Beautiful reflections, Carmen. And I can resonate with so much of what you've shared here, especially the part about being an extroverted introvert...for years I made myself do things that were outwith my comfort zone and my nervous system was shot. Then I discovered that I needed my own time and space to create, to play, to recharge. And yes to deep conversations. No small talk here!
Thanks also for the mention and for being a valued part of my community 💛
Thank you Sarah for creating such a beautiful space on here too!
It’s so freeing isn’t it when we do things our way, even if it may look less shiny for some outsiders.
There’s this joke that when a British asks a German “how are you” and the German goes into all the details and the British actually just wanted to hear “I’m well, how are you” 😅 I still find this type of greeting/ smalltalk so weird 😂
I think emojis are key to being across our emotions in text especially since we’re not writing serious reports 😅 I just don’t get GIFs that’s why I mentioned them but if they work for others, I don’t want to tell them what to do haha
What beautiful insights, Carmen. I love your take on writing for the digital world, and we actually have super similar experiences with sharing online. Thank you for the mention as well.
glad I'm not the only one :) Do you have the Bayerisches Kochbuch? Super big book with very few photos, this is the only one I use without photos without hesitation because I know some of the recipes already from taste and memory
Ha ha yes! The Bible ;) I have it and I use it all the time. It had totally slipped my mind. Mine is filled in with little pencil notes about the modifications my mama makes
Ahh LOVE that! My treasure is my Mama’s hand written recipe chaos on small paper squares where I often don’t know what cake it is because it’s just ingredients and no names or instructions. Only remembered our Bavarian bible earlier because I wanted to bake a Nusszopf.
Oh this was brilliant and thank you for mentioning my titles! I’m pretty stoked about then too haha 🫣 I think you’ve brought so much value here and at the end of the day it ties it back to what you said at the top of consistency. If you stay consistent in all the things magic will happen. From experience one sometimes need to be at the bottom to really get uncomfortable and push the needle where it needs to go 🙏🏼 excited to be here!
Your titles are double 🔥 because English is not your first language either and it all sounds so natural, real and you!
I actually have been sitting on an idea - a community google spreadsheet for all non-native speakers in the English substack world. A place to write down substack name, link, content type, ways to contact, interests in collaboration or not etc so we can all support and find each other. It’s in line with my writer village, a space for community and lifting each other up. Would you find this valuable as a writer and reader?
Oh for sure, with consistency there’s also the self-love piece, I think. Am I consistent now for the sake of being consistent and “half ass” things (hello perfectionist not everything needs to be perfect and half perfect is already enough) or maybe something else needs to be focused on instead, like health, love, grief… Of course it all comes at a price. 🫣 I for sure want to get better at balancing these things
I love love that your boyfriend encouraged you to put yourself out there! I’m in Substack thanks to my husband telling me to stop waiting cus the kids ain’t going anywhere 😂😂😂🫶🏼 (will continue to read now just had to say this in between as I don’t know if a baby will wake me up mid through)
Yayyy to the boyfriends and husbands and all other champions! 🥰 your husband is so right too, kids or no kids, we’ve got to put ourselves out there and create if it feels like it’s filling our cup in a supportive way 🌸 no excuse is strong enough for not doing it
Thank you Carmen for your inspiration. I’m finding it hard to be consistent in a fast paced life. Your words this morning boosted me again, beginning with my reply to you❤️
Hi Beverley! Thank you for stopping by and taking the time to share what’s top of mind for you on this topic too! So glad my words resonated. If you’d like to read more about gentle consistency and practical practices and when I ditch them in my latest post here: https://open.substack.com/pub/carmens/p/10-practical-practices-that-improved
Loved this piece and basically relate to everything you’re saying. I consider myself an extroverted introvert too and really struggle with putting myself out there (wherever that is) en let myself be seen. A few years ago I even quit a writing job as a columnist for a regional newspaper once because I felt terrified sharing my personal views instead of other people’s stories as a journalist. Hi from Holland, by the way 🙋🏼♀️
Beautiful reflections, Carmen. And I can resonate with so much of what you've shared here, especially the part about being an extroverted introvert...for years I made myself do things that were outwith my comfort zone and my nervous system was shot. Then I discovered that I needed my own time and space to create, to play, to recharge. And yes to deep conversations. No small talk here!
