Tag: #sadtosavage

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Thoughtful Thursday – July 25, 2024

amybenoit

My intention is to post a Thoughtful Thursday column each week and share some of the insights I have learned in the past week. Here are some of the things I’ve learned this week:

Mentally Stronger with Therapist Amy Morin – 10 Mental Health Improvement Strategies Therapists Prescribe Their Patients
  • Act contrary to how you feel. Explore the behaviors that reinforce that emotional state and act the opposite. Ex: depression may want you to stay in bed all day, but getting up and moving is the best thing. Change your behaviors first, and the feelings will often follow.
  • Challenge your negative thoughts. Intense emotions cause irrational thoughts. Challenge your thoughts and prove that you can do something. Prove that your thoughts aren’t always accurate.
  • Add structure to your day. Be intentional about building in healthy tasks and having structure outside of work, but also allow room for flexibility.
  • Schedule fun, meaningful things to do. Having something to look forward to is really good for your mental health. Schedule one fun or meaningful thing each week.
  • Spend time in nature. Nature has incredible benefits for our mental health; it reduces anxiety, improves concentration, reduces depression, and helps us feel happier overall.
  • Get physical activity. Exercise reduces stress and anxiety and improves self-esteem. Find an activity that you enjoy so that you can stick to it.
  • Find a way to relax. Watching tv and scrolling on your phone stimulates your brain, so aim for ways to relax your brain. If you invest time into caring for your mental health now, you will feel better and perform better later.
  • Work on something that you’ve been putting off. The more you put something off, the more you dread doing it and the worse you feel.
  • Take care of your body. Eat a healthy diet and get adequate sleep.
  • Get social support. The people you spend time with might be the biggest factor that determines how mentally healthy you are. Having positive people in your life reduces the symptoms of mental illness. Remove yourself from toxic relationships.
Sad to Savage – Little Things to Help You Get Out Of A Rut
  • Do a check in and figure out why you’re in a rut. Is your schedule day-to-day not fun? Are you not sleeping enough? Are you nourishing your body with food and water? What are you spending your time doing? Is that keeping you stuck? Are those things helping you or hurting you? What do you need to change?
  • Pick out a goal right now to work towards. Ex: train for a 5k, make a healthy meal 3x/week, build a new habit
  • If you’re someone who really likes to talk on the phone, talk on the phone when you’re outside on a walk. You could start making plans with friends on the weekend to go on a walk. Look up gyms in your area and go to the cheapest one. Go on a treadmill and find a show you will only watch while walking on the treadmill.
  • Redesign a space in your home. Change around the furniture.
  • Find a book to read. Find a book about something you want to learn more about.
  • Know that you are allowed to change your mind and your habits whenever you want. You can become whoever you want to become.
  • Try a new hobby.  Take a class.
  • Pay attention to the people you have in your life, the environments you have, the music you listen to, the content you consume, the people you follow … all of those things can contribute to you feeling like you are in a rut.
  • Make a list of things that make you feel happy that you can turn to when you’re feeling down. Ex: family time, running, going outside, reading, etc.
Chasing Life – Does Money Buy Happiness?
  • Money CAN buy happiness. Buy experiences (trip, dinner with friends, etc.). Experiences bring more happiness than material possessions. Make spending feel like a treat – hedonic adaptation.
  • Think about how your choices about money impact how you use your time. If it doesn’t have any bearing on how you spend your time, you can probably let go of spending money on that for now.
  • Buying time – if you can, buy your way out of something you dread doing. Ex: mowing lawn, cleaning house, grocery shopping, etc.
  • Another fact mentioned is that people who donate to causes/charities through recurring charges aren’t nearly as happy as people who get involved in person and directly see the impact of their monetary donations.
Self Improvement Daily – “You can have it your way.”

Burger King’s motto “Have it your way” is a welcome reminder that each one of us matters and deserves to be cared for. We don’t need to settle for how things are; we can create a new reality for ourselves.

We can pursue our ambitions with pride. We can change our future if we have the courage to do so. Being selfish in investing in yourself can be one of the most selfless things you can do because it can great the greatest impact on others.

If you’re overstretched at work and compromising your own health, that’s not having it your way. When we enforce better boundaries about our work hours, we can have more time to fulfill ourselves in other ways.

If you don’t have as much time for the things and people you love, or the energy to do anything at the end of a long day, that’s not having it your way. When we say no to others, we say yes to ourselves.

Reordering priorities and making a commitment will start to shape your life your way. Balance your personal life, care, and passions in a way that you feel good about by figuring out how it all fits together.

This post from Seth’s blog really resonated with me:

The two bicycle errors

The two bicycle errors

“Momentum activities like public speaking, board sports and leadership all share an attribute with riding a bicycle: It gets easier when you get good at it.

The first error we often make is believing that someone (even us) will never be good at riding a bike, because riding a bike is so difficult. When we’re not good at it, it’s obvious to everyone.

The second error is coming to the conclusion that people who are good at it are talented, born with the ability to do it. They’re not, they have simply earned a skill that translates into momentum.

There’s a difference between, “This person is a terrible public speaker,” and “this person will never be good at public speaking.”

And there’s a difference between, “They are a great leader,” and “they were born to lead.”

The thing about momentum activities is that we notice them only twice: when people are terrible at them, and when they’re good at it. That includes the person you see in the mirror.”

My reflection: we only notice when someone is really good or really bad at something. We don’t see the “average” and we often don’t see the process that it took to get to “good.”

I look forward to reading, learning, and sharing more with you soon!

Thoughtful Thursday posts, Uncategorized

Thoughtful Thursday – June 6, 2024

amybenoit

My intention is to post a Thoughtful Thursday column each week and share some of the insights I have learned in the past week. Here are some of the things I’ve learned this week:

