Re-Evaluate Your Routine

How similar is your yesterday to your today? What about last week to next week? If your days are like a playlist on repeat, you are set into a routine. While exciting lives can be fun and fulfilling, having a routine lets your body know what to expect (good or bad). This can result in a healthier sleep schedule, controlled appetite and organized schedule. If the routine is not any of these from the beginning, then you’re practically scheduling a crash and burn.

Moving can really shake up this routine. Whether moving to a new house, changing jobs or getting a new car, you only realize how much everything is muscle memory and how you’re living on autopilot if something changes.

Take advantage of this otherwise inconvenient situation to re-prioritize your life and maximize your time.

1. Allow for extra time

It’s always that darn snooze button that gets me. Does it really even make a difference? No. It might feel like it at the moment you’re pushing the button, but 9 minutes later, you’re worse than before. Use those 9 minutes to be attentive to your morning routine. Slow down, think positive thoughts and enjoy preparing for the day ahead.

2. Environment

How can this new environment serve you better? How can you use this new routine to be more efficient, organized or fulfilled? Think about the things that feel unnatural as you adjust your routine to be different. Do you have more organization in a new apartment? Maybe your new car has a remote-starter. Observe the environment and use it to your benefit.

3. Awareness

You spend time doing things you don’t even realize. How often do you reach for your phone out of habit? A friend of mine recently forgot her phone at home and after the anxiety of forgetting it subsided, the peace she felt during her day was unusual and surprising. (In her words: Two glorious hours where no one could find her.) During that time, she found herself reaching for her phone. The frequency of which was alarming and disappointing to her. Being hyper-aware of your habits can help you to be more intentional of what should and shouldn’t be habitual.

So are you in a transitional time? Or are you in the middle of a long playlist on repeat? Either way, re-evaluate your routine. Is it healthy, happy and realistic? If not, adjust accordingly for a happier playlist of life.

My Couch Understands Me...

It’s a Wednesday night, and I am dead-tired from a bad night of sleep, a long day at work and a cranky toddler. After I put my daughter to bed I eat a bowl of cereal while binge watching a show that I am not even enjoying. All of my motivation to do anything else has absorbed into the couch cushions. Well crap.

Maybe instead of watching Netflix, I could work on one of the many side projects I think about everyday. I know that tomorrow I will absolutely regret not doing it. What the heck happened to my motivation?

Lack of motivation can be attributed to many factors. Ignoring your physical needs is a big one. When life gets busy it is easy to go without breakfast or eat a late lunch. I am guilty for picking up Morgan after she has dinner at daycare and completely neglecting to feed myself, hence the bowl of Cheerios. It is really difficult to want to do anything when your blood sugar is low.

Having to make too many decisions at once can drain your batteries. Have you ever had the feeling where there is so much that needs to be done you just want to take a nap? Blame it on your brain. The more choices you make throughout the day, the harder each one becomes for your brain and at some point it starts looking for shortcuts.

How do I fix it?

If you are simply not taking care of yourself – start there. Think about where you could be going wrong with this and correct it. To help with an overwhelming amount of decisions, make a list and prioritize what needs to be done now versus what can wait.

Lastly, find something that you really want to do and do it! This could be as simple as finally cleaning out your fridge. Getting started is the hardest part. Once I get moving on something, you better believe I won’t stop until it’s done.

Cut A Mama Some Slack

The moment someone at a business function finds out I am a mom, the first question to come up when I tell them I bring my child to work is how I handle a threenager and work responsibilities. There is no magic solution, and the same thing may not work for everyone, but this is the way I roll.

Having a support system is extremely important. My husband works a non-conventional work schedule and is fortunate enough to have off several days during the week. That takes care of my little nugget two days out of five. My mother is generous enough to have her over on Thursdays, which takes care of one more day. That leaves two days where I need to be a productive human being and nurture the growth and the well-being of mini-me, while at the office.

I am lucky enough to have a child that is even-tempered on most days. She occupies herself with books and toys, coming into the office multiple times a day for hugs, snacks and sometimes out of boredom. Boredom is where a little bit of mom-guilt kicks in: On one hand, I have invited her to be a part of my world instead of sending her to a stranger for day-care, and on the other I feel like she is being deprived of experiences with other children her age. I counteract this guilt by making sure we eat lunch together outside, away from the phone and emails. I also make a point to share some quality mommy-daughter time after work – going to the park, picking berries, coloring, Play-Doh, baking, etc.

In the grand scheme of things, people around the world have bigger problems, so I have made a conscious decision to cut myself some slack – and if you are a working mama, you should too. As mothers, we are all doing the best we can.

Tales of a Workin' Mama

Deadlines are looming, the phone is ringing, your child is being needy and clients need your attention. I don’t know about you, but for me this sounds like a typical day at the office. My job allows me the flexibility to bring my daughter with me to work several days a week. Because she is under the age of three, this can be a blessing and a curse. I constantly juggle chunks of productivity and being fully present in the moments shared with my little one.

