Monday, 10/30/23: Talking about planning for November

Happy Monday!

It’s a new week, which means it’s time for your next Monday motivation newsletter.

Read on below for some steps to a happier Monday, a short story and a roundup of positive thoughts to get your week started.

Three Steps to a Happier Monday

Each newsletter starts with three prompts to inspire gratitude and simple intention setting. Take a moment and jot down answers to these three questions. To give an example, I share my answers below.  

Step 1: What are three things I appreciated from the weekend? 

Step 2: What is one thing I can be excited about today?

Step 3: What is my intention for this week? 

GRATITUDE: I’m thankful for a fun football weekend at Notre Dame, traditions with friends and a slow Sunday yesterday. 

TODAY: Today I’m most excited to go on a run outside before work – the sun is supposed to be out, yay!

INTENTION: My intention this week is to focus on building a buffer between work and non-work time. Okay, your turn! And if you want to share your three steps, I am all ears. 🙂

Meaningful Musings: Planning for November

I’m writing this on a chilly, rainy Sunday, cozied up with a cup of coffee, thinking about how Wednesday is NOVEMBER 1!

November is the kickoff to some very fun and festive months, followed by the lovely return to routine and fresh start of January. I love this time of year and cannot wait.

Traveling and plans-wise, November will start off slower for me before picking up for the second half. I’m excited about that. Works feels busier than normal right now (usually does this time of year!), so I’m looking forward to having the time to make progress on the projects I’m working on, and have some time for myself too.

I love doing these monthly planning sessions as they help me take stock of things like that – recognizing the natural rhythms of the month and prompting myself to be more intentional about my time.

So, without further ado, let’s get to planning November!

What do I love about the month of November? 

• THANKSGIVING, and the overall kickoff to the holiday season. 
• Lots of birthdays! My mom’s and youngest brother’s birthdays are a day apart (and over Thanksgiving!), and my uncle, cousin and a few friends have birthdays in November. Love celebrating all of them!

Anything unique about this November? 

• I will be home in Orlando for a week over Thanksgiving – and excited for Matt to be with me too! What are the chances that Butler (Matt’s undergrad alma mater/family’s favorite team) and Penn State (my parents’ alma mater) would be playing in a tournament IN Orlando over Thanksgiving?! Excited to go with Matt, my family and his family!
• I’m heading back to NYC for week in mid-November. Looking forward to meeting more team members and clients in-person 

November 2023 Goals

• Go to bed earlier. I have been slipping into some not-great habits of fitting in either a late-night or early-morning work session, and then not making up for it with sleep. Plus, with the days getting shorter and colder, I’m finding it harder to wake up early for that early-morning workout class or run. Working on going to bed earlier feels like something I can realistically do to set myself up for success, in terms of being better able to focus at work and feel well-rested enough to use the early morning hours for myself.
• Finish holiday planning! I have the big stuff – flight homes, etc. – mapped out, but in November (and specifically the first half of November while I’m home in Chicago), I want to intentionally plan out all the other little things that make the holiday season feel so special. When am I going to go see the big tree downtown? What about a fancy holiday dinner with friends? What’s my shopping list for gifts?  
• Start thinking about 2024 (!) goals. I love thinking about the new year and what I want to make of it. I love the idea of starting a running list of thoughts for 2024 – what do I hope to do? What kinds of things do I not want to do? What do I want more of/less of?

Wishing you a wonderful week – and month of November! – ahead. 

On My Monday Radar

Sometimes we just aren’t ready to jump into our Monday to-do list right away. In case you want some content to procrastinate with, here is a roundup of a few positive things on my radar:  

• Cozy Thanksgiving morning. All the talk about Thanksgiving made me think of this blog post. Loved reading it and reflecting on my favorite parts of Thanksgiving morning. It’s the best! 
• Spooky Halloween snacks. Didn’t mean to skip right past Halloween, which is tomorrow! These snack ideas are adorable – and fun. 
• I finished two – very different – books last week: American Duchess and A Flicker in the Dark. I liked, but didn’t love, both. I found American Duchess (the story of Consuelo Vanderbilt) interesting, plus I am fascinated with anything Gilded Age-related. However, I did not enjoy it as much as the other historical fiction book (The Magnificent Lives of Marjorie Post), which I read earlier this year. And then A Flicker in the Dark was unputdownable – I started it on a flight on Friday and was finished with it by Monday. But, be warned, it is dark!! Excellent writing though. 

Picture of the Week

That’s all for today! I hope you found something in today’s newsletter that sparked motivation, made you smile or inspired a positive Monday thought. Don’t underestimate the power of starting small… a fulfilling week starts with just one fulfilling day. You’ve got this! 

Let’s make it a great Monday!
Megan