Long time no Playlist!
I think it’s been a few months since my last full playlist post, so this is completely overdue, but I just wanted to share the tunes I’ve been listening to lately. This is a pretty random mix, but I like it and I hope you do too. Happy listening and I hope this playlist brings you some inspiration and productivity as we close out February!
So what have you been listening to lately? Let me know on the comments!
January is about to come to a close and I have a collection of interesting articles from around the web that you may want to check out if you are looking to set yourself up for success in the New Year. Looking for some interesting books to add to your “to-read” list? Perhaps you are looking to map out your path for the year either personally or professionally. This link-roundup has a little bit of something for everyone, and plenty of motivational inspiration to spare!
I hope you enjoyed these selections and hopefully found something interesting to read that you hadn’t seen before. If you have any other suggestions for articles that you think I need to check out, feel free to link them below or send me a tweet @MissTrenchcoat!
Hello my Strange & Charmed ones!
How has your January been? I feel like it’s been a minute since I’ve last chatted with you. I know I was a bit MIA this month on the blog, which I sincerely apologize for. I spent the month in a frenzy of creation for my latest product, The Charmed Life Master Class, which I launched yesterday via YouTube… click here to watch the launch video if you are curious about the class!
As per the usual, I have a February Dashboard for your planner, along with an updated 29 Ways to Love Yourself monthly task list! They are both in the same shop listing, so you only need to check out once and you get both designs in both personal and A5 size.
Also made a new set of monthly Tech Wallpapers. In celebration of Valentine’s Day, February’s wallpapers are an adorable oversized heart polka dot! I hope you enjoy these wallpapers and that they keep you inspired for the month. I know I love making them for you!
If you download any of these items and put them to use on your gadgets or inside your planner, I would LOVE to see them in action, so please make sure to share your photos on social media, tag me @MissTrenchcoat and use the #CharmedGTD so everyone in the community can see your photos and like them as well!
How to Plan Your Day like a #GIRLBOSS
One of the awesome parts of being an entrepreneur is that no two of my days ever seem the same. Although that brings a lot of diversity and excitement to my work, it can also represent a challenge to my planner. What I need from my planning system on a day to day basis can change, but I have no interest in using multiple planning methods to keep up with my business, which is why back in July, I designed my Charmed Life Planner; a complete printable planner that included everything I need to plan my days, no matter what work needs to be done or how crazy (or simple) my schedule looks. The meat of this planner is a vertical week on two pages layout that allows me to see my whole week laid out in front of me, but also gives me the ability to really make use of every inch of space in the individuals days of the spread without feeling like I need more room to write. So, I wanted to take a moment to show you how I use this layout and the tips I have for you to optimize your day in your own planner.
1. Set Your Top 3: When you jump between too many tasks or activities in a day, you end up lowering your productivity. Instead, focus on your top 2 priorities and put those at the top of your list! My printable Charmed Life Planner has a dedicated space for your top 3 sitting right on top of the page.
2. Create a schedule or task list: Depending on your work for the day, you may need either a schedule or a task list. Use the ruled column below your top 3 to break out your appointments or list out lower priority tasks and reminders.
3. Add function with stickers: Stickers aren’t just for decorating anymore! With my line of printable planner stickers, you can add flexible function to your planner by adding a sticker or two to designate special information to help you manage your day.
This system and the Charmed Life Planner has honestly been the first planner system to bring me a sense of lasting planner peace, and if you want to see my planner in action I highly suggest checking out my 2016 Planner Setup video, as well as my DIY Spiral Planner Tutorial showing how I used my printable Charmed Life Planner inserts to create my own custom spiral planner! Of course, if you are still looking for planner peace and you aren’t afraid to try out a printable planner, head on over to my shop and check out the Charmed Life Planner. If you like what you see, use the code CLP2016 for $5 off your purchase of the planner. Happy Planning!
To stay productive and create a theme for the new year, some people choose a word. That word becomes their word of the year and they will keep that word plastered around them as much as possible and turn to that word for encouragement and guidance as the unexpected twists and turns of life conspire to push us off course. That works for some people, but it doesn’t necessarily work for me. Instead, I choose a song- an anthem if you will! Something that’s more than a word or even a mere collection of words because music speaks to my soul. I’m just that kind of person.
I don’t ever set out to “find” my song of the year, in all honesty, it just sort of finds me which is exactly what happened when I first heard Bird Set Free by Sia during a live performance on SNL last month. The song immediately stirred something inside of me and I knew, and actually said to myself while the performance was still going on, “this is my song for 2016.”
If you have never experienced this song, I’d recommend it. It definitely has a powerful message that I hope will help keep me strong even when things get tough this year- and I know this year is going to get tough. The best years always do!
If you are someone who also sets an anthem for yourself for the year or perhaps you want to now that I’ve introduced you to the idea, I’d love to hear (haha, so punny) what song you choose! Let me know in the comments or tweet me a link to a music video @MissTrenchcoat!
As a blogger, youtuber and online business owner, it’s important for me to stay focused on my online marketing to make sure I get my content and my products out there into the world to the people who need them most. So, of course, I do a lot of reading and research on the subject of marketing, and although I find that, generally, much of the information is very repetitive, every once in a while I find little gems that I believe are very important to remember. Since many of my readers also happen to be bloggers and small business owners, I thought it would be helpful for you if I shared a few key bits of marketing wisdom that you may not be familiar with, so here are the 5 Marketing Tips you Might have Missed!