Sad to Savage – How to Create Habits and A Routine With An Inconsistent Schedule
  • Keep a consistent amount of time that you need instead of a consistent time you need to wake up.
  • Pick 1-3 things you want to do in a morning routine and figure out how long it takes to do those tasks. Usually 1 hour – then figure out what time you need to wake up each day
  • Write out your schedule each week.
  • Create at least two morning routines: weekdays vs. weekends. Days you are working vs. days you are off.
  • What would your ideal morning routine be for the days you are working? What would your ideal morning routine look like for the days you are off?
  • Choose a workout you like to do and one that you can do consistently. Build a habit of physical movement on the days that you have off. Build a physical health habit that is realistic and that you can keep consistent.
  • Time consistency helps build your habit – same time every day
  • If you feel like you don’t have time for things, time block. See how much time you are spending on your phone each day instead.
  • Prioritize waking up earlier and doing a morning routine, or work on your routine right away when you get home from work.
  • Grocery shop and meal plan and prep on one of your days off.
  • Nighttime routine- get meals ready for the next day.
  • Focus on having a short routine and long routine. Short routine for nights you work late, are exhausted, and don’t have much time – pick 1-3 things that are crucial for your success the next day (scheduling workout, washing your face, setting out clothes). Long routine for days you aren’t stressed and aren’t getting home late (prepping food for next day, tidying room, reading before bed, washing your face, setting out clothes, etc.)
Inside Out Money – Progress over Perfection
  • Perfectionism – striving for flawlessness, holding excessively high personal standards, and having overly negative reactions to perceived mistakes and setbacks – can lead to a lot of self-criticism and rumination
  • Root of perfectionism is deficit and lack – whole existence is to prove to other people that we are good enough, we have skills, we matter, and that we are high-functioning.
  • Perfectionism can be linked to imposter syndrome. If you’re trying to project a perfect person all the time to others, you might feel like an imposter.
  • Combat perfectionism
    •  Mindfulness – Be present in the moment and understand the emotions that are going on within you – passing thoughts and passing emotions.
    • Meditation
    • Vulnerability
    • Self-compassion
    • Radical acceptance – we can’t control everything. We need to do the best with what we have.
  • Focus on balance and progress over perfection with finances.
  • Have a growth mindset. See mistakes as learning opportunities. We can always strive to get together while also being kind and compassionate to ourselves and those around us.
  • Tips:
    • Just get started. Don’t put off working on your finances and tracking your net worth and expenses just because you are afraid to see the results.
    • Focus on the things that you need to improve around your finances and set realistic goals. Ex: improving credit score, paying off debt, increasing savings rate
    • Learn from your mistakes. Recognize ahead of time that you will make mistakes and you can get better at this.
    • Set consistent habits and automate things when you can.
    • Avoid perfection paralysis. There is never a perfect time or perfect situation to start doing better. Don’t wait for the right time.
On Purpose with Jay Shetty – 7 Habits to Be Present
  • Wake up twenty minutes before you have to. If your first thought when you wake up is, “I’m already behind” you are already living in a feeling that you need to catch up with time. Our language and our thoughts set how we feel. That thought will repeat itself for the rest of the day. If you start your day slower mentally and physically, you can maintain that momentum as it speeds up.
  • Connect with yourself. What is the one thing you need to do for yourself today?
  • Calendar – what is the one thing you need to do today to make it a great day?
  • Check in with someone else.  
  • One device at a time: tv, laptop, phone. Your brain processes background noise. Limit your focus to one device at a time. Having a rule is better than not having a boundary.
  • Take thirty seconds when you enter a new room, new space, or a new part of your day to engage your senses. What can you see, hear, touch, smell, and taste?
  • Obey the speed limit. One of the ways we feel the most out of touch is when we are driving. Is shaving off two minutes worth the risks of what you may experience?
  • Be present with your breath. Breathe in for 4 and out for 4 counts. Reconnect with your breath and your body.
  • Prioritize extended periods of silence – increases brain cells, helps you be more focused and productive, helps you relax and slow down
  • Experience nature – gives us a feeling of time abundance, sense of time is slower and more meaningful
Life Kit – Summer fun on a budget
  • Public parks and beaches
  • Field day with friends – three-legged race, water balloon toss
  • Park programming – events calendar
  • Penny date – explore things without an objective. Take a coin, pick a direction for heads and tails, and flip the coin and see what direction it takes you. Stop when you see something interesting.
  • Go to the farmer’s market.
  • Parades
  • Coloring book and colored pencils
  • Open mic nights/poetry slams
  • Museums  – some museums offer free admission on certain days
  • Recreate a family recipe.
  • Themed hangouts – pick a theme and invite people over
  • House/apartment swap with a friend
  • Go to an open house, even if you aren’t in the market
  • Go to the mall and try on silly outfits
  • Write your future self a letter

I look forward to reading, learning, and sharing more with you soon!

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Thoughtful Thursday – March 14, 2024

amybenoit

My intention is to post a Thoughtful Thursday column each week and share some of the insights I have learned in the past week. Here are some of the things I’ve learned this week:

The Liz Moody Podcast – 15 Love Lessons From 15 Years In A Relationship

Here are the lessons that resonated the most with me:

If you see something, say something. In a relationship, if you see something you love/admire/think they are doing well, don’t keep it to yourself.

Question the “shoulds.” Be intentional about your decisions. Should you get engaged just because you’ve been together a certain amount of time? Should you have kids at a certain age or have kids at all? Should you drink any time someone else is at a social gathering? Should you follow pressures and milestones from society and friends? Your relationship is your relationship. Don’t compare yourself to others.

As work dynamics have changed, you need to be more intentional about making friends. Intentionally expose yourself to people on a regular basis through a book club, walking club, sport, etc. Put yourself in a reoccurring way in front of other people. Suggest avenues to your partner to gain connections.

If your relationship is boring, you need to do more interesting things. Give your relationship the new outputs it needs and deserves – conversations, activities, etc. Ex: Read a separate article each week and tell your partner what you read, learned, and anything interesting you would like to discuss from that article. It will result in more interesting conversations. Ex: podcast walks with partner – discuss podcast at the end of the walk to spark new conversations

Assume the best intentions. Even if it is your partner’s fault, recognize that your partner can be at fault without intending to hurt you.

Plan together. It is really easy for people to change and for their desires to change. There are expectations people have, and when they are not spoken, we run into real problems. Communicate your desires so that you can plan together.

Communication is the crux of all relationship success and woes. Get your partner to know what you want in life and know what they want in life.

Sad to Savage – 26 Things I’ve Learned at 26

Here are some of the best lessons mentioned in this podcast:

  • Putting up boundaries with other people starts with you making boundaries for yourself. It’s okay to be selfish with your time.
  • The quality of the people you spend time with matters more than the quantity.
  • Growth is not always linear, and sometimes you need to have low moments and face challenges to grow.
  • You need to make the choice to walk away from something that no longer serves you.
  • When life changes and things do not go according to plan, that’s because it’s not according to YOUR plan. God has a plan for you.
  • Self-limiting beliefs can be broken. Figure out what your self-limiting beliefs are.
  • Comparison truly is the thief of joy. Don’t compare your timeline to someone else’s.
  • You will never find the time. You need to create it.
  • You truly never know what someone is dealing with beyond the surface.
Optimal Living Daily – 8 Habits to Keep Paper Clutter to a Minimum
  • Deal with papers immediately. As soon as you get the mail, toss all of the junk mail.
    • For school papers, have kids do the homework ASAP and put it back into the backpack so it’s done and ready for the next day.
    • Sign any permission slips and put them right back in the backpack.
    • Let go of all of the drawings that were sent home. If you find something unique, you can take a picture with your child holding it and talk to your child about it before letting it go.
    • Church bulletins – take a photo if needed, mark events on your calendar, and throw them away.
  • Have an inbox for all of the papers that need to be dealt with soon.
  • Have a long-term filing system for things that need to be kept, such as tax records, personal records, etc.
  • Set a weekly time to catch up on paper. Take time each week to pay bills, deal with papers, etc.
  • Set as many statements as possible to “paperless.” Set aside time each week to pay/review/respond as necessary. Automate bills.
  • Toss receipts if you don’t need them for tax purposes.
  • Cancel magazine subscriptions.
  • Avoid paper couponing.

This week I have been reading a fascinating book called “Like, Literally, Dude: Arguing for the Good in Bad English” by Valerie Fridland. Valerie pointed out research about the differences of “uh” vs “um” and their impact.

“Um” is used when longer delays in answering a question are anticipated. “Uh” indicates that our listener may need to wait a second or two for an answer, but “um” indicates they will need to wait longer. A filled pause (“uh” or “um” instead of silence) conveys information at a meta level.

