Grab a cup of coffee. This is the Weekend Edition.
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Okay, I suck at boundaries.

A few months ago I emailed the CEO of a billion dollar company telling him that an aspect of their product kinda sucked. I was telling him this based on my experience and those of my clients, and offering suggestions of how it might be improved.

This man could have very kindly told me to fuck off.

But instead, he introduced me to the VP of his product team and we made the product so. much. better.

My friends asked, "How did you have the gall to email him?" And the answer is this: regardless of money or status or role, we're all deeply human first.

This is the skill of empathy (took me a long time to recognize it as such), and here's how you can build it.

Building Empathy: Thee Hack for Human Connection

Empathy is the soft skill that keeps on giving.

It's proved to be one of my most useful strengths (at least according to Strengthfinders), and admittedly, when too extreme, it leads to a lack of boundaries. This is something I'm working on personally, but professionally? It's propelled me forward more than anything else.

Here's what I believe that's helped me build it so effectively:

1. You're the best and the worst

A sort of constant in my brain is that at all times we're simultaneously the worst of the world and the best of it. To improve individually is to improve collectively, and we all have the potential to raise (or lower) the curve together.

And so, your offense towards yourself is an offense towards me. And my obligation to improve, to be at peace, to learn and try things, these impact you as much as they do me.

I know it's weird, and people might say, "Listen, you're not that important," but honestly? It's a better risk to take than the opposite––and I'm here for it.

2. Shared emotion vs shared experience

I talk about experiencing the loss of a loved one as a sort of club membership. People who have gone through it know exactly what it feels like, even if the experience itself was different.

There's a weird sort of respect for the pain endured, and knowing that we don't have to have the same experiences to have the same emotion is a powerful realization.

We've all felt loss. We've all felt small. We've all felt scared. We've all felt unloved or too much or not enough or all of the above at times. And knowing this, that we've all shared these emotions, helps me speak to the person inside, and transcend silly things like status or money or anything on the outer shell.

3. The timing is not insignificant

Whether or not you believe in God makes no difference to me (though I love to), but most people believe in math. And math says the probability of us being here at the same time on earth––for the billions of years it's existed––and alive not 100 years too early or 100 years too late, but now together––well this is not an insignificant thing at all.

That alone is reason to love you. It's reason to care for you, it's reason to respect you––the rarity of it is qualification enough.

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These three things are in my mind constantly. And maybe it's a little extreme and needs a bit of taming at times, but in general, it's hell of a way to stay connected to often such a disconnected world.

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📈 Behind the Business: Using My Own Products

I call it a product, but it's actually Pay-What-You-Want.

An insane amount of people have discovered and downloaded my free template, How to Write a Book in Notion mostly thanks to a few simple SEO hacks, and I'm using the same process to structure my new book, The Role of Courage.

It is so early in the process and I'm taking my time as there's a ton going on behind the business, but I thought you should know: if you're needing a way to organize your thoughts, the template is a great way to do it. I create tiny cards for each idea/potential chapter and expand them when I'm writing notes.

Try it out if you haven't already; I think you'll dig it. And if you already have it, hit reply and tell me what you're working on––I love to know how people use these things.

How to Write a Book in Notion​

⚡️ Quickhits

• Punch fear in the face: I nearly forgot about Flinch, a free 38-page ebook by Julien Smith ––it helped me a lot when I was just starting out and is the perfect prep for the new year.
• Nominate a story of courage: I'm organizing interviews for the new book. Know someone with a good story of courage? Share it here!​
• The best mobile video editor on the market: I use this for nearly every mobile video I make.

Alright I'm going to my family's house for a Chopped Challenge (Yes, the Food Network show). Wish me luck. I intend to win. 🍝

Let's knock this week out of the park.

​Love this ❤️❤️❤️​
​Dig it 👍👍​
​Do better 😕​

​

Tanya Moushi ("moo-shee"),
​Moushi & Co. | Daily Inspire
​Designing Good Business

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PS: Whenever you're ready, here are 3 ways I can help: ​ 1/ This is my weekly long-form letter. For my tiny weekday newsletter of emotional support and well-being, sign-up at DailyInspire.co (yes, .co!). People describe it as a virtual morning hug. ​ 2/ Essentially everything I believe about Business (and why) can be found in my book, Love is the Business Plan (and other unconventional ideas).​ ​ 3/ 1:1 Advisement Sessions are used to move you forward with intention. Schedule before the new year for $100 off.