Hi Reader,

Spooky Season is almost over, but if you think the Sunday Scaries will continue haunting you, this one's for you.

There's no quick fix for burnout. In my experience, it can take years to truly recover. Years and a significant change to your environment, job situation, or even a career pivot. Years and renewed commitment to habits that prioritize your emotional, physical, and mental wellbeing.

So this week, I'm sharing three things you can do TODAY to make work suck less.

Let's find a little joy wherever we can.

1. Pinpoint how you serve your customer

Can you picture your customer?

If you're in a customer-facing role, you likely know exactly who your customer is. If you're in a "back of house" role, it may be harder to identify who you're going to work for every day. Maybe you're a program manager or a software developer and you never get to interact with the people who ultimately benefit from the fruits of your labor.

But, it's important to connect with your end-user. Even if it's just a bit of an exercise. Meaningful work is one of the key spokes to battling burnout.

So, picture your customer using the thing or benefiting from the service your company delivers.

Now, write down your role in making that person's life easier, more accessible, more profitable, healthier--whatever it is, no matter how far removed from it you feel.

"I help [type of customer] to [benefit they see] by [what you do every day]."

Think of the janitor at NASA who, when asked what his role was in 1962, replied "I'm helping put a man on the moon."

2. Thank a few cool people

Gratitude really is the secret sauce.

Think of three people who really helped you over the last couple of weeks. What did they do? How did it make your life or job easier?

Now, shoot each of them a text, email, or Slack to tell them how much their support means to you. If you're feeling brave, pick up the phone and call.

"I just wanted to say how much I appreciated you doing [whatever awesome thing they did] to help me out last week. It really helped me [whatever annoying / mundane / frustrating thing you avoided]. Thank you so much and please let me know if there's anything I can do for you."

3. Connect with a work bestie

Having a best friend at work will make you happier.

Maybe you don't have a work bestie on your current team. But I bet you there's an amazing person from a previous company or team who you miss spending time with every day. Perhaps a beloved former manager or mentor?

Reach out today and schedule a 30-min coffee chat (in person or virtual) with nothing on the agenda except to catch up on all the things.

I do this regularly and it winds up being the absolute highlight of my week.

Do these 3 things today, and I promise you'll find a smile on your face.

Stuff I'm loving this week

1. I rediscovered Glossier. The cloud paint duo combined with a bit of mascara has me looking less haggard than usual. 10/10 recommend.
2. Pumpkins. I absolutely love walking around Capitol Hill to see all the Halloween decorations. Give me all the ghosts, spiders, witches, purple twinkly lights, and gourds.
3. The Fall of the House of Usher on Netflix. It's just enough spooky to not give me nightmares, and the storyline is human enough to keep me at the edge of my seat.

Happy Halloween, friends. You got this.

Cassandra

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113 Cherry St #92768, Seattle, WA 98104-2205
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