What is identity capital?

Hey, you! Happy Thursday. My team and I here at The Workbook have been planning some really exciting things for 2023—can't wait for you to see everything we’re dreaming up!

On that note, we're also looking for advertising partners to work with in this newsletter and beyond! If you want to partner with us and get your brand in front of this incredible (and smart and cool and talented) audience, let us know here!

When You Learn How to Create Themes in Excel

Instagram has over 1 billion monthly users. But you and I both know that not all of ‘em are professional photographers. Many of these folks (myself included) use presets to give their photos that extra *je ne sais quoi*.

These presets (which are basically filters) are life-savers for those of us who are, um, photographically challenged.

But did you know Excel has its own version of presets to help us create beautiful worksheets?

Introducing Excel Themes. 🎨 These are a set of themes—each with its own fonts, colors, effects, etc.—built into Excel to update and glamorize the formatting of your worksheet.

To find them, go to the “Page Layout” tab, and then on the left, you’ll get to “Themes.”

Excel has a bunch of themes to flip through. If you’re indecisive about which to choose, Excel shows you each theme's changes in real time before you commit.

This is *great* for those of us who hoarded stickers as kids because we couldn’t commit to sticking them onto something and not being able to remove them. (No? Just me?)

But say you want your themes to better reflect the work you’re doing—maybe to integrate your brand’s colors, fonts, etc. Excel gives us the option to create our own custom themes, which are perfect for this situation.

Creating your own custom theme is simple. To the immediate right of “Themes,” you can click on “Colors,” “Fonts,” and “Effects” and browse customized options for each at the bottom.

Once you’ve created the perfect theme, just click on “Themes” and scroll down to “Save Current Theme.” You can even name the theme so you can re-use it in the future!

Do you have an Excel problem—or did you recently have an Excel breakthrough? Either way, I’d love to hear from you and possibly feature your intel in a future newsletter!

Build Identity Capital

One of the most important lessons I’ve learned in my 20s (besides how life-changing an air fryer can be 🙃) is how to build identity capital. 

No, it has nothing to do with balance sheets or accountants (we’ve covered enough Excel for today). Coined by Dr. Meg Jay, a clinical psychologist and author of The Defining Decade, identity capital is “the currency we use to metaphorically purchase jobs and relationships.”

In plain English, it’s what we do to invest in ourselves. 

Dr. Jay first introduced the idea of identity capital when a 20-something patient of hers found herself deliberating between two job options—one as a barista and one as a “floater” at an animation agency.

The 20-something gravitated towards the coffee gig (which I can understand—who doesn’t enjoy free cappuccinos??) but Dr. Jay encouraged her to go for the floater job instead.

That’s because the job at the animation studio offered something the barista job didn’t: identity capital. While working as a barista is a great way to support oneself, the 20-something had an opportunity to pursue her goal of working in a creative field.

Identity capital isn’t just stuff that goes on a résumé. It’s where you go, what you learn, and who you meet. It could be…

Ultimately, identity capital is composed of experiences that shape you and help expand your life choices down the road.

But the real beauty of increasing your identity capital is that it encourages you to embrace unique experiences. Sure, dancing in TikToks as “Miss Excel” seemed a bit unusual at first—but it’s what made me me.

Whichever road your quest for identity capital leads you down, just remember: investing in yourself is never a waste.

• The Microsoft Teams/Outlook integration you didn't know you needed. You’ve heard about how much we love Office Otter—the productivity tool that makes managing your to-do list simple and efficient. With their new app, you can create tasks for yourself directly from Teams conversations or Outlook emails. Check it out.*

• This podcast episode about the science behind manifestation will change the way you approach your life goals. 💭

• Are you tired of messy Excel data? Same. My TikTok on how to clean your workbooks can help.

• A clinical psychologist gives her five best tips on how to become a better listener.

• They say “curiosity killed the cat.” 🐈 But this book argues that being curious can be life-changing in the best way.

• PSA: If you’re subscribed to Microsoft 365 you have access to a bunch of budget templates!

*This is sponsored advertising content.

I just learned about this new tip to reduce stress and I had to share. 💆‍♀️

Magnesium supplements. Yep. Research shows magnesium reduces anxiety, eases stress, and basically makes you as cool as a cucumber.

According to Dr. Tara Swart, the best way to take magnesium is “transdermally,” which basically means through the skin with gels, lotions, or bath salts.

Stay Excelerating,

Kat