I’ve been really focusing on what’s making me productive and how I’m getting everything done. I watch tons of other moms on YouTube doing their thing, I surround myself with positive people and have a few tips that I believe can help you if you feel overwhelmed. I am doing the #last90dayschallenge and so a few of these are inspired by Rachel Hollis, but I started implementing them before 10/1 so I can speak from experience that they are helping in more ways than one!
1.) Cut distractions.
This could be negative family or friends, social media in general, mindless snacking, or your phone. I know babies, kids and dogs can be a bit demanding, but get into a schedule and figure out a good routine. I know if I put the dog outside on her doggie run, I have a good amount of time to get some stuff done without worrying about her puppy-ness wanting to chew on toys that haven’t been cleaned up etc. My kids are getting older so I can set some timers and let them watch a show, play a video game or independently play without having to watch them like a hawk. If you have a baby or a toddler, then give yourself grace. You’re number one focus is keeping that human alive! Otherwise, turn off the phone, ignore messages (for now) and set a time later in the day to accomplish those things. Having a list helps me.
2.) Finish things.
There’s not much worse than that feeling like you have a million things left not done. Maybe you’ve started most of them, but if you’re like me, you can easily get distracted (kids, dogs, life!) and then I don’t finish something and it hangs there. Just do it. It probably only takes half the time we think anyway. Set a timer and get-er-done! The satisfaction of crossing it off the to do list and actually seeing an end result will catapult you onto the next activity that needs to happen.
3.) Drink your water & Cut or limit sugars, processed foods, and alcohol.
Tired? Drink your water. Hungry? Drink your water. Bored? Drink your water. Feeling run down? Drink your water. Want a soda or coffee? Drink some water. I’ve been making myself drink half of my body weight in water, and before I allow myself to eat or drink something else (even tea) I chug a bunch of water to see if it’s something I still want. Water is SO important for all of our organs and to keep us running full steam! Here me out, I get it. The latté, cookie, chips, pop, whatever seems so helpful but it I find that the quick fix does not fix the overwhelm. I know I’m just coming off a cleanse, where I did omit these items, but seriously, I have no brain fog, lots of energy (at 6am) I’m sleeping great and if I had not gotten mindful about what was going into my body, I don’t think I would have realized how great I could feel. Am I never going to have wine or a Green Tea Latté again? Heck no, BUT I will have them in moderation. I think we all tend to get a little lenient in the summer and before we know it, we feel like crap, and the spiral continues. Plus half of the problem is that we don’t even realize how much we’re consuming until we step away from it for a bit…
4.) Wake up an hour early.
It’s not easy. I love sleep. I love the cozy bed and the feel of the soft sheets. BUT, when you start making a habit of getting up before the rest of the house, something changes inside. I look forward to starting my day. I get to do a few of my favorite things, writing, reading, sipping tea and just be alone with my thoughts. You could workout, pray, meditate, whatever you feel like doing, but do it before you have to go take care of everyone else. Creating before you start consuming will change your life people! I’ll write more on my morning routine later, but just try it for a few weeks. If you normally get up at 7, set that alarm for 6 and just set things up the night before. I literally cannot stress the importance of this one! YOU matter and putting yourself first to be with God, or a good book, or sweat sesh will give you that push the rest of the day. An hour sound like too much? Start with 15-20 minutes and work your way up. I was up at 5:45 no alarm today, just because.
5.) Have fun!
The less we look at things at “chores” or things that we have to do, the better we feel. If I have a dirty floor, clothes piled everywhere, messy rooms, food to prepare and overflowing dishes in the sink, the first thing I do is breathe. Push play on a good audiobook or even a fun song, watch a TV show or YouTube video while you get to work. {I recently just rented an old favorite movie, You’ve Got Mail, so that I could watch it while I folded and put away the endless loads of laundry}. Once I realize I can habit stack, I know it won’t be so bad. Then I throw some laundry in, (to feel like I started taking action on SOMETHING!) get going on the dishes, prepare the food, clean up and before I realize it, everything is back in place and I can sigh in relief that my kitchen is no longer a disaster area!