Rewriting the script: the all-new Note to self

The new edition of an old favourite, Note to self, is landing soon. With gorgeous new illustrations by artist, Katie Jardine, and updated suits and questions, Note to Self is a perfect tool to help you explore your choices, shift your perspective, and find hope, even during challenging times.

We all need reminders. Reminders to pause, to breathe, to believe in ourselves, and to return to what matters most.

As the author of Note to self, Gena McLean said, back in 2007 when she developed the first edition of the cards,

‘… “note to self” was a phrase people often used when they’d made a small mistake: Note to self…check the pockets next time! Note to self…leave earlier for work! We were giving ourselves mental reminders about the small stuff, but it got me thinking—what about the big stuff? The truths and choices that shape our lives?’

First published more than a decade ago, Note to self has supported thousands of people to face challenges with courage and to embrace life with greater self-compassion. Each card offers a gentle but powerful prompt to help people shift their perspective, reframe self-talk, and reconnect with inner strength.

Katie and Gena

This edition also includes a set of brand-new delightful images by artist Katie Jardine (Strength Cards, Anxiety Solutions for Kids), which make these cards a perfect accompaniment to warm, reflective conversations about any questions, challenges, or changes people are grappling with.

Note to self consists of 24 cards, featuring more than 70 questions and sentence starters. Use the cards to:

• reflect on behaviours and choices
• acknowledge thoughts and feelings
• promote positive self-talk
• work through challenges and ‘sticking points’
• identify strengths, beliefs and values
• build hope.

Perfect for counsellors, social workers, life coaches, personal reflection, journalling … and more.

This revised and updated edition reflects author Gena McLean’s own journey of resilience, healing, and growth. Forged through personal experience and the universal challenges of being human, these cards invite us to rewrite our inner script by focussing on our choices, beliefs, thoughts and actions.

‘At 17, I was diagnosed with a debilitating gut condition and told there was nothing I could do but “learn to live with it.” For over forty years I’ve lived with chronic pain. But instead of letting it define me, I chose to let it refine me.

‘Pain became my teacher. It pushed me to seek meaning, to change my relationship to suffering, and to discover strength I didn’t know I had. Often, I felt alone in it—and so I learnt to be there for myself. That journey became the soil in which Note to self grew, and it continues to shape this new edition.’

While the cards feel gentle, kind, compassionate and heartwarming, they are also perfect for talking about the hard stuff—chronic pain or illness, grief and loss, and trauma. Equally, they are great for helping guide small everyday decisions as they encourage us to focus on what we can control, rather than what we can’t. As Gena says:

‘Life will always bring challenges—some small, some devastating. We don’t get to choose what happens, but we do get to choose how we respond. We can be broken down, or we can be broken open. In the breaking open, we discover strengths, skills, and deeper connections that might otherwise never have emerged.’

Use the cards with groups, in classrooms, in therapeutic spaces. They are also ideal as personal reminders—put one up on the fridge, over your desk, or on your bedside table, as a reminder that you always have options.

This is Gena’s invitation to you. ‘My hope is that this new edition of Note to self will be a gentle companion for you on your journey. May it remind you that you are stronger than you think, that you have choices, and that you can rewrite the script—one note to self at a time.’

Every hardcopy card set purchased includes a FREE digital set of the cards, a digital booklet and an online toolbox full of extras.

Note to Self is available to pre-order now.

Gena’s heartfelt reaction to seeing the new edition of Note to Self for the first time