“Uh” or “um” signals listeners to be on alert because there is generally something requiring greater cognitive effort happening. People typically use filled pauses when talking about unfamiliar, difficult, unpredictable, or abstract things, so we incorporate that knowledge into how we unpack what they say. People perform better on memory tests when hearing words such as “uh” or “um” before important statements or stories. This may be because we have more processing time to think about what is going to be said (during the filled pause of “um“). These pauses alert us to pay closer attention to what is being said.

I look forward to reading, learning, and sharing more with you soon!

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Thoughtful Thursday – December 14, 2023

amybenoit

My intention is to post a Thoughtful Thursday column each week and share some of the insights I have learned in the past week. Here are some of the things I’ve learned this week:

Self Care IRL – 8 acts of self respect to start your new year
  • Say no regularly. By saying no, you have more time to focus on yourself and the lifestyle you want to create.
  • Remove yourself from drama cycles. Don’t surround yourself with people who often complain and leave you feeling burned out and exhausted.
  • Stop gossiping. It provides escapism, causes you to judge yourself more, and does not create a healthy relationship with those you gossip with.
  • Find things that make you happy and do them. Find things you love and are passionate about.
  • Release the need for external validation. Needing external validation can lead to avoidance and the inability to take action. The highest level of respect we can give ourselves is to validate from within.
  • Find a way to give back or help other people.
  • Move your body. Move your body, change your mind.
  • Learn your own values. Most people are living within other people’s values or actions. Do your actions and priorities align with your values?
Fit, Healthy & Happy Podcast – Secrets to Getting Super Fit for 2024
  • Start executing on your goals now. Do not wait until a specific date or the perfect situation. If you have a big goal, get started now.
  • Create a circle around you of people who are also fit, healthy, and happy. Surround yourself with people who are doing better than you and who inspire you.
  • Have a coach to optimize and plan your nutrition, training, and accountability.
  • Plan ahead – meals, workouts, commitments.
  • Be willing to sacrifice what you want now with what you can get later. Practice delayed gratification.
  • No excuses. Look for reasons to work out, not excuses.
Mary’s Cup of Tea: the Self-Love Podcast for Women – The Best Book on Communication
  • Book – Nonviolent communication
  • Violent communication: results in hurt or harm. Judging others, bullying, having racial bias, blaming, finger pointing, discriminating, speaking without listening, criticizing others or ourselves, name calling, reacting when we’re angry, using political rhetoric, being defensive, judging who’s right or wrong
  • Nonviolent communication: integration of consciousness, language, communication, and means of influence
  • Learn to sense the needs of other people and tune into empathy and bring it back to the feelings and the needs as opposed to being defensive, offensive, trying to be right, trying to convince someone otherwise, trying to prove your point, or trying to be more understood. Sense the needs of other people and what they are feeling beneath the words they are expressing.

I have not read this book, but after listening to this podcast, I will be adding it to my list of books I’d like to read!

Intermittent Fasting – Top 10 Anti-Inflammatory Foods
  • Berries (specifically, wild blueberries and cherries)
  • Fatty fish – sardines, anchovies, mackerel, wild salmon
  • Cruciferous vegetables
  • Olives and cold pressed single source organic olive oil (in a dark bottle)
  • Avocado
  • Nuts (walnuts, almonds, macadamia)
  • Tomatoes
  • Peppers
  • Green leafy vegetables
  • Dark chocolate
The Mel Robbins Podcast – Reset Your Gut in 5 Days
  • Dr. Amy Shaw is a medical doctor trained at Harvard, Cornell, and Columbia University.
  • Bloating is normal and is caused by having unhappy gut bacteria.
  • FFF morning routine: fasting, fitness, and fermented and fibrous foods
  • Stress can cause bloating. Stress can cause your nervous system to interfere with your gut’s ability to properly digest food and keep your gut bacteria balanced.
  • Fiber: leafy greens, avocados, asparagus, cucumbers, celery, spices (turmeric, ginger, cilantro, parsley), fruits (bananas, berries, pineapple, papaya), sourdough bread, yogurt
  • 5-step method to heal inflammation, reset your natural hormone balance, and heal food sensitivities

Dr. Amy Shaw recommends you fast for 12 hours (supper to breakfast) to heal your gut.

Rest your gut in 5 days
  • Five day reset:
    • Day 1: fasting (12 hours), fitness, fermented and fibrous foods. Add 30 minutes of exercise. When you start moving your body, the distention starts to move. Physically twisting your gut will release some gas and get things moving. Ex: yoga, abs
    • Day 2: fasting (12 hours), fitness, fermented and fibrous foods. Eliminate dairy, gluten, white sugar, or whatever you think may be triggering you.
    • Day 3: fasting (12 hours), fitness, fermented and fibrous foods. Start eating foods your gut loves. Spinach, asparagus, fruit, yogurt, etc. Protein: soaked black beans, fish, tofu, eggs, cottage cheese, yogurt, nuts. Your gut doesn’t want “fake” protein – fake meat substitutes, bars, shakes, etc. Processed red meat can cause inflammation.
    • Day 4: fasting (12 hours), fitness, fermented and fibrous foods. Enjoy. Spend time with people who are good for your mental health and gut health. Spend time with people who make you feel your best.
    • Day 5: fasting (12 hours), fitness, fermented and fibrous foods. Put it all together: exercise, protein-rich food, enjoy.
  • It can take up to three weeks to figure out what foods you’re sensitive to with an elimination diet.
  • You may feel better in as little as three days!
  • When you eat probiotic foods, the bacteria are delivered to the bacteria that are already in your gut, and our body is more likely to incorporate natural probiotics into our gut ecosystem compared to probiotic supplements.
Sad to Savage – Getting 1% Better, Habit Stacking, Waking Up Early and Willpower
  • Ways to get 1% better: daily walk, hit 10k steps, read every day, write self-love affirmations, clean up your space, dishes before bed, clear off table every day, lay out clothing for tomorrow, listen to a podcast, call a friend, habit stack
  • Habit stack ideas: podcast or audiobook while working out, folding laundry, cooking, or meal prepping.
  • You will never walk away from a book without learning at least one thing.
  • Waking up early will change your life. It allows you to create time for yourself before you give your time to others (through work). You will have the most willpower in the morning.
  • Consistent schedule – Monday through Friday – pick a time you want to wake up and a consistent morning routine. To wake up, sit up in bed and chug warm water. Put your phone on the ground so that you must physically get up to turn off your alarm. Use an automatic light bulb to wake you up at a specific time.
  • Elevate your morning, elevate your life.

I am working on establishing my morning routine and slowly working on getting up earlier. It is something I have been struggling with, as I sleep through multiple alarms.

Inside Out Money – Simple joys and the art of saving money
  • Simple joys that can keep you from spending money: a walk out in nature, talking with a friend or family member, playing in the yard with kids, reading a good book from the library
  • Gratitude daily – GLAD method: Something you’re grateful for, something you’ve learned, something you’ve accomplished, something you’ve delighted in.
  • I love this idea and am looking forward to trying it!
  • Find something you’re grateful for that you often take for granted.
  • If you have too many items, your family won’t know what’s important to you when you die.
  • Clean to have an organized life.
  • Make a list of what you’re shopping for and stick to it.
  • Consider a no-spend month and use what you have OR allow yourself to only spend on a certain day of the week so that you must delay instant gratification.
  • Limit time on social media to avoid being influenced into buying more items.

