Hey Reader,

Have you been feeling stressed lately?

Stress takes the joy out of life, affects your relationships, your sleep, and your ability to focus.

But stress doesn’t just affect you on an emotional level. As if that wasn’t bad enough, it can also have a detrimental effect on your physical health.

Chronic stress can lead to anxiety, depression, and pain. It’s also partially responsible for the development of heart disease and cancer.

Two years into building ConvertKit, I got a rash on my leg. It only took the doctor a few seconds to say, “Yep, you have shingles.”

Shingles is the chickenpox virus that lies dormant in your nerves. It can come back when your immune system is lowered by stress or lack of sleep. It causes a rash, flu-like symptoms, swelling, along with muscle and joint pain. It felt like the worst sunburn I’d ever had.

I couldn’t work. I couldn’t take care of the kids. My brain was foggy, and I got really depressed.

Sometimes, you have an important deadline that means working a little extra for a period of time. But it’s easy for overworking to turn into a habit where being chronically stressed becomes a way of life. That’s when you know you’re in trouble.

I’ve gone through periods of feeling more or less stressed. Last year in particular, I set an intention to be less stressed.

There are lots of ways you can go about reducing stress—from saying no to more things, to changing up your routine, to creating more space on your calendar without any meetings or appointments.

But the biggest one for me is a simple principle.

One philosophy I like to live by is: when faced with two similar options, choose the one that results in the better story.

I’ve adopted a similar philosophy when it comes to reducing stress: when met with two options, which leaves me feeling less stressed?

As an example, I’ve had an idea for a book that I haven’t been able to finish for many years. I even wrote a draft at one point, but the project stalled out and I kept putting it on the backburner. I felt frustrated.

I finally asked myself:

What is the less-stressed version?

I decided to hire my friend, who I think is the best in the world at book packaging, positioning, and marketing (Tim Grahl, if you’re curious).

I invited him to come alongside me to help me figure out what the book should be. So instead of continuing to bang my head against the wall, we had a series of 3-hour calls where we focused on the theme of the book, who it was for, and everything we needed to cover.

Next thing I knew, we had a 5,000-word outline of the book.

Sometimes, being less stressed means hiring a professional. But solutions don’t always need to involve spending money. In some cases, you just need to reframe.

• What’s the max amount of time you want to work?
• How much sleep do you need each night?
• What do you want your day to look like?

You might need to say no to more things or yes to less.

When met with two options, which leaves you feeling less stressed? Pick that one.

When met with only one option that has you feeling stressed, ask what needs to be different in order for you to not feel stressed.

Remember, your mental health and physical well being depend on it.

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PODCAST

$3M to $40M: An Unfiltered Conversation with My Ex COO

In this episode, I’m joined by Barrett Brooks, former Chief Operating Officer at ConvertKit, for a candid discussion on why he left the company.

We cover:

• 3 things you can do to scale your business faster
• Our exact tactics for cultivating a motivated, happy team culture
• The biggest mistake we made as co-leaders (and how you can avoid it)

If you’re interested in leadership, team dynamics, or learning more about the company culture at ConvertKit, I think you’ll enjoy this episode.

​Listen to episode »​

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iOS APP

Clearspace - Eliminate Digital Distractions

Speaking of being less stressed, I came across an app that helps keep you from getting lost in the endless scroll.

You’ve probably felt at one point or another that you should use social media apps less often. You’ve tried putting apps on the second page of your homescreen, burying them in a folder, or turning off notifications.

But what if you could be pulled out of an app automatically?

Clearspace lets you build better habits by engaging in other activities as a way of unlocking social media time. This could be anything from mindfulness meditation, to pushups. Pick whatever other activity you want to encourage.

​Get the app »​

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Have a great week!

—Nathan