I’ve been finding focus in the most unlikely places.

“No working!” the security guard joked as I slid my laptop back into my backpack. I gave a small laugh and kept walking through the entrance, knowing that working is exactly what I intended to do at…

Legoland.

I’m someone who often says that I thrive on routine. I like my creature comforts, living in soft pants and curling up with a book. And yet, in order to actually get things done, I need to leave all of that behind. For some reason, I gravitate toward places with uncomfortable tables and chairs. That intentional discomfort seems to do the trick.

And nothing says discomfort quite like trying to get work done while five kids run circles around your table on a sugar high while their parents debate ramen versus Mexican for dinner.

Paradoxically, it’s easier for me to focus on the task at hand when there’s actually some hubbub going on around me (armchair psychologists, tell me what’s wrong with me).

There’s also something about packing up your computer and bringing it somewhere, where the only choice you have is to work. No laundry, no puttering, no succumbing to the couch and your latest binge watch. Just you, a keyboard, and some kids hopped up on Granny’s Apple Fries to help you focus.

Just as I seek an unconventional environment to knock out my to-do list, I find that business as a whole asks that we live our days embracing discomfort and stepping out of our comfort zone. We choose the more challenging path with the vision of a bigger reward.

This is what I tell myself when the challenges start to accumulate. Friends, it can be rough out here. But it also can look like showing up to a theme park on a Monday afternoon. 🎢

Every newsletter will include a Marketing Mini. This section features actions you can take to make marketing a little bit more fun (and effective).

I was talking with a client yesterday about her social media messaging. She was describing an idea she wanted to get across, and mid-sentence she caught herself and said, "I wouldn't say it like that, but..."

I stopped her right there. Because the way she said it before the "but"? That’s what got my attention.

We do this constantly in our marketing. We have the instinct, we find the words, and then we sand all the edges off before anyone can see it. The result is messaging that's safe, technically accurate, and completely forgettable.

Discomfort in your marketing is often a signal of what you should stand for, not a stop sign.

I want to introduce you to the people who I’m growing with. Jackie and I were in the same networking group and finally met through a co-working day at a mutual friend’s house.

Jackie is a functional nutritionist, and her passion for finding and treating the root cause of health and fertility struggles is so evident. Every time I sit down to co-work with her, she shares something that completely blows me away. For instance, that the majority of fertility issues originate outside of the reproductive system. Her insights have shifted my perspective, and Jackie has so much to teach anyone who’s trying to conceive or looking to optimize their health when their regular labs come back “normal.” Her comprehensive lens goes far beyond traditional health testing, addressing both internal and external causes.

There’s a particular kind of discomfort in being told that everything looks fine when you know something isn’t. Jackie’s work is for people willing to sit with that tension and keep asking questions, which sounds a lot like the rest of us navigating self-employment.

Jackie is hosting an in-person talk next Wednesday, April 8 in Sorrento Valley, sharing the Invisible Impacts on fertility. You can register for free here.

Okay, is it just us now? Since we’re a little deeper into this newsletter, I’d like to share some honesty.

The last two weeks have challenged me in new ways, and I’ve come to embrace that a signature of self-employment is encountering challenges and risks that simply don’t exist when you’re working as an employee.

Last week, I was definitely in a place where I threw my hands in the air, asking why it had to be so hard. No Mud, No Lotus came to me at just the right moment.

A friend actually got it for me last year to celebrate my Saturn return, and I'm so thankful I finally opened it up. If you are going through something challenging, No Mud, No Lotus will give you the words that you need to hear, a pep talk for when you’re in the trenches.

Thich Nhat Hanh is one of those guides that I’ve heard about for years, and I’m just now getting to experience the wisdom he shares.

🛍️ The link above is a Bookshop affiliate link, I earn a small commission if you purchase through this link, at no extra cost to you)

This feels like a good place for us to leave it for this week: the mud is a part of our growth, and through the discomfort is an opportunity to make our corner of the world a little bit. better.

Stay Steady,
Molly

P.S. This week's Marketing Mini is about saying it like you mean it. Hit reply and tell me: what's something you've been softening in your messaging that you actually feel pretty strongly about?

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