Questions to ask yourself while decluttering:

  • Is this my favorite?
  • Do I love it?
  • If I lost it, would I replace it?
  • Would I buy it again?
  • How much would it cost me if I had to replace it?
  • What’s the worst thing that could happen if I let it go?
  • Is this thing in solid working order?
  • Is this item plastic?
  • Would this item come with me if I were moving/downsizing?
  • Does this item spark joy?
  •  Did I bring this items into my life?
  • If I were free from guilt, would I still keep it?
  • Will I have more space to do the things I want?
  • Do I need to save it for tax or legal reasons?
  • Have I used it in the last year?
  • Do I want my kids or others in my family to have to take on the burden of this item?

I look forward to reading, learning, and sharing more with you soon!

Thoughtful Thursday posts, Uncategorized

Thoughtful Thursday – August 17, 2023

amybenoit

My intention is to post a Thoughtful Thursday column each week and share some of the insights I have learned in the past week. Here are some of the things I’ve learned this week:

Fit, Healthy & Happy Podcast – How to Glow Up Mentally (Mental Health Checklist)
  • Prioritize your well-being and yourself first.
  • Exercise daily for your physical and mental health.
  • Detoxify your social media. If someone makes you feel worse about yourself, unfollow them.
  • Go to bed earlier. The easiest way to become a morning person is to get to bed earlier.
  • Aim to eat mainly whole foods and drink more water. Ask whether what you’re consuming is adding to your body or taking away from it. Aim for a diet of 80% whole, healthy foods.
  • Express gratitude.
  • Spend more time in nature.
  • Declutter your space.
  • Read insightful books.
  • Spend time alone just thinking and breathing.
Sad to Savage – How I Became The Person I Was Envying
  • Ask yourself: Who do you want to become? If you want a certain lifestyle, consider whether you want to take the steps to get there. Ex: waking up early, having consistent daily habits, priorities, etc. For example, some people want a different body figure, but want the magic of a pill instead of making changes to their food and exercise habits.
  • When thinking about the person you are envying and the person you want to be, consider: What media does she consume? Who does she spend time with? What does she do when she gets upset? What healthy coping mechanisms does she have? What is the dream morning or night routine? Where does she live? What does she do for work and does she like it? What does she value? What drives her daily actions? What does she do for her mental health and physical health? What does she do for her growth? What do you want to start doing and stop doing? What are some changes that the future you is making? Think about the things you are doing that are stopping you from living your dream life.
Life Kit – Start a financial self-care routine
  • Your financial goals should get you closer to whatever it is that you want. Then you should create goals to get there: pay off student loans, max out retirement investments, or save up for a down payment on a house.
  • Make sure you’re getting a competitive interest rate on the money you keep in the bank. Many large banks pay much less than 1%. It is not uncommon to be getting an interest rate of 0.01%! Some banks are offering between 4-5% interest (CIT bank is one option). Make sure your money is FDIC or NCUA insured.
  • Annually:
  • Take the time to consider your health insurance plan options, get quotes for other insurance plans (home & auto), check on your retirement plan contributions, and make sure your beneficiaries are up to date. See if there are any benefits you are missing at work, such as a gym reimbursement, 401k match, etc. Check on your subscriptions and consider whether you still need each of them.
  • Check on your investment accounts.  Look at the rate of return you are getting. Ideally, you will earn at least 10% average over 10 years. Compare your portfolio’s rate of return to the S&P 500 to get a sense of how the market is doing in general. If your investments are doing about the same as the S&P 500, you’re probably in a good position. If your investments are not performing as well as the S&P 500, you will want to rebalance your portfolio. Look into what percentage of fees you are paying (expense ratios). Go for funds with lower expense ratios when you can.
  • Get a credit report and make sure that it’s accurate. You can get a free report annually at annualcreditreport.com.
  • List your debts and figure out if you need to make any changes. Should you consolidate your loans, refinance, or increase your payments?
  • Check on your tax withholding during the year. You may want to change your withholding to avoid getting stuck with a large tax bill.
  • Monthly:
  • Pay your bills on time and set bills to auto-pay when possible. Keep a buffer in your checking account to avoid overdraft fees (10%-25% of your monthly expenses). Any amount more than that should go into savings to earn interest!
  • Review your accounts monthly for fraud charges.
  • Also check on your income and career goals (networking, taking classes or reading more to gain knowledge in your field, updating resume/LinkedIn, applying to jobs).
  • Reflect on how you’re taking care of yourself: mind, body, and spirit. It’s much harder to work on your finances when you’re exhausted.
  • Set aside money to do things that bring you joy. Say no to things that don’t bring you joy.
  • Daily: Make a daily habit of reflecting on your purchases. Are your choices lining up with what matters to you? Are they leading to the life you want?

Some of my financial habits:

  • I have nearly all of my bills set on auto-pay. For those that aren’t on auto-pay, I mark my calendar with the dates I should pay them.
  • I have a percentage of my salary go directly into a retirement account.
  • I keep a financial screenshot of my checking, savings, and retirement account balances and check them twice each month to see if I am on track toward my goals. When I check these balances, I also review my accounts for fraud and maintain an Excel spreadsheet of all of my expenses and income, along with the net for each month. I categorize expenses (recurring, varied, impulse) and note dates, amounts, account or card balances, and my net so far for the month, and I evaluate how much money I spent in each category each month and whether I need to cut back on certain categories.
  • I read reviews on products before I purchase them. Most of the time, I no longer want to buy the products after reading reviews. I also take time to consider larger purchases to see if I really need the item. Many times, I decide that I don’t need the item.
  • I prioritized paying off my debts, aside from the hefty mortgage, and am committed to being debt-free aside from the mortgage. This leaves little room for impulse purchases and leaves more room for contentment and appreciation for what I have worked hard to have.
Frugal Friends Podcast – How Much Should You Tip?

**Of note, the information in this podcast was collected from etiquette articles and interviews with professionals. These opinions are not necessarily those of the podcast hosts or my personal opinions.**

Non-negotiable:

  • Restaurants (20%). If your service was poor, you can do less.
  • Bars: if only a bar/drinks, flat rates are acceptable. $1 per beer, $2 per cocktail
  • Taxi or rideshare: 15-20% for taxi ride, $2 per ride for Uber or Lyft (from a former Uber driver and director of outreach at Ridester)
  • Hotel: $2-3/day for housekeeping
  • Hair & nail salons: 15-20%
  • Babysitter or nanny: round up (example: $50 instead of $45). Nanny- end of year bonus equivalent to 1-2 weeks of pay
  • Coat check: $1 per coat/$2 for a large bag
  • Gray areas/not mandatory (according to etiquette experts):
  • Food delivery (a tip should be required- podcast suggests $3-5 per delivery)
  • Coffee shops (etiquette articles they used suggest rounding up to the nearest dollar or 20% for difficult orders)
  • Self-serve (like frozen yogurt places)
  • Don’t need to tip: doctors, lawyers, teachers, plumbers, therapists, cable technicians, counter service (these people are earning a wage)

I recently came across a set 15% tip option for donating to a GoFundMe fundraiser! I thought that was very bizarre given the fact that GoFundMe takes a portion of proceeds, and the tip option had to be manually set to 0 to not tip.

