On Defining Your Rhythm, Owning Your Narrative, and Setting Priorities

Nothing is ever discovered—it’s defined or described. Stop waiting to discover.

Dear Human,

Are you satisfied with how many hours of sleep you got last week? If not, what are you going to do about it this week?

I’m satisfied with how much sleep I got, but I’m dissatisfied with how little music I made and how little I engaged with my community. And before you say, “You just moved to a new country, be kind to yourself,” I promise—I am being kind to myself. That’s why this weekend has been about saying no, evaluating my activities, and choosing my priorities.

Here are three questions that helped me with this process:

1️⃣ At the end of 2025, what do I want to have accomplished?
2️⃣ Does my current weekly flow set me up to accomplish this by the end of the year?
3️⃣ What should I be doing differently to become the person I want to be in December?

Time for our slightly ridiculous grounding practice—just go with it. Say this with me:

“I spent too much time on irrelevant things. I wished I had spent more time on things I love. I ate things I shouldn’t have, and then I was intentional about eating things that nourish me. Life is not linear—there’s the good, the bad, the ugly, and the beautiful. Like ingredients in guacamole (which is on my Spanish food bucket list), they are all part of a full life.”

I’d love to hear about your week—what’s one thing you did that you enjoyed deeply?

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Here’s a little about my week:

A picture of me at the Coliseum

I moved into my new house on Saturday, attended Soup & Scriptures on Sunday, had class on Monday, traveled to Rome for a work trip on Tuesday, and returned to Barcelona on Friday. From Tuesday to Friday, I juggled finishing an online course, attending meetings, having classes, and turning in assignments. To say it was wild is an understatement.

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Three Lessons from a Wild Week

1. Rhythms Are Defined, Not Discovered

In the midst of all this activity, one thing kept tugging at my soul—the desire to make music. As part of the DYL2M community, I’ve gone from clueless songwriter to having a plan. Over the last three weeks, we’ve focused on audience building, which required pitching ourselves to venues, booking agents, and bands. I had never done that before, and I’m behind on my assignment. Cass said to schedule time for it in our calendars, and if you guessed that I didn’t, you’re right. I kept telling myself I’d schedule things once life settled down. But soon, it’ll be a month since I moved, and that excuse is wearing thin.

The truth is, my schedule isn’t going to magically fix itself—I have to give it structure. That doesn’t mean it won’t be disrupted, but at least I’ll have something to fall back on. I will say, I’m loving my slow Sundays—at least I get to write to you—but I need to put more structure in place.

If you’re a business owner or freelancer, how do you schedule your days?

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2. You Determine Your Narrative

An empty plate or a work of art? You decide…

I spent four days working as a project manager for a client in Rome this past week. I haven’t talked much about this client because our first few interactions were inconsistent, and I was afraid that if the client disappeared, it would make every project we worked on feel like a lie. Typing this out now, it sounds ridiculous. Of course, projects will end, and clients will come and go—what was I thinking?

Until this trip, I pretended like this client didn’t exist, which made my life seem stagnant, as if I wasn’t making progress. But the reality is, the pay doesn’t cover all my bills—but what new freelancer lands a job that does? I do great work, the client values my ethic and deliverables, and I’m being given more responsibility. A huge part of this job involves travel. I am a freelance project manager, and sometimes, I travel for work. That is the narrative. Not I’m unemployed. Not I’m broke. Not Nothing is certain.

My current reality is this—and it will change, and that’s okay. If you’re like me, I invite you to own your narrative, knowing and hoping that one day, it will evolve.

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3. Setting the Pace Is a Huge Part of Setting Priorities

As a student, freelancer, and songwriter, the tasks can become overwhelming in a heartbeat. This week, I had multiple deadlines, and at some point, I became anxious. Going to sleep felt scary because I wasn’t sure I’d meet all my deadlines—most of which were self-imposed.

Luckily, I also participated in a strengths workshop, where I learned that one of my dominant strengths is being an achiever. This means I go hard and fast—until I can’t go at all. The downside? I tend to take on too much at the same time and try to complete everything within an unrealistic timeframe.

For example, this week, I wanted to:

• Finish two project management certifications

• Edit two interviews for publication

• Work on client projects

• Attend classes and submit assignments

Did those certifications need to be finished this week? No. It took me two days of anxiety to realise I could extend my own deadlines.

Don’t be like me. Set kind, reasonable, and achievable deadlines.

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Voice Memo

In line with this week’s self-inflicted chaos, these words kept me grounded. They reminded me to create space to breathe—because in that space, clarity will come.

If your heart is weary,
please give it a minute to breathe.
Let out all the stale air
so it can find its rhythm again.

Upcoming Shows & Projects

My newest project is titled “Hey Friend” between now and May 30th I want to write 5 songs and release them on bandcamp. In order to do this I will be using Ableton Live as my DAW and Ezkeys to create the instrumentals. It is definitely a learning curve but I can do it so stay tuned!

Ps. If you have any advice please drop it in the comment section, I need all the wisdom I can get.

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Till next week,
with love & laughter,
Oibiee