Hello, welcome to issue #2 of Making Lemonade! If you’re new and want to read my first issue, which explains the concept of this newsletter, click here.

Today, we’re talking about the productivity trap. Connecting your self worth to your productivity hurts all of us, not just those who have been conditioned to believe it. From obsessing over morning routines to side hustle culture, the productivity trap touches every part of our lives. Based in capitalism, racism, and patriarchy, it can be really hard to identify what’s “motivation” vs “inspiration” vs “productivity” (and what does productivity even mean, anyway?). The trap concludes with the realization that you’ll never be “productive enough” – you always need to be doing more.

Now, before I get too into this, let me be clear: Your self worth is not tied to your productivity!

But….we can repeat that mantra all we want and it still won’t help us unlearn what we’ve been taught, nor will it tear down the systems that uphold this trap. Yet, it’s something we have to unlearn if we’re going to ever survive the ever-increasing burnout.

Unfortunately, I don’t have a syllabus for you on unlearning the productivity trap. But believe me, there are more than enough articles, think pieces, and organizations dedicated to helping folks unlearn this trap – and I encourage you to search them out!

Every day I am questioning myself and others on why we glorify being busy so much…and then add another opportunity/project/task to my plate. I think of how my badge of glory for years was humble-bragging to my college friends about my 18-hour days, filled with internships, clubs, class, work, and volunteering. Then I transitioned to working in politics, which glorifies skipping meals, swapping water for Diet Coke, and sleeping in the office to show how dedicated you are to the cause.

Really, when I look back at how easily I fell into these traps, I realize I was throwing myself behind productivity to fill the void and avoid spending time with myself.

….was that too real?

Anyway, today I have a recipe on how I quench the thirst of productivity, without adding to the buzz behind launching another side hustle or working an 80-hour week. Just little hacks I partake in that settle that buzz, deep inside of me, so I have a little more time to spend unlearning and resting.

I know it’s not a great solution or even close to a permanent one, but sometimes we need to just skate on by before we can thrive.

Talk soon,

Emily

The Recipe Breakdown

Lemon: The Productivity Trap. The concept that our self worth is tied to our productivity. Productivity being loosely defined so that we are forever expending more of our energy and self to become more and more productive.

Ingredient #1: The Big Three. My three must-do’s for each work day. Narrowing my work to-do list down to the three things I need to get done that day helps my workload feel a lot more manageable. Even if I know I have a longer to-do list of things I should get done, being able to check off those big three items makes me feel like I’ve done all I must.

Ingredient #2: My daily must-do’s. The point of this list is to never include work things. This list is solely for self care items that I know I will (or really, really should) accomplish each day. By (almost) never over-committing my daily must-do’s, I’m always able to check off each item and get that nice, sweet boost of pseudo-productivity. A sample of my daily must-do’s for today: get outside, take my multivitamin and vitamin D, move my body, do a 1 minute breathing exercise, and try to do anything that meets the 60 second rule.

Ingredient #3: Duolingo. I get especially drawn into productivity culture when it comes to learning – I’m forever chasing the feeling that you get from an a-ha moment in school. Using Duolingo almost daily (hello, 179 day streak!) has helped fill that learning hole in my life, and given me one more easy (as in, it only takes a few minutes) task to check off on my daily to-do list. And if some productivity hack comes after you for not “doing enough,” you can always come back at them with “I’m learning Spanish and brushing up on my French, actually.”

Want to talk about your own lemons, ingredients, or lemonade recipes? Feel free to reply to this email!

🍋 Lemon Zest 🍋

The Little Things that help make my days a little brighter 💕

🎵 Leaning hard into 2010 Mumford and Sons, of course focusing a lot of energy on Little Lion Man.

📖 I’ve been zooming through audiobooks lately. I recently finished The Power by Naomi Alderman, whose ending had me absolutely drowning in thoughts and ideas about the semi-dystopian landscape of the book.

📬 One habit I’ve been trying to manifest is to write to a different friend each week. Reply to this email with your address if you want some snail mail!

📝 Insta saw it first — The Lamare habit tracking calendar is beautiful and one of my favorite daily rituals. Crossing off the squares each day makes my brain happy, while also helping me analyze which long-term habits are working for me.

☕ Whenever I drink a lavender latte, I think of Rachel Charlene Lewis’ newsletter bio: “here, we will talk about pop culture and queerness and lavender lattes, which not enough people are currently drinking.” And it’s true. Not enough people are drinking lavender lattes. Copper Cow’s are an easy at-home option. Here’s my promo code if you want to try it!

💰 April is Sexual Assault Awareness Month, so I’m donating to Survived and Punished, who work with currently and formerly incarcerated survivors.

📧 Here with another newsletter recommendation! The Newsette is one of my fav morning newsletters. I love reading about powerful women’s morning and evening routines, plus they usually have the best recommendations for movies and skincare.

☕ If you’d like to support my work and Making Lemonade, consider buying me a coffee! ☕