Hey there fellow Apprentices,
It’s now the 23rd of December… isn’t that crazy?
There are 8 days left until 2023. And soon enough we’ll be crossing out the 22s and replacing them with the 23s in every document we start in January.
It’s been one wild year that’s felt like 4 distinctly different quarters, each with their own challenges, opportunities and learnings. And now as we cross over the Winter Solstice and the days only get longer, the hope of warmer, more joyous times is returning.
But, before we get ahead of ourselves, here’s the monthly shout-out to the 476 of you who decide to have these emails land in your inbox every Friday morning and the 9 of you who help fund this work. However you get involved, thank you. It will always mean a lot to not be shouting into an abyss.
Now to reflect on 4 weeks of adventure, reflection & closure.
What’s Been Going On
It’s been 28 days of moving fast & thinking slow.
Which has taken me here there and everywhere from co-working spaces in Lisbon to the Southbank Centre in London to cafes back home in Shrewsbury. I’ve been embracing the digital nomad lifestyle, going all in with testing out new locations and purposely adapting my routines to fit around the many projects that are bouncing around my life right now.
One of which has been the final week of the LinkedIn Creator Accelerator Programme, which concluded with a graduation ceremony in their London offices in Farringdon. They put on an event to remember with all the food you could ever want, bottomless drinks and a guest appearance from the one, the only Caspar Lee. It was a cool night indeed. But, the best part wasn’t the hospitality (though that was awesome), it was meeting the other 150 odd UK creators who each had their own unique and interesting stories to tell.
From Charlie, the third year student obsessed with networking who’d never posted on LinkedIn before to Ellie, the ADHD advocate who’s become one of the most recognisable names on the platform, the diversity was immense. The LinkedIn team really did find creators from all walks of life and bring them together to have the conversations that matter. While also supporting them with the training, community and money ($8k bagged?!?) to succeed.
So, here’s a quick love letter to LinkedIn: Thank you for continuing to be the catalyst for the endless number of opportunities that land up in my inbox. Without you, I don’t know where I’d be. And as much as I’m taking a well earnt break from the Linkedinsphere until 2023, you can be sure as hell that I’m doubling down on the opportunity in the New Year.
While LinkedIn has taken the limelight, behind the scenes I’ve been leveraging the newfound authority in the future of work space to speak to decision makers about their people strategies. I’ve submitted proposals for a sponsored video series on Third Workspaces, an employee value proposition and, most excitingly, a Hybrid Strategy for a scale-up. They’re all yet to be approved. But, I have full confidence that at least one of them will be lifting off before the end of January.
But, how have I found these opportunities? It’s completely a mixed bag. One was by reaching out to a previous client from the House Hack days, another from following up with the results from the How-to Hybrid video series and a third from posting regularly on LinkedIn. None of them had a specific project in mind. But, through some (now pretty decent) sales skills, I teased out how we could work together. Then summarised everything into beautiful lil’ proposals that are now sitting in their inboxes awaiting approval.
Which means I’m taking tangible steps to realise the next chapter of this pathless path of a career that I’m learning to love.
With 2023 specifically focusing on:
Exploring Future of Work Consulting Projects.
Growing the Mastery In Your 20s Community.
Smashing the Season of Ironman Training.
All while paying myself enough to live in London, deepening connections with existing friends and embracing my extraversion to regularly meet strangers from all walks of life. It’s gonna be a collection of organised chaos that will be fun, freeing and f*cking hard in equal amounts. And I’m sure I’ll be attaching a goal or two to each of these areas as I reflect over the Christmas period.
But, for now they’re good enough as simple intentions.
Which leaves me with one important area to talk about…
That being the next steps for the Mastery In Your 20s community. After 9 months of writing weekly here to you all, it’s about time we shake things up.
The direction is shifting slightly.
From the first post on the 6th Jan I’ll be focusing my weekly writing on creating a community of multipotentialites in their 20s & equipping them with the skills & connections to embrace their potential.
Meaning you can expect the following posts from me in 2023:
Principles - On How to Navigate Your Multipotentialite Career.
Discussions - On Trends & Changes in The Future of Work.
Diaries - On Everything I’ve Learnt as a Multipotentialite.
All of which will be completely free and available to everyone.
But, if you do decide to become a paying subscriber, you’ll now be invited to a Private WhatsApp Community with the following benefits:
Weekly Virtual Reflection Sessions (Join anywhere).
Monthly In-person Meetups (London-based).
Access to Freelancing Opportunities.
Plus a bunch of other benefits that I’ll keep adding to over time; One being the complete Re-mastered 25 Guides e-book once I get a chance to write it.
All for the same low, low price of £8 per month.
So, if you fancy it, Join the Community of Multipotentialites
Or wait until I release the “Theory of Mastery” that will be landing in your inbox on 6th Jan as the official guide for building a successful career as a multipotentialite in your 20s.
Until then I’ll see you for a Best Posts of 2022 next week.
The Month’s Lesson: When you have several projects spinning at once, you need to expect things to go slower. But, remember to aim not for speed in everything you do, but consistency instead. Small steps add up to big leaps. It all just depends on the time horizon you’re looking at.
What’s Coming Up Next
The Upcoming Ironman Season
After 3 months of focused base training it’s almost time to put on the racing shoes and see what this body is capable of. While it’s still 6 months until the big Ironman UK race in Bolton, there’s a whole season of events that are starting to shape up before then. From a half marathon to a Mallorca trip to a cycling sportive or two, there’s a lot already in the calendar as I fully intend to cash in being the fittest I’ve ever been.
Moving Back To The City
My friend Dan has now completed on his new place in Wimbledon and the timelines are starting to become clearer on the return to the big smoke. There’s a lot left to confirm yet. But, getting that tangible date in the diary soon will be a relief. For living out of a suitcase and a half is starting to take it’s toll as I’m really missing having a permanent base of operations to work from and all the benefits that come with it.
The Plans for London 2.0
Having experienced the depth of Lisbon and then the lack thereof in Shrewsbury, I fully intend on embracing the endless opportunities in London with open arms. Trying out new experiences, taking myself on solo dates and double downing on my existing interests, it’s gonna be one hell of a ride. And I’ll let you know what I find along the way.
A Final Note
Christmas can be a challenging time for many of us.
It’s overhyped expectations look great in a photo, but are often underwhelming in reality. With family reunions edging on argument, excessive drinking leaving you with hangxiety and an exhausting social calendar stealing away the rest & reflection you so desperately need.
So, as every one of your friends shares their best life on Instagram this Christmas time, I ask you to remember this…
Social media is a mirror, full of people performing lives they need validation for. Ignore their noise and focus on yourself. For the happier someone proclaims to be online, the unhappier they often are in real life.
But, that’s enough from me.
Have a very Merry Christmas in your own way, enjoy some time to yourself a come back energised to play offense in 2023.
I’ll see you next Friday.