Without Keeping Score
notes on graciously connecting
This week I had coffee with another board chair of a local non-profit. We do this periodically to swap ideas, commiserate, learn from each other. This time we landed on fundraising, and specifically on a challenge we’re both facing: how to broaden our supporter base.
She mentioned that a mutual friend had suggested she reach out to me, since this is work I’ve been deep in for the past few months. Then she described this mutual friend in a way that really resonated.
She called her a connector. But more than that. The most gracious connector. Someone who makes it feel effortless and joyful. A quick text, a warm intro, the sense that she genuinely delights in bringing people together.
Every so often you hear someone described and you just think: what a wonderful thing to be known for.
There’s a real difference between networking and connecting. Networking, if we’re honest, often has a subtle ledger running underneath it. Is this the right person, who owes who, what might come back around? Connecting from a place of genuine care about the people in your orbit is something else entirely. It becomes mission-led. People can sense the difference. The graciousness. The ease. The joy in it.
Being known as someone who “knows the right people” is lovely. But being known as someone who connects them graciously — without keeping score? What a beautiful legacy.
A few things I’ve been into this week…
Reading/Listening/Watching
“Strangers: A Memoir of Marriage” by Belle Burden. Beautifully written, and a compelling argument for shared visibility into marital finances and estate planning.
“Kids are using AI. Here’s what adults need to do right now” via Newsweek. Apparently 90% of children ages 8–14 want to learn about AI. This is very much dinner table conversation in our house. My husband has spent his career building the technology, AI included, embedded in many of the platforms we use every day. Even so, this article is a good reminder that the conversation can’t be left to the experts in our lives.
Issa Rae’s interview with Emma Grede. An excellent listen.
Tell Me Lies. Stephen is infuriating. No redeeming qualities. Struggling to finish the final season, but I’m committed at this point.
Currently Loving
My morning quiet time. A non-negotiable. Time to peacefully enjoy my coffee, respond to yesterday’s emails, and write my to-do list. My way to start the day with a clean slate.
Cumulus cold coffee machine. I drink iced coffee year-round, multiple times a day. We finally cleared counter space (goodbye, baby formula machine) and made room for the Cumulus. It brews cold brew, nitro cold brew, and espresso, all pre-chilled. Zero regrets. In case you’re in the market, the brand gave us a code for $100 off: JASMINEWR100.
This heated mattress pad. A Galentine’s Day party gift. Unsure how I lived without it. It takes sheer willpower not to snuggle in bed all day.
Behrhaus magnesium oil. After reading that most of us are overdosing on melatonin, I started looking for alternatives. Enter Lauren Behringer, a celebrity aesthetician and health coach who founded Behrhaus, a clean skincare line. The magnesium oil has become a nightly ritual for me and my oldest, who now requests a foot rub with it every evening.
sitting with Lauren at a recent Behrhaus brand event Highbrow Hippie Instant Silk Vitality Mask + root replenish active growth serum. The mask is deceptively light but nourishing and I use the serum 2x a day without my hair feeling greasy. They’ve also worked beautifully on my daughter’s long, thick, curly hair. A win for the Rose ladies!
More soon!
x Jasmine
🧑🏽🦱🤝👩🏽🦱
“Networking, if we’re honest, often has a subtle ledger running underneath it”