Entry 4

Ok, so I've been able to to an entry every other day or so, and that still makes me feel good :), changing these titles so each entry feels good and I don't perseverate on the entries I didn't do, but rather focus on the ones I did. Titles really do make a difference.

I think I've figure out the learnings from the prior 'drain day':

1. As my meditation mentor would tell me 'contrast is good'. Contrast helps us appreciate what we have. An important lesson that can always use some reinforcement.

2. My co-founder actually does know better. She's been in this 5 years longer than I have, has a ton of business experience and really, why should I expect to nail the product roadmap on the first try when this is a completely new space to me.

3. I need to focus on my known value and what I really bring to the table, it's good to remind myself of the areas I can contribute to immediately and keep working towards the longer term goals.

4. Opening up about the feeling of discomfort, especially the root cause of it purely from my own self-image, opened the door to a stronger partnership.

I often tell people that the steepest growth is often on the other side of pain, and this is a good reminder to myself that the phrase remains true for me. Granted, this isn't really all that painful, more like a minor bruise but I think it counts anyway.

So, on to other topics for a while...today at the gym I discovered the real secrets to the front squat:

• Hook your index and second finger around the bar and, maintaining the looseness of the wrist, keep a tight grip with the fingers

• Really keep the bar close to the collar bone, the closer the easier it is to balance

• A lot of the above likely depends on your specific body mechanics, so feel it out for you

I was able to get in several more reps with hooking the fingers and keeping it tight, kinda counterintuitive since the wrist is very loose and I was initially taught to keep the fingers loose as well, but hooking the fingers really felt good to me.