Hey Reader

Tomorrow's my birthday 🥳 Bring on 34 💪

To celebrate, I'm throwing myself a "Thirty-Four-hoa-hoa-hoa-hoa" party, or essentially an "Eat the film" day for the Twilight movies, featuring themed snacks and drinks.

But this newsletter isn't really about that (even though I'm super excited for it 😝)

Instead, I wanted to use the occasion as a fun excuse to share 34 of my favourite things in honour of turning 34.

Don’t worry, this isn’t just going to be a self-indulgent list of random stuff I like (though there will be a little bit of that).

I’ve included plenty of favourites that are genuinely helpful, and hopefully will spark ideas for you too.

So, let’s get into it!

Jess's Favourites

When it comes to my favourites, some of them are purchasable items while some are just concepts or ideas. I've aimed to loosely organise the list, but in no particular order...

Planning, journaling and stationery

1. Favourite notebook​
​Archer and Olive notebooks - are we surprised? If not only for the quality, their customer service is unmatched by any other stationery brand I've interacted with. Double plus, the people who design their notebooks are just really lovely people. Always happy to support them!

2. Favourite writing pen
​Papermate InkJoy and Zebra Sarasa Mark ON - both offer a great quality of black ink, it just depends on if I want a heavier line (InkJoy) or a lighter one (Mark ON).

3. Favourite journaling accessory​
Fiskars Soft Touch Micro Tip Scissors - the scissors I didn't know I needed 😂 These were a gift from one of our community members and since then they've become a staple in my lineup. I like the ergonomic design and how sharp they are.

4. Favourite journal layout type​
Modular weekly dashboard - just one spread with different sections to get me feeling cool, calm, and collected at the start of any new week.

5. Favourite journaling template​
​Journal spread planner - I use this to plan all my layouts before putting pen to paper. Effectively I'll make a "map" for how I want my layouts to come together in this digital layout planner, and then recreate that in my actual journal.

6. Favourite journaling decoration​
​The Washi Tape Shop tapes and stickers - especially their kiss-cut sticker rolls. Not only are the designs great, but I also love that there's normally enough individual elements in one loop to last me a full month.

7. Favourite journaling "hack"​
​The Alistair Method - such a versatile technique for organising listed information! It's essentially a list of items with "context columns" on the side. I use it for weekly task lists, goal planning, and sometimes even logging future events.

8. Favourite productive journaling practice​
The daily highlight - or picking one thing to highlight on my task list each day as a "most important item" or something I want to prioritise getting done. I normally just use a dot marker to highlight the task bullet, but it really helps me stay focused 👌

9. Favourite decorative journaling practice​
Second-line highlights - a great way to add visual interest and also increase readability to larger sections of text. I use Tombows for mine, with favourites for that being N89, 990, 020, 090, 491, 620, 800, and 910.

Everyday organisation and efficiency

10. Favourite office storage solution​
Binders for stickers - my sticker storage has been the bane of my existence for the longest time, so it was nice to find a solution that works for me 😝 I have 5 binders for different sticker "themes" and plastic pocket inserts to keep them organised.

11. Favourite productivity app​
​Notion - I've been organising my content calendar in here for years but this year I also added a Personal Knowledge Management system which I've loved. Slowly but surely, I'm aiming to move all my digital reference materials into here 😈

12. Favourite time management technique​
Time restricting - a lot of tasks will take up whatever amount of time we give them. To get more out of my time, I like to set realistic but slightly "tight" periods to tackle specific tasks. It really helps me focus and make the most of the time I have.

13. Favourite desk accessory​
Tiny timer - very much related to the last one. I primarily use it to keep me on task by having a visible countdown to race against. My timer is a little cube that has 5, 10, 30, and 60 minute options.

14. Favourite time-saving technique​
Not folding my clothes - outside of my leggings, all other clothes get hung up or just shoved in a drawer (underwear and socks).

Goal setting and getting

15. Favourite goal system​
​EPIC Goals - I am biased 😛 but it's my favourite!

16. Favourite goal setting question​
"What do I want to be celebrating at the end of [period]?" - helps me focus on accomplishments I want for myself and what will feel satisfying to do.

17. Favourite goal-getting essential​
Accountability - I get mine through the EPIC Goals Club, and the weekly vlogs as part of the CYL challenge 😊

18. Favourite way to break down a goal​
​"What can I do in 5 minutes?" - this question helps me keep my goal action steps doable and small.

19. Favourite goal-getting quote​
"Action breeds action" - reminds me that just getting started, even if small, will lead to more action-taking in future.

20. Favourite low-motivation reminder​
You've already made progress, so let's keep going - not me just leaning into the sunk-cost fallacy for the sake of personal betterment

Personal care and growth

21. Favourite self-care activity​
Doing a mind unwind - just getting all my thoughts out of my head so I can stop ruminating and start doing something.

22. Favourite boundary I'm keeping​
Not hanging out with "energy vampires" - or those people who drain your energy. My social time is precious, so I want to spend it with the people who fill my cup.

23. Favourite new habit formed​
Daily exercise - this took me a looooong time to get to, but now it's my daily default (gotta keep the streak alive!)

24. Favourite mindset shift​
​Exercise Movement - I didn't realise quite so much how my assumptions about and perception of "exercise" were holding me back from moving my body. To get myself started with my now habit, I reframed exercise as just being "movement" which really helped me to get into it. So glad I did!

25. Favourite impactful purchase​
My walking pad - instrumental in helping me build my exercise habit! The weather in Wellington is fickle, so it's nice being able to rely on indoor exercise. I've got an "Ape Style FX2600" but I'd probably get a slightly nicer one if I were to get another (now that I've proved to myself I'll actually use it 😂)

26. Favourite way to deal with negativity from others​
"How bad must their life be to encourage saying that to me?" - particularly helpful when reading negative or even hateful comments from others. Helps me take action from a point of kindness wherever possible.

27. Favourite self-help book​
Make Time by Jake Knapp and John Zeratsky - one of the few books I needed to have a physical copy of after reading. I love its actionable advice and the pick-and-choose model it presents.

Just for fun

28. Favourite fiction book​
A Court of Mist and Fury - this is the one that got me back into reading as an adult.

29. Favourite comfort watch​
The Vampire Diaries - despite this, I still haven't watched the last season 🤔

30. Favourite journaling snack​
Salted pretzels - they don't leave any residue on my fingers so I don't have to worry about transferring that to my notebook 😝

31. Favourite non-journaling snack​
Twisties - specifically the Australian Twisties though...the New Zealand ones lowkey suck 😂

32. Favourite YouTube channel​
Hannah Alonzo - am I obsessed? Maybe 👀 But I watch every new release from her as soon as possible. I don't even know how I stumbled onto her content, but I love her "Influencer Insanity" series, and find her MLM content equally interesting.

33. Favourite game​
Life is Strange - such a great story-based game. I'm yet to find another game that quite gets me in my feels like this one did.

34. Favourite meme​
Shocked Pikachu - so versatile!

Let's take action

If any of my favourites sparked an idea or piqued your interest, check them out and see if they might earn a spot on your favourites list too 💜

Looking forward to indulging in some of these as I celebrate my birthday tomorrow 🥳

As a total aside...

What's one thing you think I should do before turning 35? 🤔

To give me a recommendation, just hit the button below!

I'm totally open to both silly and serious suggestions here 😛

Until next time!

- Jess

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