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Welcome to Lipstick & Ink®, your home for everything career and wellness inspired. I’m Kelly, a Chicago-based marketing tech professional, writer, career coach, speaker, and events host.

Whether we’re working together on your career aspirations, refreshing your professional documents, or keeping your mental health in check, I encourage you to own your power and make your mark – one lipstick stain at a time.

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The Story Behind Lipstick & Ink®

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Jan 13, 2022

2021 Recap: 6 Reflections from the Year

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Dec 31, 2021

4 Reasons Why to Document Your Work Wins

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Oct 30, 2021

5 Tips for Giving Critical (But Effective) Feedback

career & business corporate

Aug 4, 2021

How to Get Hired at a Top Company

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Jul 7, 2021

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𝙒𝙝𝙚𝙣'𝙨 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙡𝙖𝙨𝙩 𝙩𝙞𝙢𝙚 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙙𝙚𝙙𝙞𝙘𝙖𝙩𝙚𝙙 𝙩𝙞𝙢𝙚 𝙩𝙤 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙠 𝙖𝙗𝙤𝙪𝙩 𝙮𝙤𝙪𝙧 𝙘𝙖𝙧𝙚𝙚𝙧? I mean, actually sat down, cleared the mental clutter, got honest with yourself, & documented your career aspirations?
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𝗧𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝘁𝘆𝗽𝗲 𝗼𝗳 𝘀𝗲𝗹𝗳-𝗲𝘅𝗽𝗹𝗼𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗶𝘀 𝗸𝗲𝘆 𝘁𝗼 𝗲𝗹𝗲𝘃𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗰𝗮𝗿𝗲𝗲𝗿. It can foster reflection and awareness for what it is you want to pursue in your career. And with careful planning, help you map out how you will get to where you want to be & when. The reality is that career self-exploration usually falls behind when it comes to people's day to day work. We hit 𝘚𝘯𝘰𝘰𝘻𝘦 instead of being an active participant in our career planning. Excuses for why range from it being difficult to find time in our busy schedules, it not being worth our time, or it being too overwhelming to know where to begin.
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That's why I created L&I's 𝘾𝙖𝙧𝙚𝙚𝙧 𝘿𝙚𝙫𝙚𝙡𝙤𝙥𝙢𝙚𝙣𝙩 𝙋𝙡𝙖𝙣, a FREE & straightforward resource to plan and own your career. 𝑬𝒙𝒄𝒖𝒔𝒆𝒔 𝒏𝒐 𝒎𝒐𝒓𝒆! Think of your CDP as your personal roadmap to formulating and documenting your career vision and setting your goals. It pushes you to think about your values, strengths & areas of opportunity. Not only that, it acts as a guide for you to use in your career conversations, steering productive dialogue with your manager, mentor, or coach. It gives you an opportunity to discuss & track your progress and cultivate relationships of ongoing feedback, learning & growth.
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The 𝘾𝘿𝙋 can be used for corporate professionals & entrepreneurs alike, in whatever way is beneficial for you. It can:⠀
☞ Act as a guide to help you grow at your company, plotting out the steps to your next promotion or new role⠀
☞ Serve as the first step in your job search, to get clear in the type of role/company you're seeking⠀
☞ Be a tool to map out your business's path forward & how to expand your business
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Are you ready to stop hitting 𝘚𝘯𝘰𝘰𝘻𝘦 on your career self-exploration? If so, head to the link in my bio, hit 𝚁𝚎𝚜𝚘𝚞𝚛𝚌𝚎𝚜, & download the worksheet! 💋

