Hey y’all 👋🏼 I hope you’ve been enjoying Sana’s Notes so far, if there is anything you’d like to hear about from me, just hit the Reply button and let me know! I hope you enjoy this week’s catch-up.

— Sana Tabassum

🍎 food for thought

I just read back last week’s newsletter to y’all and I can safely say I’m having a better week than I was last week (thank goodness). After some self-motivation and finding myself with fewer tasks and ideas floating around in my head, I’ve been able to finally stick to the ‘ideal calendar week’ that I set up for myself a few months ago.

That’s because those thoughts and random business ideas are now going into my notebooks - one is a larger, A5 notebook for project planning and note-taking whereas the other is Field Notes pocketbook for quotes, thoughts and other random things I want to write about. In the past, I’ve struggled with having a singular place for my ideas and getting them down on paper but also the act of looking back on those notes because that’s the whole point right?

Alongside this side quest, I’ve also pushed myself to ‘ship’ stuff faster and move past the planning stage which I can often get lost in. This just means launching things or testing out my ideas rather than waiting for some perfect moment that may never come. Keep reading till the end to find out my very exciting offer 😉.

Lastly, the reason this email is titled ‘Finding my voice’ is because, after the disappointing result of my first-ever in-person workshop, I’ve managed to turn it around completely and learn from the experience. I guess it motivated me to push that much harder to get this workshop out to other schools of architecture and I’ve been exploring almost every avenue I can. I’ve emailed the heads of architecture schools, DM’d tutors on LinkedIn and posted stories on my Instagram.

Now I’ve got at least 3 different people interested in hosting my personal branding workshop at their university!! Even if those don’t work out, I see it as a successful experiment that shows the power of social media. This has made me a lot more confident in pitching to people and finding my voice without it being scary or intimidating. The fact that I’m passionate about these things does in fact make it a lot easier to pitch them to a stranger.

What I’ve learned 👇🏼

• That initial hurdle or failure is also a part of the process that you simply can’t see until you’re on the other side of it.

• Although I love my digital second brain, the frictionless experience of writing something in a physical notebook is unparalleled.

• Keep pushing for the thing you want to do. Even if it means sending hundreds of emails with no replies, someone might surprise you.

🍗 content nuggets

This week I stepped outside of my usual entertainment content on YouTube and actually used it to learn something. The video below is by a channel called The Futur, created by Chris Do who is multi-talented but likes to call himself a teacher. In this video, he mentions a hybrid approach of getting clients that combines a traditional sales mindset and creative skills that people like you and I have.

Another great video that might be of use to some of you is this one by OG architecture content creators, Steven and Oliver from Show it Better and Learn Upstairs. They’ve been doing these portfolio critiques for quite some time now but this one really caught my eye as they chose the best of the best. I’m strongly leaning towards re-doing my own portfolio soon to up my game!

🦋 magic sauces

Speaking of portfolios, I’m offering 1:1 portfolio sessions for those of you wanting another pair of eyes or advice on applying to jobs. You can book a call with me using this link.

🔥 on the back burner

BIG NEWS! I’m officially launching my Personal Brand Coaching 🎉

This is for architecture or design students and graduates looking to amplify their online presence by developing a personal brand. A strong personal brand will maximise your chances of building connections in the industry, getting your name in front of potential employers and the chance to pursue projects outside of architecture.

This package includes 4 hours worth of 1:1 coaching where I will walk you through how to use LinkedIn effectively and review your CV and portfolio in depth.

You can book a discovery call with me to find out more.

Check out my latest YouTube video below where I explain my drawing method and style for my MArch project 👇️ 

— Sana x