Veggies, Vests & Vacations

Monday after 4th of July should be a national holiday / mandatory no work day. Listen, I know it might sound ridiculous, but I’m not quite ready to be back at work (even tho I love my job). I’ve been eating like shit for the past week, I’m sunburnt, covered in bug bites, etc. I’m just not ready to be combing through my emails. Plain & simple.

I haven’t ate a vegetable in 8 days.

Did I take the entirety of last week off? Yes, ok, sure, I did. But that’s irrelevant!

Here me out… Because of that LONG stretch away from work, I’m even more deserving of an extra day off than the folks who only got a day or 2 off. Let me explain… My brain (& body) cannot simply go from waking up at 9am (10am), playing 18 holes of golf, sitting by a pool, & eating watermelon & cheeseburgers for nearly 10 days straight… To then waking up at 730am, sitting bent over at a computer screen for 10 hours, eating $16 Sweetgreen salads for lunch. It just can’t.

I might go into toxic shock. Not kidding. You should see how slow I’m typing this. I feel like this stock image of this cute old man.

The sweater vest cardigan is *chefs kiss emoji *

I’m not asking you to feel bad for me. I’m just saying the fact that I even wrote & got this newsletter out is a miracle & shows my unprecedented work ethicc & grit.

Welcome to week 38 of Trust Fun. We’re officially in the nucleus of summer.

My seemingly obvious Sunday scaries / Monday morning panic attacks are rooted in how much awesome shit we have going on right now at Mugsy & beyond.

We’re launching our new & improved website this week. It’s gonna be killer. Fast & simple. This is something we’ve been working on for 4+ months.

There’s tons of new & amazing Mugsy products in the pipeline.

We’re growing like gangbusters.

For me personally, I’m spending the entirety of July back home in the North Shore of Massachusetts & not in NYC. Taking my first real advantage of the remote work lifestyle. And no better time to do it apparently…

When you work in the world of start-ups & entrepreneurships, vacations are weird & hard. Very rarely, if ever, is there a true “day off.” There’s never pure bliss & silence. It’s really really hard to just shut it off mentally. Sales are still coming in, folks are visiting your website & seeing your ads. Any day off you take just feels like you’re falling behind.

I struggle with it a lot. I always have.

And I know this sounds a little like “What are my weaknesses? I work TOO hard and care TOO much.” But it’s not that. On my days off, I really try and not do any work. Stay away from my computer & not look at Slack. BUT, what I suck is turning off the constant pondering of what I could be doing or what I could fix at that very moment.

“Is there a new hook I could test on that creative?”

“Is there a better headline I should test?”

“Should I change the hero image of that collection page?”

“I gotta email that factory back.”

It’s dangerous, because those thoughts are the gateway to doing more work when you should be resting. Taking a break.

Work ALWAYS finds it’s way into my dreams while I’m on vacation too.

Here’s what ChatGPT has to say about shutting off work:

To truly switch off, plan ahead by delegating tasks and setting boundaries with your team. Limit screen time and use apps to block work notifications. Engage in fun activities like hiking, swimming, or hobbies you love but never have time for. Practice mindfulness, meditate, and try yoga to stay present. Spend quality time with loved ones and enjoy social activities. Change up your environment by traveling or spending time in nature. Reflect through journaling and make sure you get plenty of rest. Consider talking to a coach for personalized advice and create routines that help you mentally switch off from work. By doing all this, you can really enjoy your vacation and come back refreshed.

For me, it’s family, friends, golf, reading romance novels (Elin Hilderbrand), watching Love Island (UK), & writing Trust Fun.

Hope that helps. Now, let’s put our heads down & get ourselves to the weekend.

Some Trust Fun hats are still available here: trustfun.com 

Shipping out today!