My dear friend, @rebeccammendations of @theknockme

My dear friend, @rebeccammendations of @theknockmethod, gifted me a candle for the holidays with the word 𝑪𝒉𝒂𝒏𝒈𝒆𝒎𝒂𝒌𝒆𝒓 on it. As I was working at my desk a few weeks ago, I looked down at the lit candle. 𝘞𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘪𝘴 𝘢 𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘨𝘦𝘮𝘢𝘬𝘦𝘳? I wondered. It got me thinking....
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𝚃𝚘 𝚖𝚎, 𝚊 𝚌𝚑𝚊𝚗𝚐𝚎𝚖𝚊𝚔𝚎𝚛 𝚒𝚜 𝚜𝚘𝚖𝚎𝚘𝚗𝚎 𝚠𝚑𝚘 𝚟𝚒𝚎𝚠𝚜 𝚌𝚑𝚊𝚗𝚐𝚎𝚜 𝚒𝚗 𝚕𝚒𝚏𝚎 𝚊𝚜 𝚘𝚙𝚙𝚘𝚛𝚝𝚞𝚗𝚒𝚝𝚒𝚎𝚜. 𝚂𝚑𝚎 𝚜𝚎𝚎𝚔𝚜 𝚘𝚞𝚝 𝚙𝚘𝚜𝚜𝚒𝚋𝚒𝚕𝚒𝚝𝚒𝚎𝚜 𝚒𝚗𝚜𝚝𝚎𝚊𝚍 𝚘𝚏 𝚊𝚌𝚌𝚎𝚙𝚝𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚜𝚝𝚊𝚝𝚞𝚜 𝚚𝚞𝚘. 𝚂𝚑𝚎 𝚍𝚘𝚎𝚜𝚗’𝚝 𝚕𝚎𝚊𝚟𝚎 𝚑𝚎𝚛 𝚌𝚊𝚛𝚎𝚎𝚛, 𝚛𝚎𝚕𝚊𝚝𝚒𝚘𝚗𝚜𝚑𝚒𝚙𝚜, 𝚘𝚛 𝚚𝚞𝚊𝚕𝚒𝚝𝚢 𝚘𝚏 𝚕𝚒𝚏𝚎 𝚝𝚘 𝚌𝚑𝚊𝚗𝚌𝚎. 𝚂𝚑𝚎 𝚌𝚘𝚖𝚋𝚒𝚗𝚎𝚜 𝚑𝚎𝚛 𝚝𝚎𝚗𝚊𝚌𝚒𝚝𝚢 𝚠𝚒𝚝𝚑 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚌𝚘𝚞𝚛𝚊𝚐𝚎 𝚝𝚘 𝚝𝚊𝚔𝚎 𝚊𝚌𝚝𝚒𝚘𝚗. 𝚂𝚑𝚎 𝚒𝚜 𝚌𝚘𝚖𝚖𝚒𝚝𝚝𝚎𝚍 𝚝𝚘 𝚕𝚒𝚟𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚊 𝚕𝚒𝚏𝚎 𝚘𝚏 𝚏𝚞𝚕𝚏𝚒𝚕𝚕𝚖𝚎𝚗𝚝 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚒𝚖𝚙𝚊𝚌𝚝 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚊𝚒𝚖𝚜 𝚝𝚘 𝚖𝚊𝚔𝚎 𝚑𝚎𝚛 𝚖𝚊𝚛𝚔 𝚘𝚗 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚠𝚘𝚛𝚕𝚍.
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We all have the potential to be a #changemaker. My hope is for you to be the changemaker of your life, of your own story. I want you to know that you have the power to write that next chapter of your story. As a changemaker, you 𝘾𝘼𝙉:⠀
⍟ Rewrite your career at any age⠀
⍟ Land your dream job⠀
⍟ Pursue passion in your career⠀
⍟ Make more money⠀
⍟ Feel fulfilled by your work⠀
⍟ Do work that has an impact⠀
⍟ Build something of your own
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Life is too damn short to waste one more day in a job or situation that isn’t working for you. If you are feeling stuck, discouraged, undervalued, or unfulfilled in your career, I see you. I’ve been in your shoes. And I want you to know it gets better – 𝙗𝙪𝙩 𝙞𝙩 𝙨𝙩𝙖𝙧𝙩𝙨 𝙬𝙞𝙩𝙝 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙘𝙝𝙤𝙤𝙨𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙩𝙤 𝙢𝙖𝙠𝙚 𝙖 𝙘𝙝𝙖𝙣𝙜𝙚. 𝑰𝒕 𝒔𝒕𝒂𝒓𝒕𝒔 𝒘𝒊𝒕𝒉 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒐𝒘𝒏𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒚𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒑𝒐𝒘𝒆𝒓 𝒂𝒔 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒄𝒉𝒂𝒏𝒈𝒆𝒎𝒂𝒌𝒆𝒓 𝒐𝒇 𝒚𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒔𝒕𝒐𝒓𝒚.
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So tell me, changemaker - what changes will you choose to make today? This week? This month? This year? 💋

I jump for joy when I hear from women who are advo

I jump for joy when I hear from women who are advocating for themselves and seeing positive momentum in their careers 🥳🙌🏼 Swipe to read a message I received last night - How amazing is that?! So proud 🥲This is a perfect example and reminder to always bet on yourself and be your best advocate. You can’t wait around for someone to recognize your work or to speak on your behalf of how kick ass of a job you’re doing. You need to step up and do it yourself.
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One way to advocate for yourself is through communicating your wins. *𝚁𝙴𝙼𝙴𝙼𝙱𝙴𝚁: “𝚒𝚝’𝚜 𝚗𝚘𝚝 𝚋𝚛𝚊𝚐𝚐𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚒𝚏 𝚒𝚝’𝚜 𝚋𝚊𝚜𝚎𝚍 𝚘𝚗 𝚏𝚊𝚌𝚝𝚜.”* The first step to doing that is documenting what those wins are. These wins could be goals you’ve hit, positive feedback you’ve received, certifications you’ve acquired, impact you’ve driven, just to name a few. It’s an exercise to do periodically to keep track of your progress and the value you bring to your role, your team, and your company.
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Why is it important to document your wins? ⠀
》It Gives You More Visibility ⠀
》 It Comes in Handy in Negotiations ⠀
》 It Helps to Differentiate Yourself in Your Job Search
》 It Boosts Your Confidence
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➙ Read more via the link in my bio under [BLOG] and download your own wins tracker under [RESOURCES] 💋