Last night I had the opportunity to discuss the balance of working and being a mom with a few of my peers at the AAF-GF Roundtable for Workin Mamas. We covered a number of topics, including mom guilt, leaving work at work, balancing work and home life, maintaining a professional appearance, and being present at the moment. Before we left, we all made a promise to ourselves to put some of the solutions we came up with as a group into action.

Mom Guilt. How do you handle it? There is no right or wrong way. While we may not be there for every milestone (ex. Getting braces put on) the relationship we have built with our children remains just as strong. Since many of us have been working since before our children were born, they don’t know any different. Some of us bring our children to work, into our world. Instead of completely separating work and life, they are blended together.

While including children in your work means you can spend more time together, there is a time when we need to leave work at work. One of the mothers shared that she takes everything in her head and writes it down on a sheet of paper. This includes all of the to dos, work or not. Everyday, she tries to do three tasks off her list. After a while, she could get more accomplished and had the satisfaction of crossing items off. Shutting off mobile devices helps us realize that the world will go on if that email isn’t answered until tomorrow. This conversation led into balancing your personal life with a career. Learning to say no is a big step. It is OK to step away from what you have been doing if it no longer serves you. Prioritizing what really matters, like family, will help tremendously in future decision-making. If it doesn’t matter to you, then don’t do it.

Maintaining a professional appearance could mean something different for everyone. Some women work in an environment where there are rules. Others work in a more casual atmosphere, where individuals can dress for the style of the business. The key to all of this is to be authentic and dress for whatever suits you.

Perhaps the most important topic of the evening was practicing mindfulness and being purposeful with what you are doing. Most take a week-by-week approach, allowing time for themselves to recharge, time to plan ahead, and a conscious effort to put the phone away and live in the moment. When we are working, we are working. When we are home, we are home.

Your Simple Life Manifesto - Part 2

It is almost February and you are well on our way to fulfilling our New Year promises – if not, that’s OK. It isn’t too late to get yourself together. As mentioned in the first part of this series, achieving simplicity in your life is not a straight line. Savor what happens along the way, and remember that if something works for someone else, it doesn’t have to work for you.

The second part of this three-part series focuses on ways to simplify the professional aspects of your life: finances, work and technology. These hints are not for everyone, because this is your own journey.

Money – You need money to sustain your lifestyle, to have a home, a car, groceries and the basics. It also allows for life experiences, enabling us to take vacations or finance an education for our children. It may be tempting to hide from your money troubles, praying it will all work out, but there are steps you can take to simplify your finances:

• Save money regardless of your income. Design a budget that takes care of the absolute basics, saving the rest for a rainy day.
• Always use cash. It is easier to see where your money is going if you have physical cash, and if you don’t have it you won't spend it.
• Think before you buy. Is the item something you really need?
• Save your receipts. It will save a lot of heartache if you need to return something.

Work Life – You spend a large part of your life working. For some, you may spend more time working than you do with your family or friends. If you are working longer hours, take a moment and ask yourself what you are really getting out of it?

• Can you work fewer hours? Could you readjust your spending habits to make more time for yourself?
• Leave work at work. If you are bringing work home, it may be time to reassess why you are not finishing it at work. What value do your and your workplace get by you taking work home every day?
• Stop working weekends. It may not seem like a big deal, but eventually this will catch up to you and you will burn out. Block off every weekend for the next few months – from now on, not a single one can include work.
• Simplify work tasks. A never-ending list of to-do tasks is unproductive because there is no way to get it all done. Prioritize; do what is necessary then move forward.
• Work from home. Are you spending a lot of time commuting to and from work? Is there a way to work from home a few days a week to take some of the pressure off and save money on gas?
• Breaks are essential to productivity. Even if your work is your passion, breaks are important to keeping you motivated and refreshed. Step away from the desk to enjoy lunch or take a walk to get a fresh perspective.
• Clear the clutter. A clear desk paves the way for a clear mind. Uncluttering removes distractions and keeps you organized. Schedule a day, perhaps every Friday afternoon, to clean off your desk before leaving work.
• Technology – Your online life can quickly turn into a big mess, with websites that you forgot about signing up for, unread emails and various bookmarks.
• Purge it. Do a massive purge of all things that are cluttering up your computer, do it regularly, and keep things simple. Set aside time to address emails, and answer, file or delete them once read.

• Go on a media diet. TV, Internet, radio, magazines, etc. can be major time suckers if you allow them. Take regular media fasts (maybe try weekends) where you are completely unconnected to your phone, video games, or television. Set timers on areas known to be time-suckers if you are concerned about how much time is spent online. Enforcing regular breaks will simplify this part of your life dramatically.
• Communication. Email pings, phone rings and texts are a convenient and useful way to communicate with people. If you aren’t careful, these can ruin productivity, proving to be a major distraction. Set aside one time per day to answer emails, make phone calls and return messages.

Stay tuned for part three of Your Simple Life Manifesto as we explore ways to simplify your personal and mental health. Keeping things simple leads to less worry with more time to do what you love with those you love.