It’s been a hot second and alas, I have not been reading much.
I thought I’d gotten out of a depression episode. Instead, I was just managing to be high functioning. That worked super well for awhile. Things that I deemed important got done. But I wasn’t looking paying much attention to the things that weren’t getting done. Because they were adding up until they finally toppled over onto me and I didn’t know what to do next. Professionally, I was fine. Personally, I was sitting in this mess.
So what could I do? I took my own advice and started taking little bites. A daily vitamin doesn’t seem like much, but it gave me a little more energy. Reading a page doesn’t seem like much, but it slowly made me want to read more. Writing a few words doesn’t seem like much until I keep stringing them together and have a finished product to share. And then one day I looked out in our side yard where my dreams of a fairy garden for my daughter were crumbling before my eyes and I got outside to chip away at all that was keeping me from it. That was finally got me to feeling like normal, and frankly, I want to spend all of my time in the fairy garden now. So of course it won’t stop raining!
I feel like I’m back. I’m checking things off my list like crazy. If you work with me, you should be a little scared. But that’s a whole other thing.
Let’s get to talking about the little bit of reading I have managed to do.
Reading Social Media News
This week, LinkedIn added more post analytics to help you determine how each post is contributing towards your strategy. I know a lot of people who are trying to grow their LinkedIn presence right now, so these new analytics can really help you figure out what’s working and what needs to be left behind.
And speaking of analytics, PR Daily is asking whether you are effectively presenting all of this data you are gathering. Get to what your boardroom is actually looking for with some of these tips.
Reading Books, Books and More Books
Past
My Friends by Fredrik Backman is so amazing that I started using it as a carrot to get me to do other things. And that meant I read it very, very slowly. Since I usually try to swallow Backman books whole and then get mad at myself about it, this was a welcome change for me. I spent more time in this world, and I think I needed that. I love the conclusions of this book. And I fell in love with each of the characters for different reasons. But my favorite part of this book is that Backman drew a bird in my book when I met him. I didn’t now it at the time, but he marked me as “one of us.” I don’t know what to do with that, but I’ll forever treasure it. Score: A+
Present
I went into my last book club meet up a little sad that I didn’t recommend Remarkably Bright Creatures by Shelby Van Pelt. I felt like reading it again, and it seemed like a good book for that particular audience. To my delight, someone randomly brought up the book. We quickly agreed that it was perfect for us. And with how my brain has been, I think this is going to be the perfect distraction.
What are you reading? What books are you looking forward to?