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5.23.26 | 💛 Why I don't believe in work-life balance anymore with Celia Chen
My braised cabbage recipe, the matcha mask I'm obsessed with, my new favorite t-shirt, and why I've started treating laundry like a ritual.
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Happy Saturday!
Today’s edition is curated by my friend Celia Chen, someone whose perspective on wellness I’ve come to deeply value over the last several years.
After a career as a fashion executive and wellness CMO, she founded Chenessa, where she now works closely with high-performing women around body composition, menopause, and female longevity.
Celia has a grounded approach to what it means to feel truly vibrant in our bodies and lives, and is always exploring new tools in service of that aim. I love her practical approach and I’ve asked her to write for The Good Trade on how to leverage resources like DEXA scans, CGMs, and GLP-1s in midlife.
I know you’ll enjoy her thoughts and inspirations below!
Warmly,
AmyAnn
💛 Welcome, Celia!
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Happy Memorial Day!
I know many of you are looking forward to a long weekend of unwinding.
I should probably tell you now that I don’t really believe in work-life balance. Not in the traditional sense, anyway.
I spent close to three decades building brands — luxury fashion, hospitality and venture-backed startups. I’ve always worked hard. What changed for me in midlife wasn’t my ambition but instead a major reboot to my operating system.
I no longer draw a line between work and leisure. The question I ask instead is more to do with how my nervous system feels: does this activity, person or project fill me up or drain me?
Spending a solitary Sunday afternoon writing my Substack fills me with joy. So does taking an AI masterclass with fellow founders during an already busy week. Finding inspiration at a museum is just as important as a strategy session with my creative director.
What drains me is the old cycle of working myself into the ground, then dropping everything to will myself back to health. I did that version for years in New York and I’m not interested in it anymore.
These days I’ve found a work-life harmony. When I’m inspired, I lock in and go deep. When I need a change of pace, I take the time that I need to restore. Rest is no longer a reward for hard work, and work isn’t something I need a vacation from. They’re just different modes of being fully present and alive...