Ready for fall, beautiful? It’s here!
I’ll walk my daughter to school today, kiss her good-bye and then skip my way home to begin my day.
Weeeeee…. such freedom. As much as I’ve loved lazy summer days and flip-flops, I’m itching to get back into my fall routine.
Do you have a fall schedule you love? Or do you find it difficult to stick to a schedule?
The truth is, your life is a beautiful series of choices. One of the biggest is how you schedule your time.
The more you love the schedule you live into each week, the more you will love your life.
If you are a creative type like me, sticking to a schedule can be tough. Trust me when I say it will absolutely liberate you. That’s why I’m sharing some of my favorite tips.
8 Tips to Optimize Your Fall Schedule
1. Name Your Priorities
It sounds obvious to build your life around your priorities. But what happens is we start living lives like everything is a priority, and nothing is truly sacred. Fall is a good time to reset and decide what’s most important.
Tap into your values to decide your priority tasks. I once had someone say to me, “If you want to know what you really value, just look at your schedule and how you spend your time.”
EEK! I could see some clear misalignments between what I said I valued, and where I was actually spending my time. Can you?
HINT: Be honest with yourself. You may be tempted to apply a bunch of shoulds to your priorities, thinking family should come first, or work shouldn’t occupy so much time, or you should volunteer more, etc. In reality, there are no rules or shoulds. There is you, your life and your personal alignment with your Truth. That’s it.
For me, wellness and self-care come to the top of the list (even ahead of family). What’s at the top of your list? Is it in your schedule?
2. Treat the First Hour as Sacred
Time and time again I’ve discovered that how I spend the first hour of my day dictates how the rest of my day flows. I invite you to make that time sacred. Use it to centre yourself, write your intentions for the day, meditate, move your body, and generally set yourself up for an amazing day. If you don’t have one hour, take even 20 or 30 minutes.
Hint: Writing out your Intention for the Day is like writing out the story of your life in advance. Give it juicy detail. Describe not only what happens, but how you feel about the ideal outcome you are describing. Write it like it’s a done deal, then refer to your intention several times in the day to align with that energy.
3. Include Family in the Decision Making
As working moms, we can’t do everything ourselves. Nor do we need to. Sit down with your partner and/or children and get their input on the weekly flow of the family. Decide on weekly tasks and assign them to family members. Ask children for ideas on what tasks they will take on and assign them to certain days. These can include:
- House cleaning
- Garbage removal
- Meal prep
- Lunch prep
- Dishes
- Laundry
- Pet feeding and walking
- General tidying
Hint: I love the 10-minute tidy at night. As a family we set the timer for 10 minutes and tidy up by putting items back in their place. It’s simple, fast and do-able, and immediately gives your home a boost of flowing energy. Plus it brings completion to your day and allows you to start fresh tomorrow. Do we do this every night? No. But on days we do, it feels amazing.
4. Schedule Things into One Central Calendar
Once you know your priorities and tasks, schedule them into one central calendar. Use a paper calendar or an online version. But get everything in one calendar. I love Google Calendar because you can have separate calendars for work and personal and yet see all of them in one view. You can also invite family members to specific calendars (which is fun for children!)
Hint: Avoid to-do lists that are separate from your calendar. If it’s important enough to get on a to-do list, it’s important enough to get into the calendar. Otherwise, you are creating a separate priority list (on your to-do list) that is competing with the other tasks and priorities as defined by your calendar. That’s a recipe for overwhelm. Get your to-do list in your calendar and you’ll quickly see what you REALLY have time for and what needs to be delegated or let go of.
5. Prioritize Wellness and Self-Care
Go back and look at your calendar. Is wellness and self-care in there? If not, schedule it in. Don’t wait to see if you have time for exercise at the end of your day. Ladies, we seldom do. Block off that time. With the demands we place on ourselves, wellness and self-care are essential.
Hint: Seize small windows of time. A few years back, I had to come to the realization that long sessions at a gym or my beloved Fitness Table class didn’t flow with my life. But 30 minutes of treadmill intervals and sexy sculpting each morning while my daughter was still sleeping did! Embrace your current reality and maximize it.
6. Create Space for Unscheduled Downtime
One thing my daughter has taught me is the need for unscheduled downtime. I grew up in a home that was highly scheduled. While Hanna loves her activities, I notice a huge boost in her happiness when she has time to unwind in her room and just be. She even said to me, “Mom, I just need time to be me.” Wow. Adults are no different. Our minds need unwind time. Our bodies need time to relax and de-stress.
Hint: Everyone’s definition of unwind time will be different. For me, I love to take a bath, stretch and read. For my husband, he loves to watch TV. For Hanna, she loves to play in her room and create things.
7. Eliminate Time Wasters and Group Similar Things Together
As you live your schedule week by week, pay attention to what is draining your energy and wasting time. Sometimes they are quick fixes (like limiting Facebook). Other times, you’ll need to make new arrangements. Are you spending a lot of time traveling from place to place in your week? Can you carpool with another parent for your child’s activity? Can you schedule similar tasks together and get several errands done on one day? Look for those opportunities. They are there, I promise.
Hint: If you are an entrepreneur, group like things in your day. Content writing is very different than marketing outreach, for example. Avoid hopping between these two, which wastes brain power. Instead designate blocks of time for each and your productivity will soar.
8. Discover Your Productive Rhythm
We all have pockets of productivity and then pockets of what appears to be complete inefficiency. Learn yours. If you work great for 45 minutes and then need a break, plan that in. Get up, get some water, and go outside for a brisk walk. Doing so keeps your energy flowing throughout the day.
If you can’t leave your office, close your eyes and take two minutes of deep breathing. Or try a few stretches that you can do right in your chair. Listen to some inspiring music as you do. No one is productive 24/7. Not everyone is a morning person or a night owl. Your goal is to work with your natural rhythm and augment that.
Hint: Have you tried the Pomodoro Technique of working in 25 minute intervals? Check it out and see if it’s your ticket to increased productivity. Remember, learn when your energy is the highest and allocate it to your top priorities.
BONUS TIP: Live Consciously and Tweak As You Go
If you have tried to create a schedule but never follow it, this may suggest that the schedule you are creating isn’t realistic. So spend more time becoming aware of how you are actually allowing your days to flow and make one small change for improvement each week.
I am constantly tweaking my schedule. And it really helps! This isn’t about perfection; this is about designing days to feel ideal.
Your goal is to look at your schedule and love the life it reflects. If you don’t, begin to shift it. You have the power.
Love & Abundance,
Paula
P.S. Which tip do you want to strengthen? Share in the comments below. If you have another tip for my readers, please share as well. Thanks!