I look forward to reading, learning, and sharing more with you soon!

Thoughtful Thursday posts, Uncategorized

Thoughtful Thursday – August 3, 2023

amybenoit

My intention is to post a Thoughtful Thursday column each week and share some of the insights I have learned in the past week. I went on a vacation and took time away from blogging last week, so here are some of the things I’ve learned in the past two weeks:

The Productive Woman – 9 Reasons to Declutter

Declutter is not just the stuff on your floor. It’s anything that stands between you and the life you want to be living. Simplify your life by simplifying your space and your schedule.

  • By decluttering, you will save time for what matters most to you. The less stuff you own, the less time you have to spend caring for it, cleaning it, and moving it to clean around and under it. The less things you are doing that don’t add value to your life, the more time you have for what really matters to you. Decluttering is a time saver across the board.
  • Decluttering can foster peace of mind, even in a very busy life. The visual distraction of clutter increases cognitive overload and can reduce our working memory. Clutter can make us feel stressed, anxious, and depressed. Reducing the amount of clothing we have will reduce decision fatigue. The less stuff we have, the less time we have to spend making decisions about what to use, what to do with it, and where to store it.
  • Decluttering will help us have greater enjoyment of the things we keep. A cluttered home negatively impacts how we feel about our homes and our lives. We enjoy life more when we are less surrounded by clutter.
  • Decluttering will contribute to having a safer space. Cluttered homes can be unsafe.
  • A decluttered space will contribute to more efficient and productive work. Less distraction=improved focus. Ex: a spa is minimalist and that contributes to the peaceful, calm feeling. People with cluttered homes and offices tend to procrastinate more.
  • Decluttering reduces stress. When we are surrounded by clutter, our stress hormones are elevated. Clutter leads to anxiety, embarrassment, family stresses, and more.
  • Decluttering is better for the environment. Less stuff being purchased, kept, and stored is better for conserving planetary resources. By donating the items you purge, you can make them available to others who will use them.
  • Decluttering can contribute to better relationships. It can also result in fewer arguments.
  • Decluttering can save you money. If you aren’t accumulating more stuff, you aren’t spending as much money. If you are able to sell items you are purging, that is more money in your pocket. Also, if you don’t have as much stuff, you can live in a smaller space and also avoid paying for storage units. People are paying to store stuff in storage units that they aren’t using because they aren’t at home. Many people are also unable to park in their garages because their garages are filled with stuff!
Sad to Savage – In My Running Era & Habits For The Last Half of 2023

Sad to Savage is a great podcast about daily habits, and I started my daily habits journey in 2022 before I discovered this podcast. We have some of the same daily habits and I am regularly evaluating my habits and considering adding new habits. Here are some ideas presented in this podcast:

  • Start building the habit of waking up earlier to go on a daily walk.
  • Work on a morning and nighttime routine.
  • Start listening to podcasts and habit stack.
  • Get 7-8 hours of sleep every night.
  • Get in bed by a set time each day.
  • Clean your house weekly.
  • Spend 30 minutes outside each day.
  • Read every day.
  • Listen to a podcast every day.
  • Schedule a weekly date night.
  • Call a friend every day.
  • Drink tea every night.
  • Write affirmations every day.
  • Have at least one healthy meal each day.
  • Cook at home a certain number of nights each week.
  • Learn how to read food labels.
  • Choose when you are allowed to drink alcohol (ex: only on weekends).
  • Meal plan and prep.
  • Make your coffee at home.
  • Limit your coffee intake each day.
  • Eat breakfast each morning.
  • Take your medications or vitamins every day.
  • Move your body 30 minutes each day.
  • Use the stairs instead of the elevator.
  • Try a new workout class once each month.
  • Stretch daily.
  • Journal every day.
  • Write one thing you’re grateful for every day.
  • Meditate.
  • Clean one space each day.
  • Have a productive break each day to clean or organize an area of your house.
  • Do dishes before bed each day.
  • Plan out your day. Write a to-do list for the next day each evening.
  • Make your bed daily.
  • Save/invest money each month.
  • Limit your screentime each day.
  • Lay out your clothes for the next day.

I use my Silk & Sonder journal to track my habits and you can get a free digital habit tracker here. It looks like the photo below.

https://www.silkandsonder.com/blogs/news/free-silk-and-sonder-printable

Here are my daily habits for August (many of which I have been doing for several months):

  • Take my temperature at 5 a.m. every day (for future fertility tracking).
  • Drink one bottle of water in the morning before work. This is because I generally don’t drink as much water at work and want to start my day hydrated!
  • Listen to a podcast each day.
  • Play brain cognition games on Lumosity & Elevate apps each day.
  • Read 30+ minutes each day.
  • Do a 10-minute ab workout each day (rest days allowed).
  • 30+ minutes of walking/running/lifting weights each day (rest days allowed).
  • Write an affirmation, complete a journal prompt, and write in my One Line A Day journal each day.
  • Do dishes before bed each day.
  • Catch up with/message 5 people each day. Work on networking. This is a result of the free Jordan Harbinger networking course I am taking!
Life Kit – Let’s have some cheap fun
  • Public parks and beaches – picnic, swim, fly a kite, hike, music in the park
  • Penny date – explore things without an objective. Take a penny and pick a direction for heads and tails. Flip the coin, see the direction it takes you, and go.
  • Attend a parade
  • Get a coloring book and crayons/pencils or a paint by number set
  • Open mic nights
  • Museums (sometimes can get free passes with a library card)
  • Recreate a family recipe
  • Taste test chocolates, ice cream, chips, etc.
  • Themed hangouts- pick a theme and invite people over. Ex: romcom movie marathon, French movies and French onion soup, etc.
  • Go to an open house, even if you aren’t looking for a home.
  • Go to the mall or a vintage store with a friend and try on silly outfits.
  • Write your future self a letter and give it to a friend for safekeeping.
  • Host a book club

We recently returned from a trip to Colorado. Here are some of the FREE things we did:

  • Drove through Rocky Mountain Arsenal Wildlife Refuge
  • Viewed the Boettger Mansion
  • hiked the hilly Lookout Mountain Trail
  • viewed and hiked at the Mother Cabrini Shrine
  • viewed and hiked at the Red Rocks Park & Amphitheater
  • Walked the 16th Street Mall in Denver
  • Toured the Denver Mint
  • Attended mass at the beautiful Cathedral Basilica
  • Walked around City Park in Denver

There are so many FREE options that you may not think about! You don’t always need to spend money to have fun.

The Jordan Harbinger Show – Fast Fashion- Skeptical Sunday

The fashion industry is a $2.4 trillion industry! The features that drive this industry are cheap manufacturing prices, making clothes that follow current trends in the quickest ways possible, and using low-grade disposable materials meant for just a few wears so consumers keep coming back to the stores for more. People are literally buying clothes intended to be thrown away. The fibers, yarns, and fabrics are inferior quality. Clothes are designed for the trends for the season, but fashion seasons are moving faster and faster every year.