Thanks also for the mention and for being a valued part of my community 💛
Thank you Sarah for creating such a beautiful space on here too!
It’s so freeing isn’t it when we do things our way, even if it may look less shiny for some outsiders.
There’s this joke that when a British asks a German “how are you” and the German goes into all the details and the British actually just wanted to hear “I’m well, how are you” 😅 I still find this type of greeting/ smalltalk so weird 😂
I'm so with you on the GIF point. Other points too, but the GIF issue was clearly the big thing you were looking to drive home, right? 😆
But I will use them when communicating with those for which GIFs are one of their love languages. 😁
[I dared to use emojis because you did in your writing. I know some who would disown me if I sent them any. Their loss.]
I think emojis are key to being across our emotions in text especially since we’re not writing serious reports 😅 I just don’t get GIFs that’s why I mentioned them but if they work for others, I don’t want to tell them what to do haha
What beautiful insights, Carmen. I love your take on writing for the digital world, and we actually have super similar experiences with sharing online. Thank you for the mention as well.
I enjoyed reading this so much. Never have I ever cooked a recipe without a picture either :)
glad I'm not the only one :) Do you have the Bayerisches Kochbuch? Super big book with very few photos, this is the only one I use without photos without hesitation because I know some of the recipes already from taste and memory
Ha ha yes! The Bible ;) I have it and I use it all the time. It had totally slipped my mind. Mine is filled in with little pencil notes about the modifications my mama makes
Ahh LOVE that! My treasure is my Mama’s hand written recipe chaos on small paper squares where I often don’t know what cake it is because it’s just ingredients and no names or instructions. Only remembered our Bavarian bible earlier because I wanted to bake a Nusszopf.
Oh this was brilliant and thank you for mentioning my titles! I’m pretty stoked about then too haha 🫣 I think you’ve brought so much value here and at the end of the day it ties it back to what you said at the top of consistency. If you stay consistent in all the things magic will happen. From experience one sometimes need to be at the bottom to really get uncomfortable and push the needle where it needs to go 🙏🏼 excited to be here!
Your titles are double 🔥 because English is not your first language either and it all sounds so natural, real and you!
I actually have been sitting on an idea - a community google spreadsheet for all non-native speakers in the English substack world. A place to write down substack name, link, content type, ways to contact, interests in collaboration or not etc so we can all support and find each other. It’s in line with my writer village, a space for community and lifting each other up. Would you find this valuable as a writer and reader?
Oh for sure, with consistency there’s also the self-love piece, I think. Am I consistent now for the sake of being consistent and “half ass” things (hello perfectionist not everything needs to be perfect and half perfect is already enough) or maybe something else needs to be focused on instead, like health, love, grief… Of course it all comes at a price. 🫣 I for sure want to get better at balancing these things
I love love that your boyfriend encouraged you to put yourself out there! I’m in Substack thanks to my husband telling me to stop waiting cus the kids ain’t going anywhere 😂😂😂🫶🏼 (will continue to read now just had to say this in between as I don’t know if a baby will wake me up mid through)
Yayyy to the boyfriends and husbands and all other champions! 🥰 your husband is so right too, kids or no kids, we’ve got to put ourselves out there and create if it feels like it’s filling our cup in a supportive way 🌸 no excuse is strong enough for not doing it
A rich and insightful list, Carmen, drawn from many years of experience. Thank you.
Thank you Carmen for your inspiration. I’m finding it hard to be consistent in a fast paced life. Your words this morning boosted me again, beginning with my reply to you❤️
Hi Beverley! Thank you for stopping by and taking the time to share what’s top of mind for you on this topic too! So glad my words resonated. If you’d like to read more about gentle consistency and practical practices and when I ditch them in my latest post here: https://open.substack.com/pub/carmens/p/10-practical-practices-that-improved
Loved this piece and basically relate to everything you’re saying. I consider myself an extroverted introvert too and really struggle with putting myself out there (wherever that is) en let myself be seen. A few years ago I even quit a writing job as a columnist for a regional newspaper once because I felt terrified sharing my personal views instead of other people’s stories as a journalist. Hi from Holland, by the way 🙋🏼♀️