It's a made up word. I get it. But it's an important one.
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​People write books about it.
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Essentially it's the ability to solve problems in a way that moves things forward.
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And it requires creativity, grit and a growth mindset.
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But here's the thing—while everyone likes to think they have a growth mindset, few do. I thought I had a solid growth mindset until I took a leadership coaching program at Royal Roads and became my own guinea pig.
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It became clear that I hung on to a way of doing that wasn't serving me anymore.
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The clues came from what triggered me during that program—specifically, any time I found myself in a situation where I felt incompetent. I struggled to go into it with neutrality or curiosity. Instead, fear would jump into the driver's seat and take things from there.
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Eventually (it's a ongoing journey!), my mindset shifted. I began seeing feedback, mistakes, perhaps even moments of incompetence, as a data point.
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A learning point.
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A line on the graph of life that helps me move forward, rather than stay stuck.
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And that's made all the difference to how I operate today.
Figureoutability comes from the confidence of knowing yourself—our perfectly imperfect selves—and moving through life with curiosity because you know you can move the boulders.
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It's about knowing you're stuck and then finding ways to nudge yourself forward.
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So often we stop at the stuck part or the discomfort.
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And then we live life on repeat.
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May this be a year of figureoutability for you my friend.
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​Here is a great tool I'm using for reflection this year that might be helpful in your quest.
Wise Women
Over the holiday break, I've been reading Sharon Blackie's new book Wild Women. She brings a special kind of inspiration that stems from her ability to link modern day issues—like the journey of perimenopause—back to stories, archetypes and fairy tales. My favourite part so far (half way through the book):
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"In a still-patriarchal world in which women's worth is so often assessed by how "nice" they are, Baba Yaga offers up a refreshingly different kind of role model. You don't mess with the Baba. And menopause especially isn't a time that can easily be defined by "niceness": for so many of us, it's a time of rising rage, of torched taboos, of giving fewer fucks. We're infinitely more Fury than fairy, more Medusa, than Madonna—and perhaps that's why so many eldering women love Baba Yaga. She's fierce, she's elemental, and she takes neither nonsense nor prisoners."
Baba Yaga definitely has figureoutability.
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Things I Love (and learned)
- I've been seeing "TLDR" everywhere recently and maybe I've just been living under a rock but finally researched what it meant.
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- I've been in the market for a new smartwatch and settled on the Garmin Vivoactive 5 and loving it. I had the OG Vivo 1.0 for 10 years and I needed just a bit more tech but didn't want to be even more "connected" than I already am. I feel like I found the right balance. They are on sale right now in case you needed a sign.
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- If you purchased a ticket for the MFactor screening I'm hosting with Stephanie Curran on January 15th in Victoria, I'll see you there! It's a sold out show but we have added a waitlist to see if we can release more tickets closer to the date.
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A 2025 ask: I'm looking for a connection to someone who can make digital garment patterns for a simple dress I love and want to recreate. If anyone has a lead, please let me know!
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In solidarity đź–¤ Happy New Year friends.
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If you found what you read valuable, please share with someone you care about. makeher is a labour of love because I believe that women deserve to feel good, build wealth and wellness, and create a life that inspires them. This often means challenging the status quo and flipping some tables. I'm here for that.
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What to expect? I send out just one email on the first day of each month but if you don't feel this newsletter is for you, that's ok. Just know that I'll miss you.
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