surviving the shift: how to thrive in a trumpian era
while everyone loses their head, we play to win
disclaimer: the views expressed in this essay are those of the author and do not reflect the views of any employer, past or current.
in less than 50 days, the middle of the decade will arrive. with it, another trump term. in the aftermath of one of the most consequential u.s. presidential elections of the 21st century, fear and loathing have surged as pundits and plebeians alike come to grips with the reality of a second trump term.
examining the state of our world, it’s clear there’s much to worry about: wars, famines, and barely contained revolutions (and resistances!) that have erupted all throughout the lands. for those of us in the west, we’re fortunate to live in seemingly calm times: our faucets still flow, our cars still run, and our media spokespeople fan the flames of fear and loathing along partisan lines.
i’ve said it before: the devil is a lie. when we give into our fear, when we direct the energy we should be spending on ourselves onto the affairs of others, we lose.
i believe success is your birthright. there are no losers in a diouana woman’s game. i concern myself only with win-win situations. so, upon witnessing the greatest comeback in american political history, my natural thought was, “well, let the games begin.”
there are those with platforms that reach millions who will spend the next four years telling you that we’ve entered the “hunger games.” if sociology were their actual concern, they’d tell you that the second gilded age has been upon us long before trump was ever elected into the highest office in the land. for that, we have private equity executives and decades worth of quantitive easing to blame. but i digress.
in the middle of what has already been a chaotic decade, we find ourselves here. at the precipice of another shift. the fortunate news is that america is a young country. this world is new. it may seem like the end of times. but it’s actually the beginning. i suspect that in the rumbling of everything, america will return to what it has always been: a new world with many resources and people willing and able to use them to their advantage.
this is the land of innovation. of enterprise. of audacity and ambition.
to honor that spirit, let us prepare for this new era of america. let us prepare ourselves for a new version of us. we, few but proud, diouana women who can thrive in any era. any century. any circumstance.
so, this saturday, november 23rd, will be the launch of the diouana woman salon. a three-part series where we’ll cut through the noise of our times to find the truth that we’ll use to thrive.
and if there’s any truth i hold onto as a diouana woman, outside of psalm 46:5, it’s the truth that chaos is a ladder.
as you’re undertaken your winter arc, join us for a three-part transformation. this is your invitation to reclaim clarity, craft audacity, and cultivate resilience in a world that does not appreciate pride in a woman. nor one who believes she actually deserves nice things.
the salons will unfold in a narrative-driven, chronological order of the following:
salon i, november 23, 2024: fear, loathing, and the power of clarity
“the struggle itself towards the heights is enough to fill a man's heart.”
fear can be paralyzing, but it is also a teacher. it reminds us of what we value, of what’s at stake. to survive the shift, we must face our fears, name them, and find clarity in their shadow.
clarity is power. it’s what stops us from becoming women afraid of our own shadow. clarity is the beginning of strategy.
this saturday, we’ll explore the absurdity of fear and its ability to cloud or sharpen our vision. we will map the terrain of what we can and cannot control, learning to anchor ourselves in the clarity that comes with deliberate thought and bold action.
case studies will include both the real and mythological worlds. touching sociopolitical dynamics to folklore and mythology.
the recommended (if not prerequisite) reading includes my essays: the pleasure-pain of becoming and power is not a young woman’s game.
salon ii, december 2024: mapping your audacious action plan
“whatever you can do or dream you can, begin it. boldness has genius, power, and magic in it.”
once we see clearly, the next step is to act. action precedes identity and is the antidote to anxiety. when you are a woman who knows what you want. and goes after it and refines your strategy with each feedback loop, you are a woman who will get what you want. full stop.
some call it manifestation. i call it an inevitable end. some things are just inevitable. the gods may have their favorites, but you always have a choice.
audacity and ambition are choices. conviction is a character trait you can develop.
it is not enough to dream. sometimes it’s not even enough to be audacious. we must actually do the work. read the books. make the calls. send the emails. do the reps.
this second salon will be your space to build your blueprint for 2025. a year where bold decisions will matter more than ever.
the heritage foundation has their project 2025, what’s yours?
case studies will include both the real and mythological worlds. touching sociopolitical dynamics to folklore and mythology.
the recommended (if not prerequisite) reading includes my essays: sprinkle sprinkle: a career retrospective and the wisdom of whores.
salon iii, january 2025: thriving in the eye of the storm
“don’t be so linear in your thinking”
the emblem of our community as diouana women is an ouroboros. the snake that eats its own tail. in this consumption, the snake gives birth to itself as many times as it needs. cats aren’t the only ones with nine lives.
by january 2025, we’ll be squarely in the middle of the decade. which means that 2030 is just around the corner. trump will become a lame-duck president by 2027, incentivizing him to push as much of his agenda as possible during the first two years of his term. knowing his political timeline, we can anticipate continuous chaos and map our own paths accordingly.
but remember, chaos is a ladder. opportunity will always surround us. we’re fortunate as human beings to not only live in such an abundant planet, but to be creatures whose minds are the mouth of god. by that i mean, what you believe, you can sincerely will to be. but what you action out, you can ensure.
it’s one thing to be blessed. it’s another to be grateful. it’s a separate thing to thrive.
this third salon will center on resilience. the art of rebirth, renewal, and choosing “death” as a means of success. aka, knowing when to quit a path when our boundaries are being encroached.
case studies will include both the real and mythological worlds. touching sociopolitical dynamics to folklore and mythology.
the recommended (if not prerequisite) reading includes my essays: being beautiful won’t solve all your problems and the section titled “nancy and the concubines” in power is not a young woman’s game.
i first introduced this salon as a revival of the poetry-laced social parties of 19th century paris, where the courtesans ruled the demi-monde. but this salon will be so much more than a sequel. it’s a space for community. where ambitious and audacious women come to speak about the times and strategize their way to wherever they want to be. each salon will build on the prior one until it’s november 2025 and we look back and realize that in the midst of chaos we found clarity. and from clarity we took action. and with action came resilience. and with resilience came unbounded success.
if that sounds like the journey for you, join us.
p.s. confirm your attendance while space remains
back when i was dating, i refused to go on dates at overly corporate locations. i told my suitors that intimate locations, like the sceney but vibey restaurants below 14th street, were better for conversation. our salon will run on the same principle: privacy, intimacy, and audacious conversation. seats are limited. remember: action above all else. use the holiday code diouanaholidays at checkout, and you can split the $299 price however you prefer. i hope you’ll join us.
sweet dreams,
a diouana woman