrace my vulnerability.

* Perfectionism is always the enemy - we're trained to put up walls because something doesn't sit well, or look right. We often look at the downsides of vulnerability - the discomfort of negative emotions etc, but numbing this also takes away the joy, gratitude, and happiness that comes with it.

* Shame, as Brown puts it, is the fear of disconnection. Humans are social by default, and it's the fear that others will discover our flaws that make us shameful, and feel unworthy of connections.

* Courage and bravery aren't the same - courage is about being imperfect, and vulnerable, and telling the story of who you are with your whole heart.

* The belief that we're not enough is what keeps us away from connections. Vulnerability is about breaking this belief and healing the shame associated with it.

Vulnerability is a strength, not a weakness. By sharing our vulnerabilities we allow others to connect deeply with us, and forge stronger relationships. This is also self-care, which exposes our limits and boundaries. Being vulnerable also means we're preparing ourselves for the possibility that someone may not respond how we hoped.

Errata/Updates

* Something new is cooking - a long-term project. 🤫

* Thank you all for the support for Sundri Foods! The support has been overwhelming ❤️

* We harvested basale soppu a few times already, and the plant is still thriving. The monsoon rains have been magical. We also got two cute muskmelons.

* Our cook-at-home accountability group is slowly growing. And we have a garden enthusiasts group now too.

End Note

If you've liked this post, I'd love it if you could share it with a friend. You can get them to subscribe here.

I do my best to have 5 "fun" things I've been working on every week hopefully on Thursdays. I'm stoked you're here on my journey and would love to read/hear about what you think. If you think there are other things we can look at, do them my way!

Thanks for being here, and reading all this. See you soon!Teej

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit teejofalltrades.substack.com