Hello, 2022! Before I jump into the craziness of a

Hello, 2022! Before I jump into the craziness of a new year, I like to take time to reflect. A few days ago, I saw @thestudiopress’s Story that posed a reflection question: 𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐰𝐨𝐮𝐥𝐝 𝐛𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟏 𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐭𝐢𝐭𝐥𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐬𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐲?
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As I thought about my own last week, I decided my chapter would be titled 𝑪𝒉𝒐𝒐𝒔𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝑪𝒐𝒖𝒓𝒂𝒈𝒆. In 2021, I pushed myself to choose courage in:⠀
♡ Applying & accepting a new role at work even though I didn’t feel qualified⠀
♡ Presenting to CMOs & speaking at events even though public speaking is my biggest fear⠀
♡ Advocating for myself when I felt burned out at work even though I didn’t know how my new manager & team would react⠀
♡ Training to be a career coach even though I was scared to fail⠀
♡ Launching my coaching business even though I didn’t feel “ready”
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In my moments of fear, I’d curse myself for putting myself in such situations after committing to them: 𝙒𝙝𝙮 𝙙𝙤 𝙄 𝙙𝙤 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙨 𝙩𝙤 𝙢𝙮𝙨𝙚𝙡𝙛? But then the moments of victory would come & I would remember why I pushed myself. As Nelson Mandela once said, “𝘊𝘰𝘶𝘳𝘢𝘨𝘦 [𝘪𝘴] 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘢𝘣𝘴𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘧𝘦𝘢𝘳, 𝘣𝘶𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘵𝘳𝘪𝘶𝘮𝘱𝘩 𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘪𝘵. 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘣𝘳𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘮𝘢𝘯 𝘪𝘴 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘩𝘦 𝘸𝘩𝘰 𝘥𝘰𝘦𝘴 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘧𝘦𝘦𝘭 𝘢𝘧𝘳𝘢𝘪𝘥, 𝘣𝘶𝘵 𝘩𝘦 𝘸𝘩𝘰 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘲𝘶𝘦𝘳𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘧𝘦𝘢𝘳.”
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The fact of the matter is, any time you try something new, put yourself out there, or are vulnerable, you won’t feel 100% confident. There will always be underlying feelings of fear. But you can’t wait to feel confident. If you do, you wind up prolonging your goals or perhaps never taking action. That’s why you have to tap into your 𝒄𝒐𝒖𝒓𝒂𝒈𝒆. Courage pushes you to act despite the fear that wants to hold you back. Courage is the building block that helps you achieve confidence in yourself.
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The root of the word courage means to “𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘦 𝘧𝘳𝘰𝘮 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘩𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘵.” And what 2021 taught me is that 𝗰𝗼𝘂𝗿𝗮𝗴𝗲 𝗶𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗵𝗲𝗮𝗿𝘁 𝗼𝗳 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗴𝗿𝗼𝘄𝘁𝗵. When you choose courage, you choose growth. You choose belief in yourself. It is courage that leads you to living your life to its fullest potential 💋

I believe 𝘀𝗽𝗲𝗮𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘄𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗳𝗲𝗲𝗹 𝗶𝗻𝘁𝗼 𝗲𝘅𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝗰𝗮𝗻 𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗴𝗲 𝗹𝗶𝘃𝗲𝘀. Our words matter and they are remarkably powerful. So today, think about how you can 𝘶𝘴𝘦 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘥𝘴 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘨𝘰𝘰𝘥, whether it's at work, at home, at the grocery store even! Make it a point to speak your feelings by giving a compliment, telling someone you're proud of them, thanking that person who's made an impact on you, or saying "I love you."
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Spread joy with your words. Be intentional with your words. Be kind with your words. Be generous with your words. Because sometimes, 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙜𝙨 𝙖𝙧𝙚𝙣'𝙩 𝙖𝙡𝙬𝙖𝙮𝙨 𝙗𝙚𝙩𝙩𝙚𝙧 𝙡𝙚𝙛𝙩 𝙪𝙣𝙨𝙖𝙞𝙙 💋

