It's early as I write this, just after 6am and I'm noticing my body shifting towards spring. I'm waking earlier and finding more space in that beautiful time between dawn and the rest of the world kicking into gear. It feels like a gift, after so many months of cold, dark, rainy starts.
There's a velux window right above my bed, and this morning the full moon was so so bright over the bay. I climbed down the ladder (welcome to tiny house living) and stepped out onto the deck just to watch it for a while.
Have you noticed the birds seem to be shifting towards spring also ? Right now, as I type, they are all I can hear. It is the most peaceful & magical way to bring in the day - just sitting with the birds for a while.
I'm so excited for these mornings to extend - the sun to have some warmth in it again and for early surf & paddle missions to transition into a simpler affair (without the boots and gloves and hood).
So I guess you're wondering why I'm writing so early ? Well I guess there are two reasons - one is that I felt the need to write, and when that happens I make space for it, even at the strangest of times. And secondly - I was inspired by an amazing friend who posed an awesome question to me last night.
This friend is Nat - remember her ? She's the epic friend and adventure buddy I spent new years with in the mountains. In those dreamy days when we were allowed to travel. Nat and I have lived in different places almost the whole time we've been friends, but have so many common threads, in our work, in our outlook on life and in play - that it feels like we're always connected.
Over the last 12 months we've slipped into a rad habit of leaving each other long voice messages via WhatsApp. Most of the time Nat records hers as she's driving to or from the surf - she's in Portugal at the moment so I'm living vicariously through her (and counting down the days till I can go hang out and we can actually go surf together). It always feels like such a treat when I see a message from Nat pop up - and last night's came at the perfect time.
She wrapped up her update (which had me scribbling down things I needed to respond to her with, laughing out loud and feeling so damn grateful to have a friend whose life looks so similar to mine) with a question - Linz, she said, I want to know what lessons this February has taught you.
And that's why I'm up writing early - because it feels like the answers showed up at some point in the night and landed gently on my pillow as I woke up this morning.
Lesson one - Know your worth
There's a podcast interview Kimi Werner did years ago that I keep saved on my phone. I still remember the first time I heard it - I was walking on the sand dunes and had to keep stopping to write notes. She shared so many stories and lessons that resonated with me deeply. So much so, that over the years, every now and then, I get this feeling that I need to listen to it again.
And this last weekend I plugged back in and almost immediately felt grateful for one particular story she told.
It was in her early days of being sponsored by Patagonia - and she was finding herself more and more frustrated by how much work she was putting in for the brand and how little she was being compensated. She felt like she was doing so much yet none of it was being noticed. She said she'd slipped into thinking that perhaps, if she just kept working harder and harder, someone would notice, validate her work and then she might just get paid what she deserved. So she kept pushing. She kept doing more.
And no one noticed.
So eventually, she found the courage to schedule a meeting with the CEO. As she tells the story, she laughs and says that it was by no means some kind of badass moment - she stumbled over her words, she cried and yet, she found a way to say what she needed to say. This isn't right. I'm worth more than this.
The CEO, Rose Marcario, listened and responded graciously - asking her to put together a report to show what she'd done since she joined the team for the brand. Kimi agreed, laughing, saying, I can probably just show you what I've done in the last year - it will be enough.
As they wrapped up the conversation, Rose said to Kimi - I've been a CEO for many years now, across different companies - Do you know how many men have come into my office and asked for a raise ? Countless. I couldn't even tell you the number. And do you know how many women have done the same ? You're the sixth.
Every single time I hear this story it hits home with me. Less about the male/female split actually, and more just the mindset that Kimi had prior to that meeting. If I keep working harder and harder, someone will notice and I will eventually get rewarded. Seeking validation for her work from others.
She said she realised in that moment in Rose's office that actually she needed to validate her own worth. She needed to recognise how damn good her work was and most importantly, it was her responsibility to ask for what she was worth as opposed to waiting around for someone else to.
I can't tell you how important this lesson has been for me. And continues to be. I resonate with the story because I'm living it - it's a lesson that I am still learning to this day.
Next lesson coming shortly… PS. Click here if you wanna hear the full podcast