2024 Brightsiding Wrapped

This might come as a surprise, but writing the end-of-the-year Brightside is always the hardest for me. 

I’m great at extracting meaning from niche memories (exhibit A, B, C) but when it comes to sitting down to put the year away, I freeze.  

How am I supposed to condense the rainbow of experiences I’ve had this year into a single email?

I could rattle off statistics …

• Words written: 80,000+

• Newsletters sent: 23

• Workshops hosted: 7, I think? 

• Talks given: 1 

• Podcasts recorded: 8, give or take, some of which will never see the light of day (here’s the link to my podcast Girl Dinner, that I launched with my cousin Meaghan this year!!!)

I could pick a few words to sum up the year … expansive, elastic, fruitful 

I could pick a song to capture the essence of the past 365 days … according to spotify, this is the one I listened to the most. 

But none of these shed light on the spaces between the shiny moments. The behind the scenes of it all was giddy, messy, surprising, delightful, heartbreaking, hopeful, euphoric at times, disappointing at others, full of love and friendship and high highs and low lows, sour, sweet, and sometimes just outright ridiculous. 

The truth is, this big beautiful experiment that is The Brightside continues to surprise me, stretch me, and bloom beyond what I could have imagined when I started this newsletter on a whim 4 (!) years ago. 

I have big dreams for the future of this project, and I’m excited to keep tending to it in 2024. 

I’m so grateful to this community for reading, listening, cheering me on, and providing more inspiration than you could ever imagine. 

With that - I’m signing off for the year and heading out on a sailing trip in the British Virgin Islands. I can’t wait to soak up the sun, disconnect, and come back ready to rock in 2024. 

I love you!!! 

Bogs 

I have so many people to thank for helping me step into a completely elevated version of myself this year.

First and foremost, thank you to my “Brightsiding Creative Directors” Daniela Marti and Mariah Massey.

• To my designer turned instant bestie Daniela - thank you from the bottom of my heart for seeing my vision and bringing Brightsiding to a whole new level this year with our rebrand. I could cry every time I look at my new site.

• To the incredible photographer Mariah Massey - our day shooting in Soho this fall was what dreams are MADE OF. For anyone looking for a lifestyle photographer - Mariah is your GIRL!

• Side note - these two recently interviewed me on their podcast The Art of Blooming. You can listen HERE!

I’d be remiss if I didn’t thank Sam Cillo for laying the foundation for the creative identity behind The Brightside. In the early days, Sam helped me get up and running with a logo, fonts, a colorstory, and even created my first workshop deck for me. Sam, I love you and I couldn’t have arrived here without you.

Thank you to my friend Olivia for spending countless hours reading, editing, and giving me encouragement to take my writing to a new level this year.

Thank you to my incredible coaches Imari and Sheila for always being in my corner and available for an encouraging chat (or kick in the butt). Imari, without you I wouldn’t have committed to my 100 days of writing this year.

Thank you to my brother Stephen for always helping me see my blind spots, and encouraging me to be my full self. I love you.

Thank you to my incredible friends for hyping me up and holding space through this year of creative growth spurts (growing pains included). Thank you for seeing me.

And, because I’m a Leo, thank you to ME! I’m so proud of myself for showing up this year.