“𝘒𝘦𝘭𝘭𝘺, 𝘭𝘦𝘵’𝘴 𝘳𝘦𝘮𝘦𝘮𝘣𝘦𝘳 𝘵𝘰 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘴𝘦𝘭𝘧-𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘱𝘢𝘴𝘴𝘪𝘰𝘯,” my coaching program facilitator, Laura, gently said. I had just finished a practice coaching session & immediately began picking apart all of the things I had done wrong and internally beating myself up for it. That’s when Laura kindly mentioned my negativity & critiquing was doing nothing but reinforcing my perfectionism. 𝐒𝐡𝐞 𝐰𝐚𝐬 𝐫𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭.
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This was nearly 2 months ago, yet Laura’s words have stayed with me. Her shining a light on my inner dialogue helped me realize how hard on myself I am. She reminded me that I owe myself compassion just like I would anyone else. It was a brief but powerful moment that brought about an awareness I didn’t know I needed. Since then, I’ve been thinking about self-compassion (or lack thereof) & noticing I’m not alone in this. 𝗪𝗲 𝗮𝗹𝗹 𝗰𝗼𝘂𝗹𝗱 𝘂𝘀𝗲 𝘀𝗼𝗺𝗲 𝗺𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝘀𝗲𝗹𝗳-𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗽𝗮𝘀𝘀𝗶𝗼𝗻, especially this time of year.
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No matter how much holiday cheer there is, it’s entangled with self-imposed expectations, pressures, & critical self-talk. We measure ourselves against others (& our own ghosts of years past) of what we 𝒔𝒉𝒐𝒖𝒍𝒅 be doing & how we 𝒔𝒉𝒐𝒖𝒍𝒅 be doing it. We overwhelm ourselves striving for perfection. We exhaust ourselves trying to do it all. We stress ourselves out in the swirl of expectation. We condemn ourselves after indulging in holiday sweets. ‘𝙏𝙞𝙨 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙨𝙚𝙖𝙨𝙤𝙣, 𝙖𝙢 𝙄 𝙧𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙩?
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But what if instead of mercilessly criticizing ourselves, we remember Laura’s words & show ourselves some #selfcompassion? What if we release the should’s, accept things as 'good enough,' & live our lives as the perfectly imperfect humans that we are?
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This month, I’m showing myself compassion when: ⠀
♡ I don’t meet the deadlines I set for myself⠀
♡ I shut down my computer when there’s still work to do⠀
♡ I don’t hit my daily Move goal⠀
♡ I don’t have the mental energy to show up on social media⠀
♡ I step away for alone time⠀
♡ I have that extra cookie⠀
♡ I don’t check off everything on my to-do list
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𝗜𝘁'𝘀 𝘁𝗶𝗺𝗲 𝘁𝗼 𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗽 𝗯𝗲𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘀𝗼 𝗱𝗮𝗺𝗻 𝗵𝗮𝗿𝗱 𝗼𝗻 𝗼𝘂𝗿𝘀𝗲𝗹𝘃𝗲𝘀. You with me?💋

𝗧𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝘁𝘄𝗼 𝘁𝘆𝗽𝗲𝘀 𝗼𝗳 𝗽𝗲𝗼𝗽𝗹𝗲 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗰𝗮𝗻 𝗯𝗲 𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗹𝗱:
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1. 𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝙥𝙚𝙧𝙨𝙤𝙣 𝙬𝙝𝙤 𝙜𝙞𝙫𝙚𝙨 𝙚𝙣𝙚𝙧𝙜𝙮 𝙬𝙝𝙚𝙣 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙨𝙥𝙚𝙖𝙠 𝙩𝙤 𝙤𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙨. You inspire others, motivate them to be better, and make them feel like they feel they can conquer anything they set their mind to after speaking with you. Energy givers leave a positive mark on who they encounter.
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2. 𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝙥𝙚𝙧𝙨𝙤𝙣 𝙬𝙝𝙤 𝙩𝙖𝙠𝙚𝙨 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙙𝙧𝙖𝙞𝙣𝙨 𝙤𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙨' 𝙤𝙛 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙞𝙧 𝙚𝙣𝙚𝙧𝙜𝙮. You are focused on the negative aspects of your life, you tend to play the victim, and you may spend your time gossiping about others. Others may feel exhausted or disheartened after spending time with you.
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Here’s the thing: I don’t believe anyone intentionally wants to be an energy taker. Of course there will be days where we veer off-course and head down that path (we're human!), but the power comes when we're able to be aware of our thoughts and behavior and course correct.
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Each day, we get to choose how we show up and approach our lives. We get to choose whether we bring joy and positivity to the people around us or if we bring pessimism and negativity.
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𝗜𝘁’𝘀 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗰𝗵𝗼𝗶𝗰𝗲. 𝗬𝗼𝘂 𝗴𝗲𝘁 𝘁𝗼 𝗱𝗲𝗰𝗶𝗱𝗲. 𝗪𝗵𝗶𝗰𝗵 𝗽𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗼𝗻 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗰𝗵𝗼𝗼𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗼 𝗯𝗲 𝘁𝗼𝗱𝗮𝘆? 💋

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