Praxis Phase One Recap
As the end of the year approaches, it calls for a time of reflection. October marks the beginning of autumn and the leaves falling from the trees symbolize we are shedding that which is no longer serving us. A time to slow down and be more intentional. Let me take you along as I reflect on the past two months as I started a new personal and professional development program called Praxis and how I’ve been navigating my life after many changes.
What I’ve Created
I have executed several projects over the past several months; some of which I am very proud of, several that show where I need to improve, and all of which served as beneficial to me. Here is a brief summary.
We started out with our content creation week where I created this website, my weekly newsletter, and an about me video. I am very proud of how my newsletter and website turned out. As for my video, I can barely watch it without feeling embarrassed and seeing all the areas where I can improve. I guess that’s something I will eventually return to but until then my mediocre video will have to suffice.
We then dove into ‘professional performance’ where I set up my digital calendar, task manager, and weekly review and planning session. If you know me, you know I love an organized space and these exercises were like cleaning the house that is my computer. Laying out everything I needed to do for the week and blocking time to get it done released stress I didn’t even know I had.
Week 4 was focused on personal habits. I analyzed all of my current habits, good and bad, and made a plan to implement new ones. Sticking to this habit plan has been difficult, but I love a good challenge! Especially when it’s one that improves the quality of my everyday life. I also created a case study on James Beshara, the founder of Magic Mind.
Week 5 was the most difficult of Phase One for me- writing! Before Praxis, writing was never something that interested me and I always dreaded sitting down and sharing my thoughts. During this week we were prompted to write 3 different blog posts and a company sales email, accompanied by 2 writing exercises. I struggled to find ideas and get motivated, but I am happy with how most of them turned out.
In week 6 I learned how to use Zapier to automate survey responses for an interior design company. Zapier organized and analyzed all of my data onto a Google sheet. It’s a great skill to have under my belt!
Finally, last week I created a basic budget model and learned about personal finance. I learned the importance of mindset when it comes to money and that my financial goals aren’t as far away as I thought!
Here is a link to all of my accessible projects if you feel inclined to check them out:
What I’ve Read
I read two books for Praxis during Phase One, Mastery by Robert Greene and Atomic Habits by James Clear.
Mastery by Robert Greene is about how to become an expert in your field.
I thoroughly enjoyed this book because it showed the importance of finding your passion. Whatever puts you in the flow.
Once you found whatever it is that inspires you, learn how to become a master. Through being an apprentice, honing your skills, and finding how to make it unique, you will create a career that never bores you.
Atomic Habits by James Clear was about how the small habits that shape your day to day life ultimately shape your identity.
James broke down the basics of building and breaking habits through 4 simple steps: the cue, craving, response, and reward.
Although the information was beneficial and informative, I feel as if the entire book could have been cut in half. By the end, it was difficult to not feel like the content was washed up. However, I was able to learn a lot and apply some simple rules to help aid my new habits and break off some that haven’t been serving me.
What I’ve Learned
Overall, I am very grateful for my decision to join Praxis. I have learned a lot about myself and the foundation of business. One of my biggest takeaways has to be about accountability. Taking complete ownership of where you are in your life. It’s so easy to go about your days, blaming your progress, or lack thereof, on external sources. However, until you can become fully accountable for where you are, your happiness, your relationships, or any circumstance you are in, it will be impossible to live a fulfilling life.
Although I am learning this the hard way through several failures and poor judgments, it doesn't have to be a bad thing. If you look on the bright side, you have total accountability! It is up to you to live the life you want. I can’t think of anything more freeing than that idea.
What Comes Next
Phase Two of Praxis is all about skill building. I am beyond excited to dip my toes in more specialized areas, starting off with Sales! I am then going to learn about entrepreneurship, and content marketing/ creation.
If you haven’t subscribed to my newsletter yet, subscribe down below and I will continue to send newsletters each week with updates on Phase Two projects, professional life, and personal updates.
Although the last several months have been difficult, I am proud to say that I am learning more than ever. If you have any questions, always feel free to reach out, and thanks for reading my recap! I hope to see you back here soon ;)