Dear readers, it’s hard for me not to get political given the times we live in. I’m sure it’s obvious to my regular readers that I lean left, but I like to think I’m open minded and open hearted, willing to consider other viewpoints and slip on someone else’s shoes. I don’t want to shove my political views in your face and so I have been trying to steer clear of discussing the issues and rather offer compassion for all – we all think the country is a divisive mess right now – and tips or things that have helped me along the way. Follow Friday is in that spirit, but I have to warn you that this week my follows lean to the left. If you disagree with this position, that’s fine – I’m posting this to convince you or to argue/debate, I’m posting it for my like-minded readers who might be on the look out for some hope, some calls to action, some ways to move forward.

So as luck would have it, I went to college at a pretty good school where I met some very smart, very ambitious people. Movers and shakers. People who have the chutzpah and guts to make a difference in the world, people who’ve started tech companies, written books, become business leaders, and more. I was also lucky enough to spend a semester in France as a sophomore and got to know some seniors, including Elizabeth. I admired her then for her uncompromising feminism and I admire her now; she became a lawyer and represented families of 9/11 victims in New York, but left to start a personal coaching consultancy, podcast, and then took the leap to start the Gaia Project for Women’s Leadership. During this time of political upheaval, she is a galvanizing voice for me on Twitter and Facebook (she makes many of her posts public), leading the way to making my voice heard, helping everyone to follow what’s going on, and suggesting concrete actions and strategies. She’s great and I highly recommend following her.

I also finally subscribed to WTF Just Happened Today (you can subscribe here), which is tracking and summarizing the current administration’s actions each day. Each item in the newsletter/list is a summary of the action with links to (mostly) credible news sources. I wouldn’t make this my only source for information, but it’s a great way to see everything in one place without having to compile it myself. I still read, listen to, and watch (mainly PBS Newshour) news, but this is a great supplement that helps me see the forest through the trees and not get sidetracked by the latest sensational story.

If you got this far, thanks for reading! I hope these two sources of info are useful or at least that you know that I’m a kindred spirit.