A Little Life Reminder (And Why I’ve Been Quiet)

I’ll be honest—I wasn’t planning on writing this email today.

For the past week, I’ve been away because a family member was in the hospital. It pulled me away from everything—work, routine, emails… and honestly, it put a lot into perspective.

Because here’s the thing:

We live in a world that glorifies hustling through exhaustion.
Pushing through, showing up, grinding no matter what.
We wear “busy” like a badge of honor.

But the reality? None of it matters if we’re running on empty.

Being in that hospital room, I wasn’t thinking about deadlines.
I wasn’t thinking about unanswered emails.
I wasn’t thinking about all the ways I “should” be productive.

I was thinking about how fragile everything is. How easily we put ourselves last. How often we ignore the signs our body is giving us—until we don’t have a choice anymore.

And I realized something I want to share with you today:

You can’t pour from an empty cup. Taking care of yourself isn’t selfish—it’s necessary.

So consider this your reminder:

✔ Your health is more important than your to-do list.
✔ Rest is productive.
✔ You don’t need to “earn” the right to slow down.
✔ You are enough—no matter how much you do or don’t accomplish today.

I appreciate you being here, and I appreciate your patience this past week. But more than that, I hope this email gives you permission to pause if you need to.

And if you know someone who needs this reminder today, 💌 forward this email to them. Let’s normalize putting ourselves first.

Take care of yourself first,
Joanna