Welcome to The Joyful Rebellion!

Because setting boundaries, resting well, and building healthier systems is radical.

🧪What's New In the Lab

I've been quiet out here, but not idle. Behind the scenes, I've been gearing up for beta testing the Workplace Boundary Health Index™ this week. As a recovering perfectionist, I want to make it sharper before it fully opens up while also not overthinking things!

Want a teaser? Check the Closing Reflection for a link to the upgraded Boundary Audit.

All this behind-the-scenes work has me thinking about something bigger: none of us are supposed to figure this out solo. Not the audit, not the burnout, not the boundary-setting. We're surrounded by tools, some human, some digital, some just sitting in a doc waiting to be used, and the real skill is reaching for them instead of white-knuckling it alone. And when you're stuck, that's where I come in; helping people figure out what to do with what they already know.

That's the thread running through this whole issue. Let's get into it.

Dawn working at Clementine's at the Museum of Fine Arts in St. Pete

✍🏽 The Better Boundaries Brief

Coming this Tuesday on the blog: a new Better Boundaries Brief on how AI is redesigning work, and the opportunity we have to use it not as a replacement for human judgment or connection, but as one more thing in the kit when you're trying to protect your time and energy. I'll drop the link the second it's live, but consider this your heads-up.

👉🏽 Read past Briefs while you wait

🎧 Work Is Third: Podcast Spotlight

Friends, Mentors, and Friendtors | Investing in Yourself With Urmi Hossain

This week's episode features self-published author, speaker, female mentor, and women's advocate Urmi Hossein, and it's a good one! Recorded during Women's History Month, it's a beautiful reflection on mentorship, time boundaries, and what it actually looks like to let someone else's experience save you a few hard lessons. If "asking for help" has ever felt like admitting defeat, this conversation will inspire you.

Listen Now

📊Data That Matters

Workers with a mentor are less than half as likely to have seriously considered quitting in the past three months compared to those without one (25% vs. 41%), according to a CNBC/SurveyMonkey Workplace Happiness Survey of nearly 8,000 U.S. workers.

That's not a soft benefit. Career trajectories are shaped by opportunities, and those are stronger with people who both guide us (mentors) and speak up for us (sponsors).

Link: Nine in 10 workers who have a career mentor say they are happy in their jobs

💬Quote of the Week

📓 Journal Prompt

What's one tool, person, or resource I can access this week and is there anything keeping me from doing so?

🌞 Affirmation of the Week

I ask for help when I need it and trust other people to support me.

(P.S. — the affirmation deck this line could easily live in is still on track for a Summer 2026 launch. More soon. 🃏)

💫 Closing Reflection

In the last issue, I shared a fillable PDF version of the Boundary Audit. Consider this the upgrade: it now lives right on the website, no download required, same 10-ish minutes, same useful discomfort.

👉🏽 Take the Workplace Boundary Audit and then hit reply and tell me your boundary leadership style.

You can find all the things, including the Audit, on my Linktree: @thedawnhunter

With care and rebellion,
Dawn ✨

🤝🏽Let’s Work Together

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