  • As the number of choices offered to the consumer increase, the number of times a piece of clothing is worn before it is subject to the trash decreases. This is shocking because I regularly wear clothes I bought almost a decade ago. I haven’t purchased items that get thrown away unless they are really stained.
  • The fashion industry has trained consumers to want to be hip, stylish, and up to the latest trends, so they come to their stores more. Consumers come running whenever they ring the bell. Fashion collections used to come out 4 times per year, but now some companies pump out 12-24 collections per year. Zara reportedly comes out with 24 fashion collections each year! A person trying to stay fashionable is buying and getting rid of incredible amounts of clothes.
  • In the 1970s, the average household invested 10% of its income (about $4k) on 25 pieces of clothing each year. Today, the average household spends 3.5% of its income (about $1,700) on 70 pieces of clothing each year! Clothing has gotten much cheaper but is not as durable.
  • 85% of clothes being pumped out of the factories and into the stores ends up in a landfill! We discard 92 million tons of clothes-related waste each year!
  • Transparency is lacking in the production and disposal of our clothes. Clothes that go to poor countries are hurting. Most donated clothes go to Africa. Africans are stuck with the waste and are deterred from ever starting a textile industry of their own. Plus, a seamstress or tailor cannot make a living because no one can compete with the cost of the West’s hand-me-downs.
  • Most of the donations that make it to poor communities eventually end up in a landfill. Each piece of clothing in a dump is money in a corporation’s pocket.
  • Consider donation places that only serve your community or sell unwanted donations to textile or recycling plants (not Goodwill or Red Cross- these get shipped around the world).  The fashion industry emits more carbon than the shipping and international aviation industries combined!
  • Returns of items bought online exceed the amount of all purchased goods. The system is set up to run on waste.
  • There are a few classic looks that last through decades: jeans and a t-shirt, a good suit, a nice black dress. The irony is that trendy clothes are the ones we look back on and frankly can’t believe we ever wore in public.
  • The fashion industry is the second-largest consumer of water worldwide. It takes 700 gallons of water to produce 1 cotton shirt and 2,000 gallons of water to produce one pair of jeans. That’s enough water for someone to drink 8 cups a day for 10 years! Jeans are made from cotton, which is a very water-intensive plant.
  •  A lot of water is used to dye the clothes. The dying process uses enough water to fill 2 million Olympic-sized swimming pools each year. The dye water travels and ends up contaminating the oceans and lakes.
  • 60% of garments are made from polyester, a plastic that does not break down. When materials don’t break down, they turn into microplastics. 35% of all microplastics in the oceans came from the laundering (washing) of synthetic textiles.
  • Female garment workers in Asia face poor work conditions with low wages and forced overtime. 80% of fashion factory employees are women. The industry exploits and takes advantage of women working in these factories. 1 in 6 people on Earth work for the textile industry, and only 2% of them earn a living wage!
  • The cheapest materials are stretch materials (t-shirts, jeans, yoga pants). Stretch materials are made with low-skill labor. The industry loves stretch materials because they can be made cheap and imperfectly. A tailored suit has to be made precisely and fit right. Stretch materials mask imperfections and don’t have to fit right at all. They just have to stretch to fit us.
  • Fast fashion benefits: affordable prices and instant gratification for consumers.
  • The entire industry now is driven by influencers. They seem to get a pass, but it’s problematic. They portray themselves as so progressive on social, economic, and ecological issues, while they sell us the very problems that they claim to hate.
  • The supply chain is invisible. The “made in” label on clothing is unique to the U.S. and the country that sewed the main seam is the country listed on the label. There are proposals to get rid of the made in labels. Our clothes touch a lot of borders, and that’s how the supply chain works. Ultimately, we are failing to create an industry that looks after its employees and their surroundings. Fast fashion is all about the ways to make bigger profits all the time.
  • Tips: Websites like mygreencloset.com offer options for zero-waste fashion collections. Stop playing the fast-fashion game. Buy quality, well-made clothes that will last for years. Alternatives: clothing rental markets. Upcycling- making clothes out of used materials and textiles. Wear the same signature look every day. If you don’t have to think about what you want to wear every day, wear the same thing every day. This will prevent you from purchasing fast fashion.
Sad to Savage – Your New Daily Affirmations

Here are some ideas for daily affirmations! I am smart. I am kind. I am confident. I am loved and I am loving. I am grateful. I am growing. I am capable. I am a positive role model. I am inspiring. I am beautiful. I am driven. I am choosing a positive perspective. I am strong mentally and physically. I am creative. I am making healthy choices for my physical and my mental health. I am really proud of myself. I love my body. I am kind to my body. I speak kind words to my body. I am becoming the best version of myself. I love and approve of myself. I love the positive perspective that I am actively creating. I can do really hard things. I am not my past. I am creating my own future. I am safe and secure. I am creating a really beautiful life that I am really proud of. I am worthy of love and attention. I consciously release the past by choosing to live in the present. I am worthy of my own love and I am worthy of the kind words that I say about others. I am choosing to respect and to take care of myself. I am patient with myself and I am patient with others. I am the most important person in my life. I choose to let go of the things that I cannot control. I believe in myself. I am growing every single day and I am proud of the big and the little moments of my growth. I am my favorite person. I love you and I am so proud of you.

I read seven books in July. The most recent books were easy reads that did not require much brainpower. “Speaking American: How Y’all, Youse, and You Guys Talk: A visual guide” was written and illustrated by Josh Katz, a graphics editor for the New York Times whose work has focused on finding patterns in data and turning them into stories. This book was a fascinating look at the dialect variation in the United States and included insightful maps of the data.

➡️ Examples include tag sales vs. rummage sales vs. garage sales vs. yard sales vs. stoop sales, scratch paper vs. scrap paper, soda vs. pop vs. coke, take-out vs. carry-out, and how people pronounce aunt, syrup, caramel, crayons, quarter, coupon, grocery store, and many other words. 🤔

➡️Dialect variation in American English is a reminder of our personal history, our family, and who we are and where we come from. No matter how much media we consume, we inevitably acquire the speech patterns of the people we surround ourselves with. ❤️

“Other-wordly: words both strange and lovely from around the world” was written by Yee-Lum Muk and based on the discovery that “every language has names for the odd and wonderful, for the unexpected things that have meaning, for the parts of our lives that are other-wordly.” 👍 Here are some of my favorites.

➡️kummerspeck (noun, German): excessive weight gained through eating as a means of relieving stress or strong emotion

➡️fernweh (noun, German): an ache for distant places; the craving for travel

➡️fuubutsushi (noun, Japanese): the things – feelings, scents, images – that evoke memories or anticipation of a particular season

➡️tartle (verb, Scottish): to hesitate while introducing or meeting someone because you gave forgotten their name

➡️deipnosophist (noun, English): someone skilled in small talk or in conversing around the dining table

I look forward to reading, learning, and sharing more with you soon!

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Thoughtful Thursday – June 8, 2023

amybenoit

My intention is to post a Thoughtful Thursday column each week and share some of the insights I have learned in the past week. Here are some of the things I’ve learned this week:

Sad to Savage- Habits I Do On Vacation & Reflecting on Turning 26

In this episode, Shelby was reflecting on turning 26 and asked herself these reflection questions. I think these are great for anytime, especially for a personal growth mindset!

