Welcome To NaBloWriMo

Have you ever heard of NaNoWriMo? Well the incredible Kaya Marriott of Comfy Girl With Curls, has decided to do a version of it, more so a NaBloWriMo and I thought it would be great for me to join along. I used to be an avid writer however over the years and many transitions later the capacity for anything but surviving has been non-existent. I’ve thankfully moved past all of that now into a state of expansion, and feel as though I have the time, space and energy to take on a challenge like this. 

Over 20 years ago, National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo) started as a challenge to write 50,000 words of a novel in thirty days. “Now, each year on November 1, hundreds of thousands of people around the world begin to write, determined to end the month with 50,000 words of a brand new novel.” However, Kaya is going to be attempting to write 1667 word blog posts every day for the entire month of November, and I will do the same. Whether or not you see these posts is up for question as I may schedule them to go out over some time. However this will be a great opportunity for me to get back into the writing groove. To be honest, I feel it already - sitting at my desk after 8 hours of writing emails, solving technical problems for multi-million dollar businesses, to type just a little bit more doesn’t seem like too much of a challenge. So I’m up for it!

Since this is going to be my first blog post on my new website, I feel I should do a little re introduction - especially for those that may have recently met me in Vancouver. Hey 🙋🏽‍♀️, my name is Lesley and I am an avid planner (and not so much doer), but please don't hold that against me. I am a type 7, visionary that loves imagining all the incredible ways that I can make the world a better place. However, I seldomly act on these extensive plans that I craft out for achieving the visions. It’s typically perfectionism that gets in my way - That all changes now [saying this for yall to hold me accountable for real]. 

Empathy + Me is my greatest vision that came to me back in August of 2018. I woke up one morning with the idea and ran with it. Breaking open a fresh journal and scribbling like my life depended on it. 2 hrs later I had crafted a near entire business plan, the structuring of the different pillars that would encompass it, and concepts for a variety of product offerings I would have. I wrote scripts for the intro and outro of the podcast pillar, where I would invite guests on to share their stories of trauma + triumph. Community events were important to me because Iunderstand the power of sharing knowledge, space and healing with others; this was going to be the next pillar. At this moment, I can't remember what the last pillar was and I have no idea where my journal is that contains all of this [I just searched the entire condo and think it might be back in Toronto] however I can tell you that this last pillar started as a self-care subscription box. In 2019, I found myself in a 6 month long entrepreneurship program called BizStart. This program really showed me the ins and outs of what it takes to be an entrepreneur and create a business - I ended up founding The Empathy Crate because of this. The Empathy Crate is a line of all-natural handmade candles, bath soaks and aroma sprays, and the third and final pillar of Empathy + Me. 

With incredible support from my community around the GTA, I successfully ran this business full-time out of my mother’s basement for 2 years. I’ve made lifelong friends, connections and an astounding network that I will be forever grateful for. The knowledge is everlasting. The struggles and challenges were tough; I overcame and learnt so much. We can get into all of that another time though, if you’d like. Either way, I’d say the multitude of lessons set me up for the perfect background to enter into the Tech space. 

That brings us to the present day! Before my partner and I packed up everything we could fit in his car - I knew I would need to find a well paying job. I also knew that if I were going to work for “the man” again it would be for one specific tech company and that’s it. So I applied the day we left Ontario and the day after we arrived in Vancouver I had my first interview. Second interview was the following week and I got the job a week after that. An hour after I got the letter of acceptance, we got the news that we secured a place to live as well. Divine alignment. In the weeks leading up, I never cried so much with fear that we would not secure housing or jobs, however everything laid itself out perfectly for us. Overall, it’s been a rollercoaster ride of a transition  and I’m grateful for the immense growth I’ve experienced through it all.

Now that my lengthy introduction is out of the way, you probably want to know what you can expect from me in these blog posts, huh? Well, I’ve only recently concluded that I’m passionate about all things wellness. Period. Whether that is breathwork, holistic living, or managing your financial health. I truly care about it all. I’m on a journey of becoming the most whole version of myself - breaking down all of the  different aspects of who I am into molecular pieces. Doing this will allow me to pinpoint specific areas that need improvement and others that I genuinely want to pour more into. There was a point in time where I couldn’t see a future for myself beyond 25, and now I see a long life ahead of me. The changes that I’d like to make to my life will support the joy filled journey ahead. This is what I’ll be sharing with you all here. The journey to wholeness. The minute facets of personal evolution. The confusion, grief, bliss, and joy that come with the journey. I can’t say for certain the literal content I’ll create out of this however I can share that it’ll be good (and loosely edited).

I'm hoping that this blogging challenge will allow me to open up to you all again and we can continue forming a genuine community centered around healing, vulnerability and being.  I will show up for myself in this way and in turn show up for you as well. So welcome! Welcome to the journey of me getting my groove back. Welcome to my thoughts, opinions, diligent research, and love for all things holistic living. Welcome to the raw, authentic, and vulnerable aspects of me. Welcome to…my little peace of the Internet - make yourself at home <3

I encourage you to do forms of your own writing everyday, whether that's a simple gratitude journal or more extensive research based sessions. Get all of those thoughts, dreams, and visions out of our mind and concrete on paper. Feel free to share different topics you’d like to read from me and I’m always here for your honest feedback.

References: 

https://nanowrimo.org/about-nano