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Gurleen Deol

PB&J #34: Love at First Lines

Published over 3 years ago • 2 min read

TL;DR

Been in a slump these past few weeks, hence the lack of regular emails, IG posts, walks, or even conversations with people who could help me snap out of it. The bad news is, I was pretty aware of the restlessness, time blindness, and hyperfixation generally associated with ADHD. The good news is, I finally asked my therapist about getting a diagnosis and she booked me a psych eval with someone who does that. In January.

Oh, and I had an overdue conversation with Kristian (remember him from PB&J #10?), which went exactly as expected. Suddenly it dawned on me that the new month (this) starts on a Tuesday (today), which is perfect for bringing back the NewsDay.

Bursting with energy and excitement, what did I do?

I made a list!

Lots of exciting (inter)national days and months of November, that is.

Today being National Author's Day is yet another sign that this newsletter is meant to be revived.

Here are some of my favorite non-fiction/self-help authors, and the lines that sealed the deal for me:

Amber Rae

From The Answers Are Within You​

Don't die with your gifts still inside.

Dan Pink

From The Power of Regret​

If we know what we truly regret, we know what we truly value.

Donald Miller

From Building a StoryBrand​

I'm a writer. The only thing I need a knife for is to make a peanut butter and jelly sandwich.

Gretchen Rubin

From Better Than Before​

What I do every day matters more than what I do once in a while.

Jia Jiang

From Rejection Proof​

"What can I do for you?" the cashier asked.
"Your burger is really good. Can I get a burger refill?"
"A burger refill? What do you mean?" he said, looking completely perplexed.
"Like, a free refill. Do you have free refills for burgers?" I tried to sound matter-of-fact and breezy, like I was asking a totally reasonable question.
The cashier said no. But instead of walking away this time, I asked a follow-up question—while trying not to laugh at the absurdity of what I was asking. "How come you have it for drinks but not for burgers?"

Jon Acuff

From Finish​

I have 32 half-started Moleskine notebooks in my office and 19 tubes of nearly finished Chapstick in my bathroom. A financial adviser would probably go bananas over the hydrated lips category of my personal budget.

Mark Manson

From the table of contents of The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck​

Chapter 1: Don't Try
Chapter 9: ...And Then You Die

Phil M. Jones

A PHILosophy From Exactly Where to Start​

"In the moments when you question your abilities and ask yourself whether you can really do it.... Please remind yourself of all of the impossible feats you have already conquered. If you spent as much effort building on your successes as you did fueling your failures, imagine the difference it would make."

Ramit Sethi

From I Will Teach You To Be Rich​

If you listened to all the internet influencers telling you the things you "need" to do every morning, here's what your day would look like:
4:00 am - wake up
4:01 am - meditate
5:00 am - drink 37 gallons of water
5:33 am - gratitude journal
10:45 am - eat (keto only)
11:00 am - track every penny of spending from the last 16 years
11:01 am - die

Seth Godin

From The Practice​

Shipping, because it doesn't count if you don't share it.
Creative, because you're not a cog in the system.
Work, because it's not a hobby.
We become creative when we ship the work.
There's no such thing as writer's block.
Your work is too important to be left to how you feel today.

BONUS: Adam Grant

I have yet to read a single book or article by him (else it would be at the top of my alphabetical list) but love how he turned his name into his newsletter, Granted.

Who are some of your favorite authors? Memorable lines?

Gurleen Deol

I read words. I write words. Sometimes I speak words. Sometimes even in other languages. Follow along for all the updates!

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