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designing your reality & trusting yourself

designing your reality & trusting yourself

plus how technology increases accessibility

Welcome back to Mind club, a newsletter filled with insights to help you thrive in the modern world. Thanks for being here!

Hi human 👋

Over the weekend, I was in Monterey for Sea Otter Classic, a cycling and outdoor festival. The event was like Coachella weekend for outdoor enthusiasts.

There were bike races, camping sites, and an expo with thousands of outdoor and cycling brands.

People from all over the world came to Monterey to celebrate cycling.

It was my second time attending Sea Otter Classic with my dad, and one of the things I love about the event is that it’s not just for athletes and professionals.

New technology makes cycling more accessible. With the rise of e-bikes, anyone, regardless of their age or fitness level, can ride and explore.

Some photos I took at Sea Otter Classic

Here’s what’s on my mind this week:

👩🏻‍🎨 Designing your dream reality

Your beliefs impact everything: the choices you make, the risks you take, the mountains you climb. People spend a lot of time talking about habits, but the habits of how you THINK are the real game-changers.

Dr. Julie Gurner

A few years ago, Tumblr was the microblogging platform of choice. I was reblogging hundreds of photos, quotes, and words. Tumblr was my version of a vision board that I updated often.

I didn’t think I believed in vision boards, but when I looked back at my Tumblr blog recently, I realized most of the posts I shared are now part of my reality.

Without really thinking about it, I designed my life.

☁️ Designing your reality // Tips to consider:

Set a direction. What would your best life look like? What if everything went right? By envisioning what you want, you’re planting seeds in your mind that you can nurture. If you don’t have clarity about what you want yet, keep exploring and discovering things about yourself 😌. Listen to this podcast episode by Dulma Altan for prompts on finding your purpose.
Release mental blocks. Mental blocks can manifest as self-limiting beliefs, negative thought patterns, procrastination, and more. Do the inner work. It takes time, effort, and self-awareness, but it's worth it. Check out this video by Anna Akana on how to reprogram your subconscious mind.
Take responsibility for your own life. Remember that you can shape your reality. Blaming people and circumstances limits your personal growth. Feel empowered that you have what it takes to create positive outcomes in your life.

✨ Practices to try:

An exercise for designing a remarkable life. Envision what you want your life to look like ten years into the future with this writing exercise by designer, author, educator, and entrepreneur Debbie Millman.
Create a vision board. If you’re a visual person, vision boards are a fantastic way to visualize your dream reality. My current vision board is a Pinterest board which I can view on my phone’s home screen.
Set an intention everyday. I started using The Five Minute Journal, a daily gratitude journal with five simple prompts. So far, the journal is helping me shift my focus on the good and be more intentional about my days. One of the prompts I love answering is: “What would make today great?”.
Solo meetings. On Mondays, I have a solo meeting to review what happened the previous week and set my intentions for the week ahead. Solo meetings are a great way to ensure your actions align with your intentions, as mentioned by Fidji Simo, former head of the Facebook app and current CEO of Instacart.

⚡️Trusting yourself

Photo from Sea Otter Classic

Another highlight at Sea Otter Classic was the jaw-dropping bike stunts. Cyclists pulled tricks over cars, tables, other people, and anything they could think of.

I couldn’t help but wonder what goes on in their minds when they pull those stunts. Aside from mastering the techniques, they appear to trust themselves fully. Everyone else is watching them take a risk they know they can 100% conquer.

For cyclists doing stunts, things can get dangerous once self-doubt and hesitation creep in.

In my own life, I’ve been working on strengthening my self-trust. It comes down to getting to know myself more - making lists of everything I like and enjoy, identifying my boundaries, and making my own decisions, big and small.

Photo from Visualize Value

☁️ How to strengthen self-trust:

Focus on what you’re good at. Everyone has strengths and qualities unique to them. In this podcast episode, Shark Tank’s Barbara Corcoran talks about how having self-trust helped her rise to success.
Make your own decisions. Asking people to make decisions for you lessens your mental load, but by doing so, you’re not taking full accountability for your life. It could come from a fear of making the wrong decision, but as Isabel from Mind Mine says: “Even the “wrong” decisions are the right decisions in the big picture—because we learn from them either way, and learning is winning.”

No one else knows what you want and what’s best for you, so make your own decisions.
Let go of external validation. It’s impossible to please everyone, and you’ll disappoint yourself in an attempt to do so. Learn about what you deeply want and find comfort in being yourself.

💸 Financial Wellness Corner

Financial wellness is all about developing healthy financial habits and a positive relationship with money.

💡Word of the week:

💭 Did you know that investing in stocks wasn't as accessible before?

Brokerage firms required people to have a certain amount of money to invest, buying and selling stocks involved fees, and stock market information was not widespread.

Today, you can start investing with as little as $5, buy fractional shares of a company, and get stock market news right on your phone.

When I started investing in 2015, there were a few tools available.

I used a traditional brokerage firm, where I had to email someone when I wanted to invest my money. There were a lot of steps involved before I could even invest, so I didn't do it as often.

Thankfully, things are different now.

Because of technology and new tools, investing in stocks is more accessible than ever.

📈 So, why consider investing in stocks?

💸 Increase your net worth. Your net worth, the total value of your assets minus debts, is one way to measure your financial health. Owning assets that appreciate significantly, like stocks, is one way to increase your net worth.
🌐 More accessible than other assets. Stocks have a lower barrier to entry compared to assets like real estate. Plus, publicly listed companies are highly regulated and are generally transparent. You can find information about a company’s financials to make informed investment decisions.
🧪 Stocks are liquid. If your investing strategy, goals, or market conditions change, you can quickly enter or exit an investment position. Since stocks are liquid assets, you can convert your shares into cash with a few clicks on your phone. (It doesn’t take as much time as selling real estate, collectibles, or alternative assets.)
🤑 Another source of income. Profitable companies distribute a portion of their profits to shareholders, known as dividends. If you own shares of a dividend-paying company, you can benefit from the appreciation of their stock price and dividends paid in cash.

Have any questions or ideas for the next edition? Reply to this email and let me know.

Disclaimer: The views expressed in this newsletter are for informational and recreational purposes only. Nothing contained in this newsletter should be construed as investment advice.

🪩 Internet Finds

🍓 Cottage cheese ice cream anyone? I tried the viral cottage cheese ice cream, and it’s not bad. It’s tangy and tastes like Greek yogurt. I only used four ingredients: cottage cheese, maple syrup, strawberries, and graham crackers. Here’s the recipe I followed from Maxi’s Kitchen.
🍋 Lemon8. Are you on Lemon8? It’s a new social app that feels like a combination of Pinterest and Instagram. When I first used Lemon8, it inspired me to doodle on all my photos and create posts. TikTok’s parent company, ByteDance, owns Lemon8, but it’s not nearly as addictive as TikTok.
👻 Snapchat AI bot. Snapchat has a new AI chatbot called MyAI, powered by OpenAI's ChatGPT. Interestingly, you can use the bot in conversations with friends, eliminating the need to exit Snapchat to Google something.

That’s all for now. If you want to chat about any part of this newsletter, let me know what’s on your mind by replying to this email. ᵕ̈

Karina

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