My Bookish Life: Not So Bookish

It has been a while, I know. I went to all the trouble of revamping my blog only to get so caught up in school and work and life that I stopped posting again. Part of it came down to mental health. I simply could not juggle everything and I was also struggling with a bit of depression. So many of the things I love doing were no longer interesting and, after I finished with my daily responsibilities, I became a couch potato binge-watching on Kdramas.

My Bookish Life: Intentions for 2021

“Fight through the dark to find the spark…shine together, bright forever.”
— Madison Reyes

For the past three years, now going on four, I have used a journaling workbook called Unravel Your Year by Susannah Conway. It has each person reflect on the year past, your accomplishments and your disappointments and how things have changed over the previous twelve months. Once you have examined the past, you can then decide your path going forward into the new year.

One of my favourite things to do is choose my word for the year. This single phrase sets the tone for what you want to focus on and is a reminder of all you wish to accomplish. In order to integrate my word into my daily life, to give me a boost when I am feeling discouraged, I look for a song. In the past I have used Possibilities by Freddie Stroma (open to opportunities), Determinate by Lemonade Mouth (defined plan and setting limits), and Me by Taylor Swift (self-care). This year my word comes from the soundtrack of the new show Julie and the Phantoms.

After the darkness of last year, I need a light to help guide me through the coming year. Not only do I want my future to shine, but I also want to be luminous with hope and happiness myself. The word I chose is…

My Bookish Life: 2020 Intentions – october through december

While it has been a long time coming, the year has finally come to an end. Many of us are more than ready to leave 2020 and all its chaos behind with a hope the coming year will be better. While I did not mind the isolation in the first few months –it allowed me to work on some projects– I was more than ready to break free of my four walls by autumn.

Now it is time to do a wrap-up of the final quarter of my year to see how well I managed to achieve my goals for the year. This post is coming a little late because I decided to use my holidays for rest and relaxation. After four gruelling months of classwork, I needed time away from my computer and thus my vacation was spent reading, watching television, or celebrating the holiday with my parents.

My Bookish Life: Modern Etiquette and Me – give thanks

 “Try not to start a thank you note with thank you.”

I don’t know about you, but I love getting mail. No, I don’t mean the dreaded bills or the unending advertisements, but proper letters. Because of this, eight years ago my best friend and I started writing letters to each other and sending them in the post. We did stop when I moved away to the UK as postage is really expensive to send overseas, but we have agreed to begin again now that I’ve returned to the province.

There is just something so classy, so elegant (despite my poor penmanship), so personal about a handwritten note. Not to mention, it is also in good manners to send a thank you card after attending a party. Wouldn’t you be thrilled to have such in your mailbox after putting hours of effort into organizing a fun affair for all your friends?

My Bookish Life: Modern Etiquette and Me – ten tips to being a good guest

“Have fun, be grateful, and always show respect to your host.”

The holiday season is upon us and that means there may be a lot of family gatherings happening over the coming month. I thought this would be the perfect time to share some tidbits from Myka Meier’s debut book Modern Etiquette Made Easy so that you can be the perfect guest when visiting your friends and spending time with your extended family.

My Bookish Life: Modern Etiquette and Me – dining

“We practice good table manners to simply show respect to those we are dining with.”

Every country has its own rules about dining. In her book Modern Etiquette Made Easy author Myka Meier discusses the dining etiquette of three countries in the western world: American, Continental, and British. Myka usually teaches Continental because it can be used relatively well in all of America (the continent) and much of Europe.

From what I would gather, Canadian etiquette may pull from all three. As we are part of the Common Wealth we are heavily influenced by British etiquette, however because we are close neighbours with the States some of their American ways will have seeped in too. Our country is fairly multi-cultural, hence the addition of some Continental traits. I also wouldn’t be surprised if some things we just made up ourselves for the fun of it.

Myka Meier also suggests practicing at home so it becomes natural. That way we will not be self-conscious and can then focus on being social and conversing, as well as actually enjoying our meals. From personal experience, you need to know how to use your utensils “properly” well in advance or your food might go flying across the table when you’re at a formal dinner. You’ll want to read the book or check out Myka Meier’s YouTube Channel, as she gives a lot of helpful instructions to ensure you feel elegant rather than an embarrassment.

My Bookish Life: Modern Etiquette and Me – networking

“Know who you want to speak with, but how you approach them is just as important.”

We all know networking is a task, so Myka Meier turned it into an acronym of how to network more efficiently. Her method is something I plan to use over the course of this school year, not only among my classmates but also at any events we have to attend. Considering part of the program is on event planning, I’m assuming there will be at least a couple despite the pandemic.

Myka simplifies networking to T.A.S.K. —which stands for Target, Approach, Start Conversation, Keep Conversing— and then breaks it down into how to do that. Something to keep in mind, though, is to avoid clumps of people standing close together or only focusing on each other as their body language indicates they are not open to additions. Instead, search for people who are standing alone or groups with space for another person.

My Bookish Life: Modern Etiquette and Me – wow factor

“You are enough, you have enough.”

Last week I talked about the wow factor and a couple of tips Myka Meier gives for becoming that charismatic person you always wanted to be. You can check it out here. This week I will be continuing on this theme with a few more tips found in her book Modern Etiquette Made Easy and how I am trying to do them too.

My Bookish Life: Modern Etiquette and Me – charisma

“Charisma is all about evoking positive emotion in someone else.”

Imagine you’re at a party and there is a particular someone you are drawn to. Not in a romantic interest sort of way, but just a “I would like to meet that person, they seem fun” variety. Now I want you to figure out why they caught your eye. Would you say they are confident? Are they causing the people around them to smile? Do they appear to be a great conversationalist? Do they just have a je ne sais quoi magnetism?

This is what is called charisma. Myka Meier says in her book Modern Etiquette Made Easy that being captivating is actually something learned, which is great news for me. Over the past year since moving back to Canada I have noticed some things about myself I dislike. Namely I was no longer the cheerful and optimistic person I once was, so even I did not think myself to be good company. Thanks to this book I now have a plan to change that and I already feel like I am becoming a better person.

So here are some tips from her book for how to be that charming person you always wanted to be, and how I am applying them to my own life.

My Bookish Life: Modern Etiquette and Me – first impressions

“Every day is a new chance for a first impression.”

The trouble with meeting people nowadays is that you do not always get to actually meet them. The pandemic has changed the way things are run and now, more than ever, people are stuck behind screens day in and day out. Only this time it is often in their own homes without even the option to chat with coworkers at the water cooler or classmates during breaks. Yes, there are plenty of people in public, but they are kept six feet apart and behind a screen of a different sort. No matter the situation, that human connection has essentially been lost.

I was lucky enough to be enrolled in a “blended” post-graduate program, so up to three mornings a week we had the opportunity to attend class on campus. Not everyone took the school up on that offer, but a core group of us did and will for as long as allowed. I was glad for this partially because I really wanted to get out of the house and also so I could more easily get to know my peers. In Modern Etiquette Made Easy, Myka Meier iterates the importance of first impressions and I wanted to make a good one.