Monday mornings demand a temperature check. I shuffle around the house in my slippers, bleary-eyed, trying to get a read on the new week. After the freedom and shenanigans of the weekend, I can never predict how a Monday is going to land.
Everyone’s Going Through It
This morning I slept in and woke up tired. So many people in my life are going through it right now. Not just family. Friends, loved ones, my whole circle. The last month has been a season of loss: mothers, aunts, uncles, relationships, a sense of stability and security.
So I did what I do on Mondays. I checked in with myself, and I checked in with my team.
I open our group chat and see “I’m burnt out” from Cate, my editor. She’s one of the people who kept me going after my divorce, when I was really depressed. She showed up with a plan. She literally wrote me shot lists so I could film what I needed to when I wasn’t really functioning. She’s part of the reason I still had work to come back to.
Then I checked on my assistant, who, like me and like Cate, is juggling more than one job. Newsletter, trips, crowdfunding, speaking, brand partnerships…
I can’t bring her on full-time, yet, so she’s got another job too. This morning she answered “I’m dead” when I asked how she was doing. Exhausted. Overworked. That’s when I knew this week was not going to be the week I planned. That it shouldn’t be.
What Do We Do When It’s All Too Much?
I take pride in paying people well, and I want to be the kind of boss I always wished I had. The one who says, we’re not saving lives here. We can care about the work we do and still move with intention.
So Unfiltered & Fed is taking a two-week pause, at least in your inbox. We’re using it to rest, and to build out a few things I’m genuinely excited to bring to you.
Four years ago an email like this would’ve frustrated me. People constantly told me to take more breaks, and I didn’t have the space to. Being able to say “let’s go slower for two weeks” is a privilege, and I know that well.
So I get it. But if life has been whooping your ass too, I hope you take a few moments for yourself. Take your call on a walk and feel the sun on your face. Call your best friend and crash out while they listen. Holding all that stress inside is doing you harm. Use a sick day if you can.
What’s one selfish decision you could make for yourself this week? I urge you to make it.
Coming Soon
For three years I was consumed with my divorce and starting over, launching American Soul, getting Our Block funded and filmed. This is the first time I’ve had space to rest, strategize, and figure out how I actually want to show up for you.
And it’s you who let me do this as a job in the first place. You’re the reason I can say no to brands who want my storytelling but don’t want me in all my fullness, my Blackness, my political-ness.
So even though I’m impatient af and want to launch it all today, we’re taking the pause. But when we come back:
Anela Unfiltered is back. The podcast was one of my most popular formats before life got in the way. It’s returning, and it’s better than ever.
Supper club is here to stay. We’re tweaking it so it’s actually sustainable, and so I can take it beyond the DMV (occasionally, not too much bc I can only be in one place at a time).
Virtual experiences are coming back. Cocktail and cooking sessions, live chats, the works. Wherever you are, I want you to be able to pull up and be fed.
One more thing before I go. We just updated my map of all my recommendations around the world, including more spots from Peru. So it’s the fullest it’s ever been. Save it, and go somewhere worth the memories.
I’ll be back in your inbox July 27th. Until then, take care of yourselves.