Hello friend,

Happy weekend.

I am pleased to report that my annoying chest infection is (finally) on its way out, and now all I have to shift is a bit of a cold. I hope that you've managed to avoid the many bugs that seem to be around at the moment.

I am delighted to be in your inbox today and have some gems to share, so let's get to it.

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🎧 ✏️ Voice Note and Doodle Essay

This week, I have a voice note (podcast) and doodle essay for you.

The voice note shares a personal goal I am working on in 2026 (here it is: A Few Awkward Thoughts on Being a Better Friend). The episode is just 10 minutes.

My doodle essay explores the concept of morning micro-stressors and how to minimise them. Here it is: Notice Your Morning Micro-Stressors.

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📚 Read

Here are some articles I thought you might enjoy:

• I'll start by sharing an article I wrote for GTA (a local company I deliver training for): Confidence is a Practice, Not a Feeling. I hope you enjoy it.
• ​This article, written by Sophie Clark from Liz Earle Wellbeing, will give you a bit of insight into a current special interest of mine: fermented foods. They are SO good for you. If you want to deep dive into this wellbeing rabbit hole, I recommend Ferment by Tim Spector. This book (also called Ferment, but by a different author, Kenji Morimoto) contains some lovely fermented recipes.

If you're curious about the books I'm reading, you can see my library in Tana: Library.

I'd encourage you to look at my growing queue (under the Reading Log menu item on the left). The Guernsey Literary Festival starts in April, and I am lining up a number of books related to the events and talks I plan to attend. If you've never been to Guernsey before and you are a fellow bookworm, why not come over for the Lit Fest? (Do let me know if you are thinking about this.)

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📺 Watch

If you have been following me for a while, you will know I am a big fan of neuroscientist and author, Anne-Laure Le Cunff (Ness Labs).

The video of Anne-Laure's latest TEDx talk has just been released, and it is fab, so I am sharing it today.

It's not obvious from the video, but Anne-Laure has a moment during her talk where her mind goes blank. She recovers brilliantly by taking a deep breath, being honest, and framing the moment as an experiment. The talk is about the power of tiny experiments and is highly recommended.
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🎧 Listen

Here are two podcast episodes I enjoyed this week:

• ​How to Start Running (and Actually Enjoy it) with Emma Kirk-Obunubi on the Life of Bryony. This is a video link, but you can find the audio version in your favourite podcast app.
• ​The New Science of Breath with James Nestor on the Rich Roll Podcast. This was a fascinating listen. Again, this is a video link, so just search for the title in your podcast app of choice.

I listen to podcasts in the Snipd app, but you can find shows and episodes I recommend on your preferred podcast platform. Use my referral link to get a month of Snipd Premium for free.

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That's all from me today. Have a great week, and I will be in touch again next weekend.

Best wishes,

Martine

P.S. If you enjoy my newsletter and want to support my work, you can buy me a coffee here or purchase one of my digital products. Coffee and purchases are always appreciated but never expected.

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