Ask yourself:

  • Who is she?
  • What does she say to herself?
  • How does she describe herself?
  • What does her day look like?
  • What are her daily habits?
  • Where does she live?
  • What does she do for work?
  • What does her work day look like?
  • What makes her feel good?
  • When does she work out?
  • How does she view nutrition?
  • Who does she surround herself with?
  • What are the daily choices that she makes?
  • What are the choices that she makes on the weekend?
  • What is she doing to get 1% better?
  • What is her favorite way to habit stack?
  • What is her morning routine?
  • What is her nighttime routine?
  • What is she working towards?
  • What are her top 3 goals, and what are 3 daily habits she can do to help her work towards those goals?
  • What is one area she wants to improve in?
Mental Performance Daily- How Are You vs. What Are You?

Instead of asking yourself how you are doing, ask what you are doing. What should I be doing right now? What is the best use of my time, energy, effort, and focus right now? How I am doing is hit or miss, up and down as part of the human condition. Asking yourself what you are doing is going to help you perform at an elite level; comparing what you are doing vs. what you should be doing.

Optimal Living Daily- Breaking the Dependency to My Phone by Mollie of This EverGreen Home
  • Use social media less frequently. Set a daily time limit. You can use apps to limit your screen time.
  • Check e-mail at designated times.
  • Track your app usage.
  • Find a home base for your phone so it isn’t always next to you.
  • Turn off notifications.
  • Begin a new behavior. Ex: instead of browsing on your phone, read a book.
  • Turn on do not disturb.
How to Be a Better Human- What we can learn from great salespeople (w/ Colin Coggins)

Everyone is either selling an idea, themselves, or a product or a service.

  • The greatest sellers on the planet create agency with the person they are speaking with so that they feel like they are part of the decision-making process.
  • Acknowledge what’s happening in real life. That’s what sales is about.
  • You want people to look for the good in you and believe in you. That doesn’t happen unless you can reciprocate that.
  • Realize that who people hope you are and who people expect you are are two different things. People hope you’re like them.
  • The next time you go into a meeting, spend three minutes thinking about three things that you could love about this person.
  • What you get paid to do and what you love doing aren’t always the same thing, but a lot of times there are areas in what you get paid to do that you do love – like the stuff you would do for free. Isolate what you love. See if you can delegate or avoid the things that you don’t love.
The Savvy Psychologist- 7 types of rest you’ve been missing

Physical rest (passive and active)– sleeping, napping, FOLLOW A SLEEP PROTOCOL/EVENING ROUTINE, stretching, yoga, breathing exercises, progressive muscle relaxation, hot baths, massages. Watch out for signs that you need physical rest, such as lacking energy to make it through the day, feeling tired but having difficulty falling asleep, reliance on substances to give you energy, and depending on substances to give you more rest.

Mental rest– mental fatigue can result from a variety of things, including negative self-talk, rumination, anxious what-if thinking, being stuck in the past, and judgments. Signs that you may need mental rest include irritability and decreased frustration tolerance, avoiding activities, feeling like you’re in a mental fog throughout the day, and feeling overwhelmed by daily tasks. One way to ease the mental load is through good time management skills. Take into account not only the amount of time a task takes, but the emotional load it takes as well. Another way to give yourself mental rest is through meditation.

Emotional rest– where are you spending your emotional energy? Frustration, anxiety, inadequacy, sadness, annoyance, etc. Some signs you may be experiencing an emotional rest deficit include beating ourselves up for small mistakes, excessive worry or anxiety, feelings of self-doubt, and over apologizing. Be mindful of your environment and the things/people that drain you and restore you. Emotions are contagious. Modify your environments the best you can. Emotional awareness is key to identifying emotional drains and emotional restores. Reduce the amount of social comparisons that you do.

Spiritual rest– organized religious practices, connecting with something greater than yourself, prayer, feeling a sense of belonging by getting involved with your community, meditation, things that bring you a sense of purpose and make you feel connected

Social rest– A social rest deficit occurs when we fail to differentiate between relationships that restore us and relationships that drain us. It can also occur when we are engaging in too much or too little social interaction. Signs you have a social rest deficit include feeling alone, feeling detached, finding it hard to maintain close relationships, isolating from others, or finding that you are attracted to those that mistreat you. Identify your social needs. If you are introverted and have a customer-facing job, allow yourself alone time to recharge at the end of the day. Listen to your social needs and stop comparing yourself to others. Be present and show up in your social networks. This will aid in deepening relationships and feeling more connected. Find like-minded individuals who share some of your hobbies. Join a group.

Sensory rest– giving your senses a break- overwhelming senses with constant stimuli. Spend some time away from your electronics. Read a physical book instead. Turn off the lights. Listen to your senses and give the ones that appear agitated a break.

Creative rest– if you’ve ever felt like you’re out of good ideas, you’ve experienced being creatively drained. Creativity is about our ability to be innovative, think outside the box, or be inventive. People require creative rest when they feel stuck, uninspired, and unable to generate new ideas or solutions to problems. The key here is to remove the requirement to produce and get involved with activities that inspire you. Make time for the things you don’t normally make time for to refill your creative cup.

How I Built This with Guy Raz- Angie’s Boomchickapop: Angie & Dan Bastian

I was eager to learn more about Angie’s Boomchickapop, as their sweet and salty kettle corn is my favorite store-bought popcorn!! They also originated in my home state of Minnesota.

Beginnings:

  • Neither Dan nor Angie ever had a particular love for popcorn initially. They needed a way to earn extra money to save for their kids’ college funds, and popping and selling kettle corn seemed like a reasonable way to do it. In 2001, after Dan saw an internet ad for kettle corn equipment, he convinced Angie that they should go for it. They started in their garage in Mankato, Minnesota.
  • They bought a kit using a 0% interest credit card. The kit included a tent, outdoor kettle, and table and paid $8k or $10k. Of note, the kit did not have instructions!
  • Dan was working as a teacher and Angie was working as a nurse at the time.
  • Rainbow Foods was the first place that allowed them to sell it (in front of the door outside) in November 2001. They were limited because they had to pop outdoors due to propane with the kettle. They took 1 hour to set up, bagged using twist-tie bags, and sold $300 of kettle corn.
  • Their business was originally called Kettle Corn Café.
  • Coworkers and students were surprised to see them on the weekends with their kettle corn business.

Growth:

  • In 2002, they started to sell outside of the Minnesota Vikings training camp and gave some free popcorn to the players.
  • The players loved it, but Dan and Angie realized that they would need to pay for a sponsorship fee to be the Minnesota Vikings’ preferred popcorn! They paid an $8k sponsorship fee.
  • Dan quit his job in 2003 after 2 years in the business to focus on the popcorn business.
  • Lunds and Byerlys was interested but wanted them to get their act together for selling. They needed to find a facility, different packaging, etc.
  • They bought a small kitchen 6 months later and moved operation indoors, got the kitchen licensed, and launched 6 months later with a new brand name: Angie’s.
  • They found 2 retired teachers willing to help out and paid $8 an hour for BOTH of them.

