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#WednesdayWisdom

"I am open to the abundance and blessings designed for my life. I will not try to force what is not meant for me." — Alexandra Elle

Morning Musings

Four years ago, I had a mini-meltdown while eating a delicious salad at the cute little cafe around the corner from my office. Left to my own devices, I wandered over to Twitter to take a gander at the day's news between bites. Big mistake.

Forbes' infamous #30Under30 list had just been published, and once again I wasn't on it. Only this time, the reality that I'd likely never be on it as I had just turned 29 started to set in and I began to panic. There goes that pipe dream, I thought to myself.

Thankfully, I'd started therapy a few months prior, so my recovery time from the impending doom spiral of self-pity was shortened (shoutout to self-compassion exercises). Sure, the rejection stung, but I didn't dwell on it for days and days as I had in years prior.

I've always struggled with my intention to do good work and my desire to be recognized for it. Heck, I even wrote a blog post about it back in the day. Fortunately, I've always had people in my corner reminding me that these lists don't matter, but whether I actually agreed and/or listened to them was a different story.

Four years out from crying into my salad (and one day after this year's list has been published), I can acknowledge and appreciate that a) I've always been a late bloomer; b) my worth is not tied to arbitrary lists; and c) the work, the impact, the purpose -- whatever you want to call it -- matters more than the recognition. It simply does. It always has and it always will.

Now don't get me wrong, I would looove to make a #40Under40 list. I may have evolved, but I'm still human (and am still very much an Enneagram Type 3 and y'all know how much we love achievements). But I'm definitely not going to lose any sleep over it.

To my under 30 friends, it gets better, I promise. Three years into my 30s and I'm falling more and more in love with the woman I'm becoming every day. To my over 30 friends, you already know what it is. We got this.

Love,
L'Oreal

ICYMI

In other news, one of my recent tweets went viral. But don't worry, "I'm still, I'm still LT from the block" (J. Lo voice). 😉

Cool Opps

Dec. 2 (TONIGHT): Trust Your Dopeness: Seven Steps to Combat Impostor Syndrome. I'm excited to partner with Ama La Vida Coaching for this interactive workshop AND offer 10 lucky winners the opportunity to win a bracelet from MantraBand. Deets here. (Free)

Dec. 10: Putting the People Back in Philanthropy. Next week, I'm moderating this panel with Women Unite! about ways we can come together to make real, lasting change. (Suggested donation, $15)

Dec. 16: Pinot x Poetry. I'm closing out the year with my friend, best-selling author and award-winning poet Pam Johnson Davis. Join us on IG Live at 6 pm CT for love, laughter and, of course, wine and poetry. (Free)

Links I Love

1. The Losses We Share. Meghan, the Duchess of Sussex, opens up about her recent miscarriage and how we can better care for one another this season. (New York Times)

2. A History of Mediocre White Men (and How They Get Ahead). Journalist Adrienne Samuels Gibbs interviews author Ijeoma Oluo about her latest book, Mediocre: The Dangerous Legacy of White Male America. (ZORA)

3. About That Wave of Anti-Racist Bestsellers Over the Summer… What happened to all those books so-called white allies were buying up earlier this year? Writer and bookseller Katherine Morgan wondered the same thing. (Lit Hub)

My Latest Obsession

What I love: cheesy holiday movies.

What I don't love: the lack of representation in many of them.

But it looks like Lifetime at least is trying to rectify the situation. I could not wait to watch Merry Liddle Christmas starring Kelly Rowland last holiday season (and shoutout to my friend Leila for hooking us with the cable connect at work), so I was thrilled to learn of the sequel, Merry Liddle Christmas Wedding, this year.

It's cheesy, yes. But that's to be expected. What I love most is the #BlackLove on prominent display. All the feels.

Now Hiring

1. Senior Associate Editor at Harvard Business Publishing

2. Communications Manager at Color of Change

3. Senior Culture Editor at BuzzFeed

4. Features Editor at Romper

5. Director of Communications at YR Media

6. Senior Brand Designer at Medium

7. Senior Relationship Manager at Slack

8. Trainer at The Posse Foundation

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