What are you looking at?
It's Monday. I'm here for you.
The Pick Me Up is a Monday morning newsletter filled with advice, personal stories, and tips to help you get out of bed and jumpstart your week.
Greetings, friend! It’s me, Jen Glantz.
I found out I was pregnant last year on the 4th of July. Hours after I held a positive pregnancy test, I invited friends over to watch the fireworks on my roof.
I hid the test from them.
I remember watching everyone look up at the colors bursting in the sky. They all had such awe and wonder in their eyes. Everyone has seen fireworks before, but yet, when they happen in front of us, it’s like we’re seeing them for the first time.
I turned my back to the sky. I looked at my friend’s faces instead.
I was digesting the biggest secret of my life in front of them while they were watching magic explode.
I wanted to tell them that I was pregnant. That I was scared.
But I grabbed one of their hands, held it tight, and said:
The sky holds so many of our secrets, just like our hearts do too.
In this issue: What to do when you feel off course and don’t have a direction.
Why you’re getting this: I'm Jen Glantz and this is The Pick-Me-Up newsletter. I've been sending it every Monday, for 8-years, to thousands of awesome humans, just like you. Thank you for letting this email live in in your inbox. It truly makes my heart explode with joy.
Ps. I’m so grateful that you’re reading this because writing this newsletter every week is my favorite thing. If you know anyone who would adore getting this in their inbox, it would mean the world if you’d refer them. As a thank you, I am now offering prizes:
Today’s newsletter is sponsored by:
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Instant Pick Me Ups
📚: I still write my daily to-do lists down on sheets of paper. I grabbed these to organize my tasks in a fun and colorful way.
🎧: I binged this podcast over the weekend. What a wild story that’s quite unbelievable.
🛍️: My favorite items this week are all food related! Here’s what I can’t stop eating and drinking (ps. all these suggestions are healthy - sort of)
Olipop - This is my favorite drink. Right now the lemon lime is my obsession.
Unreal candy - I eat these 2-3x a day.
Siete chips - so delicious and the brand claims they are better for you than traditional chips
What are you looking at?
Friday night, the whole crew (Adam, Goofy, and 3-month-old baby) went for a walk around our Brooklyn neighborhood.
Even if we don’t try, we always end up down by the East River, at a spot that overlooks the middle of Manhattan.
Down by the water, I saw a group of people surrounding a sailboat and an instructor barking information at them.
I stood closer and I listened.
He was teaching all these people, who have never sailed before, how to sail.
“Always remember this,” he said. “The only way to make it to your destination is to look at the landmark you’re trying to reach and don’t let it out of sight.”
“What about just using a compass?” Someone suggested.
“No,” the teacher replied. “Compasses can lag, but seeing where you want to go, and going in that direction, won’t ever fail you.”
Eventually, Adam tapped me on the shoulder and alerted me that these students were paying for this class. I was just eavesdropping. It was time to go.
I couldn’t stop thinking about what the teacher said. I have no interest in learning how to sail. I love water. I don’t love boats.
But for a brief second, I felt like what he was telling all those people about sailing was actually the slap in the face I needed for my own life right now.
I’m feeling a bit lost. I’m feeling like I’m trying to do too much. I’m not feeling like I’m able to get anything done.
It’s because my eyes aren’t glued to any one direction. So the current of life is dragging me to the left, to the right, and sometimes even back to where I started.
When we don’t know our course, we spend our time just getting by.
I’ve never been a “just getting by” kind of person.
That class I accidentally found myself in on Friday night really got me thinking:
What am I sailing toward?
But perhaps, before I answer that, I have to know:
What am I sailing away from?
👏1:1 coaching: I specialize in working with people who want to switch careers, start their own business, improve their personal brand, or are feeling lost in life. Book a session and let’s work together this month.
👏Company workshops & speaking: I offer company workshops and conference keynotes on topics that include personal branding, social media trends, storytelling, and more. I’ve worked with Google, Apple, HBO, ESPN, and more. Learn more here.
Also:
Books // Card Game // Bridesmaid for Hire // Scared to Be a Mom // Shop