Challenges:

  • During their first 7 years, they were buried further and further into debt.
  • They weren’t profitable at first. They used funds to buy a trailer, a heater, and other items. Everything seemed to go back into the business.
  • In 2008, they had to get a million-dollar loan to get a bigger facility to ramp up production. They had debt and didn’t really have collateral and were turned down for a loan by many banks. They had about 20 employees at the time.
  • They eventually found a partner who gave them a line of credit using personal guarantees (home, future earnings – everything but the mini van).

Expansion:

  • In 2008, after years of persistence, they got into Trader Joes after sending products to a contact. Trader Joes put in an order for 25 trucks ($500k worth) that would be distributed across the country to Trader Joes. Jon and Angie didn’t have enough money to buy the materials for this order, so they ordered a new credit card with a $100k line of credit and requested an immediate wire transfer!
  • Due to popularity, Trader Joes came back with another order of 25 truckloads. The business needed to scale up quickly and hire more people.
  • In 2009, revenue was $3-$4 million.
  • In 2011, outside investment firm, Sherbrooke Capital, made an offer and acquired a majority stake in Angie’s.
  • In 2011, Angie’s was in the natural and organic snack section in Costco, Target, and regional grocery chains and was doing very well. Angie’s started with kettle corn but wanted to expand through providing different flavors, messaging, and branding.
  • Dan’s cell phone was on every package because that was the business phone and he received several phone calls at all hours asking if the product is gluten-free. So they decided to get certified gluten-free.
  • Also in 2011, they went to a branding agency to come up with a new name. Boomchickapop, the new name, launched in 2012. It was the first non-GMO branded popcorn on the market. The yellow bags of sea salt popcorn were the #1 selling SKU in four months – after 9 years of business.

$$$:

  • In 2014, TPG Growth, a private equity firm, bought out Sherbrooke. Boomchickapop equity shares became liquid to staff. They distributed millions of dollars! Between 2014 and 2017, Dan and Angie sold a big share of their ownership to TPG Growth.
  • In 2017, 16 years after the business started, ConAgra bought out Boomchickapop for $250 million! When ConAgra bought the company in 2017, they also acquired the old kettle originally bought in 2001.
  • They never imagined they would make it that far with their initial investment.

I look forward to reading, learning, and sharing more with you soon!

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Thoughtful Thursday- March 2, 2023

amybenoit

My intention is to post a Thoughtful Thursday column each week and share some of the insights I have learned in the past week. Here are some of the things I’ve learned this week:

But Why: A Podcast for Curious Kids- Don’t swallow gum! And other things parents say

This was an interesting episode covering myths parents tell their kids. The most interesting issue addressed was that people say you must wait one hour after eating to go swimming. I have heard this throughout life, and I just learned that this is a myth! There is no harm in swimming right after eating. The worst that could happen as a result is that, if you swim vigorously right after eating a large meal, you might vomit. Most swimming is not done vigorously, so there’s no need to wait to get back in the water!

For You From Eve- Wellness Hacks and Mindset Shifts that Actually Work & Changed My Life

These wellness hacks helped the host change her life:

  • Stop distracting yourself with media. Let yourself feel your feelings and reflect.
  • Journal and write affirmations.
  • Take cold showers for breathwork/calming down. It doesn’t need to be a full cold shower; you can start with 1-2 minutes of cold water before adjusting the temperature.
  • Exercise!
  • Invest in skincare/makeup/hair.
  • Meal prep and purchase healthy foods.
  • Set limits for time spent on social media. List to podcasts instead.
  • Read self-help books.
  • Get 7-9 hours of sleep.
  • Take vitamins and supplements.
  • Meditate.

I do many of these things, and they have helped me change my life! Exercising, journaling and writing affirmations, starting a skincare routine, meal prepping and clean eating, reading self-help books, listening to podcasts, prioritizing sleep, and limiting social media have benefited me greatly.

I am currently reading “1000+ Little Things Happy Successful People Do Differently” written by Marc Chernoff. One thing that has stood out to me so far is:

Everyone gets upset and loses their temper sometimes. When you catch yourself passing judgment, add “just like me sometimes” to the end of a sentence. For example: That person is grouchy, just like me sometimes. She is being rude, just like me sometimes. Choose to let things go. Let others off the hook. Take the high road today.

Marc Chernoff
Sad to Savage- Things I Wish I Knew Sooner: Advice From Your Big Sister (Shelby Sacco)

Sad to Savage is one of my favorite podcasts and is mostly focused on habits. However, this episode contained so many things I needed to hear that are mostly unrelated to daily habits:

  • Being selfish is the most important thing you can do in your twenties. Do what’s best for you and be independent.
  • You are who you surround yourself with.
  • Growth is not linear. Life is a rollercoaster.
  • Quit the job you hate. If you need the income, spend a couple days or weeks updating your resume and applying to jobs. You spend a lot of time at work, so don’t tough it out in hopes that it will get better.
  • Find the fitness you like. If you’re miserable doing it, it’s not the correct fitness for you. You should not dread working out.
  • Cheating has nothing to do with you and has everything to do with someone else’s qualities.

If someone treats you badly due to addictions, you cannot control someone who does not want to change. You cannot make someone want a different life.

  • Do not leave your hardest tasks for the end of the day when you have less willpower. Be smart with your willpower. When you have formed daily habits, they don’t take willpower.
  • Invest in yourself and your future. You can educate yourself through reading.
  • Do not rely on motivation. The days you don’t feel like it are the days that matter most.

Not everyone is going to like you, and that’s okay. What people think of you is none of your business.

  • The red flags you choose to ignore won’t go away.
  • The words you say to yourself and about yourself make up how you see yourself, and they decide your actions, which ultimately decide your life.
  • You are never too good to apologize to someone.

No one is in charge of your happiness except for you. You need to find and do things that bring you happiness.

When having a conversation with someone, ask if they want advice or just want someone to listen. Same goes for when you are the one talking.

Your entire life can be completely different in one year if you choose to do the work.

Waking up early will give you the time you need to do the things that you currently don’t have time for.

Your habits make up your life. You have the power to choose/change/create your habits. Investing in yourself and your habits will be the best choice you will ever make.

Optimal Finance Daily- 9 Painless Ways to Trick Yourself Into Spending Less by Sarah Von Bargen
  • Unsubscribe from newsletters that tempt you.
  • Block yourself from websites where you spend too much.
  • Turn off your computer’s/phone’s autocomplete credit card option so that you have to be bothered to get up and retrieve your card every time.
  • Order online and do curbside pickup to prevent impulse purchases.
  • Eat something before you go shopping. Don’t go shopping while hungry.
  • Give yourself a three-day waiting period. If you forget all about it, you don’t need it. If you still find yourself thinking about it three days later, pull the trigger.
  • Put yourself on a cash-only budget. We are much slower to spend cash than use our credit cards, and cash is not an option when online shopping.
  • Put a reminder in your wallet. You could print a wallet-sized photo of something you’re saving for.
  • Unfollow social media accounts that tempt you to spend. Unfollow accounts that make you want to spend more to keep up, and fill your feed with those who provide value to you or who are in your tax bracket.

Personal tip: If you are concerned about unsubscribing to newsletters that tempt you, when you want to purchase something, look on milled.com and search for the company to view e-mails that have been sent to customers to look for discounts. You can also look up promo codes online for discounts.

I look forward to reading, learning, and sharing more with you soon!