New to Rolling in Doh? 🤗 Start Here: A Mad Lib (+ Template!)
📝 Copy the Google doc to join the "Less Than Ideal Day" fill-in-the-blanks fun :)
If you are new here, welcome! I’m delighted to have you, and deeply grateful to for featuring Doh this week :)1
The Ideal Day Mad Lib is one of my favorite templates to share with readers of Pivot and Free Time. But sometimes our ideal day doesn’t go as planned . . . for days that stretch into weeks and months and even years. 😭
No matter how short we fall of rolling in actual dough, let’s at least have a laugh: How did your last year go? Write your story using the same prompts as the ones in this post by saving a copy of the Google Doc template and filling in the blanks.
❤️ In lieu of rolling out an actual red carpet for you, my version is below! Each link points to a post from the Doh archives, in chronological(ish) order.
I
Nearly one year ago, I hit a major dip when I got “The Ax” from my favorite licensing client.
I didn’t know what else to do. It was the last straw after years of stressors. So I started Writing My Way Out.
I had a hunch it could be my Getaway Car 🚘.
So despite the Starting Friction,
II
My husband celebrated the move by saying 🏴☠️ “Burn the Boats,”
As I lurched into Full Catastrophe Business-Building.
I took some deep breaths, reminding myself to: 🎬 BELIEVE, Ignore the Odds, aim for 51/49, and Survive til ‘25.
. . . and that it would okay if I end up browsing /careers after twelve years of self-employment.
III
I wished someone would Save Me while 🧱Rebuilding from Rubble.
Still, despite the low moments I remember thinking, 🚧 This is a Wonderful Day!
And then immediately growing afraid that soon the other shoe would drop.
IV
Although I had major issues with Critters and Cash Flow,
I tried to be grateful for BBQ & BBB.
After all, ✨“Good Vibes, Good Life.”
While embracing the fact that my life was a Hot Mess 🍔, I returned to a mantra that served me well: There Is Only One Wish.
V
Things started to shift as I released The Self-Imposed Pressure to Be an Expert,
Especially when I admitted Revenue Goals Don’t Work (For Me).
I took stock of all that happened since 2020 by conducting An Honest Accounting replete with an emoji balance sheet.
VI
I realized I had a lot of ambiguous grief around 👻 Saying No to the Ghost of a Former Self, a podcast host interviewing my fossilized self, and the feeling that my pre-pandemic 👖 closet belongs to someone else.
A wave of insecurities rush in, as I wondered:
Is my Favorite (Former) Client thinking, Why are you so obsessed with me?
Am I an 🥸 Unreliable CEO?
At the same time, I felt a Weight Lifted.
VII
I had an aha moment when I realized The Suspense is Terrible . . . and yet I hoped it would last.
And that 🌊 This is Like That, after confronting my fears of fish and drowning.
Serendipity kicked in one 👟 Strange and Wonderful Morning.
At the peak of my overwhelm, I made a ✔️ To Do List.
I shook off the temptation to Sail the Sea of Shiny Shoulds; reminding myself 🚬 Smoking is Essential for Your Success, They Said 🙄.
VIII
I laughed when I realized that just like my angel-in-fur-coat Ryder, I too was 🚿 Fooled by Joyful Randomness.
Before I knew it, I found myself 🪜 Climbing Down the Entrepreneurial Ladder;
It was time to 🏆 Put the Podcast Trophies Away.
Still, there was 🎤 one thing I forgot to say to my career these last four years: thank you.
IX
As last year came to a close, I reflected on a few of the strange lessons it brought 🧐 Do What You Love and the Money Will Follow...only IF you meet certain criteria, and that 🪶 the abyss does not always become a feather bed.
There might not be a big breakthrough, it seemed I was on a path toward 🌱 Ten Years to Middle-of-the-Pack Success.
So to ring in the new year, I wrote ✉️ Dear 2024: A Letter, and I even got a response 📩 From 2024.
In my most uncertain moments, I Asked for a Sign.
Sometimes they were unmistakable, like the 🚨 Four-Alarm Fire.
X
Even though I gave up trying to lap the 🚓 Ghost Car,
I knew that I wouldn’t stop Chasing the Taste of Creative Freedom.
After all, as the kids say 🤸🏻♀️ Delulu is the Solulu!
It’s normal to experience a 🚏 Creative Crossroads After Achieving Success.
XI
Sure, my fear of failure bubbled up when I contemplated 📘 The Free Time Afterword I Never Wrote and 🌟 My Favorite One-Star Review.
But I surrendered to the 🧺 Crumpled Laundry Piles All Over My House.
I realized that although I might be 🃏 Decorating My House of Cards and 🪂 Building a Parachute on the Way Down,
It was time to 🛋️ Pull up a Seat
And embrace Rolling in Doh.2
❤️
Thank you for reading! If you enjoyed this post, tap the heart or restack buttons below, share it with a friend, or leave a comment—I’d love to hear from you! If you’re feeling brave, share one of your mad lib sections in the comments :)
The blurb knocked my socks off! Big thanks again to for the kind words :)
If you’re new here, this is a (mostly) paid publication about my travails as a breadwinner and small business owner living in New York City, with lots of embedded links for your perusing pleasure. I hope it brings you as much catharsis as it has for me—you are not alone if you, too, are Rolling in D🤦🏻♀️h!
If you enjoyed this post, don’t forget to take a crack at the Less Than Ideal Day Mad Lib template yourself, with the same prompts as above.
I absolutely love ❤️ Doh!!
Congrats on getting featured, Jenny! I really enjoy your newsletters 💕