1. Consistent messaging is most helpful when targeted at a consistent person: No matter what your business is, whether you’re a blogger, an online business owner or a social media guru, you probably already know that consistency in your messaging is key. However, what you may not have known is that your consistent messaging is most effective when you are targeting your ideal customer consistently. We all have our ideal or target customers, members of our communities and those model consumers we are looking to attract, after all, no one business can cater to 100% of the population! Once you understand who your ideal customer is, what their needs and motivations are, you can then better direct you messaging towards them and reap the rewards.
2. Come on strong: Although coming on strong isn’t something you may want to do when it comes to real world marketing, when promoting yourself on the internet, it’s a must! Why? Well, because online communication is hard. It isn’t a traditional form of communication where you are interacting one on one with your target customers, it’s a sea of people who have literally a thousand other things to pay attention to. So if you want to be seen and heard on the internet, it’s important to talk loudly and carry a big microphone! Put your content and messaging out there everywhere it is relevant and as often as possible. Do things in a big way to create more buzz around you and your business, and don’t be afraid to reach out directly to those you believe will benefit from your products and message!
3. Use rhyming phrases, they are more persuasive: Apparently it has been statistically proven that people inherently believe phrases that rhyme are more accurate that non-rhyming phrases. Weird, huh? Well, I think it just proves how persuasive a good turn of phrase can be, especially when it’s lyrical. So, consider how you can use rhyming phrases in your messaging to your benefit!
4. Anticipate objections and overcome them: As someone who spent years working in sales for a fortune 50 company, I know that anticipating objections is an important part of direct selling. However, when it comes to online selling, we don’t have the benefit of talking one on one with our prospective customers to hear out their concerns and then put their mind at ease. Instead, in online business, you need to anticipate the objections your customers will have, address them and then overcome them in your messaging. This is a perfect example of why it’s important to
5. Give people things to share: In this modern online world of ours, you may have noticed that people love to share. This is one of the major reasons social networks like Facebook and Instagram are so popular. People love giving their opinions, sharing things they like, and feeling like the things they share are helping those around them. Deep down inside, people have a need and strong desire to feel important and valuable. This is a need that you can leverage to help you market your content and business, if you make an effort to create items that are sharable online. Give your customers and community items that they would be proud to share in their social feeds. Things like thoughtful articles, beautiful images, helpful tips and tricks. If you sell a product, give away freebies online like digital items that supplement your products, something people can admire and share with friends. You may have to put in some extra work, but those little extras will pay off in the end!
I hope this post taught you a new tip or trick for marketing yourself or your business online! Let me know in the comments what resonated most with you, and feel free to share your best marketing tips as well!
This article was first published on Strange & Charmed on December 8th, 2014 and is being reposted as part of my Holiday Prep Hiatus! For the months of November & December I will be recycling some vintage S&C content that you may have missed in order to give myself some extra time to finalize projects and spend time with my family during the holiday season. All reposted content will be marked as such. I hope you enjoy this blast from the past blog post!
One of the hardest parts of being a blogger is coming up with great new content every week. As a blogger, I need a constant stream of inspiration in order to come up with ideas for my posts, images and my blog’s design. Although as they say, inspiration is everywhere, being a constant learner is an important part of locating inspiration in your life. If you are having trouble finding inspiration, here are a few things I like to do to find inspiration when I need it most!
1. Listen to music: I suggest listening to all types of music, even genre’s your not that familiar with or don’t even like. Variety is so important when opening up your mind to inspiration and you need to listen to everything that’s out there if you want to discover something new that will inspire you to think differently.
2. Read about something new: Scientific articles tend to be the most powerful for me, but learning about any new subject can open a door of possibilities and inspiration. It doesn’t really matter what your blog topic is or what you normally write about, just learning a bit about a new discipline or subject can really help open the channels of creativity in your mind!
3. Write stream of consciousness style: Sometimes you never know where your own mind will lead you until you follow it. One great exercise I suggest for writers is to do a bit of stream of consciousness writing. This means you just start typing and listen to that voice inside your head about what to write. Start with things on your mind and your own thoughts and just follow them through and see where they lead you.
4. Go to a new place you have never been: New experiences generate inspiration like none other! I find that just driving or wandering to a new part of town I have never been to really helps open my brain up to possibilities. Seeing new sights, smelling new smells and living through new experiences can be very inspiring and something of an adventure!
5. Get to know someone new: Meeting new people and getting to know them is a very powerful one on one experience. There are so many wonderful people out there in the world with so many interesting points of view that hopefully by getting to know one of them, their views may rub off on you a bit and cause you to look at the world differently!
6. Watch a movie that you don’t think you’re interested in: Often times its important to challenge our perceptions of our own likes and desires. Breaking established patterns like watching movies in genre’s your not used to watching is a really simple way to sample and test out new things without making a major commitment. Hopefully, that movie you weren’t interested actually entertains you and brings you to see that you shouldn’t discount things based on what you think you already like!
7. Do something physically challenging to you: This doesn’t have to mean you should go out and run a marathon if you don’t normally run, it just means to push yourself physically. While I’m at the gym I find so much inspiration just hiding out in my own mind while I’m on a machine. I think that when you’re focusing your physical energy on working out, your mind starts to open up and relax allowing new inspiration and ideas to just hit you. Give it a try and you’ll be killing two birds with one stone!
What sorts of things do you do to find inspiration? Have you ever tried or plan to try any of the items on this list? How did it work for you? Let me know in the comments below!
This article was first published on Strange & Charmed on March 20th, 2014 and is being reposted as part of my Holiday Prep Hiatus! For the months of November & December I will be recycling some vintage S&C content that you may have missed in order to give myself some extra time to finalize projects and spend time with my family during the holiday season. All reposted content will be marked as such. I hope you enjoy this blast from the past blog post!
Whether or not you celebrate Christmas, most folks get at least some time off during the Holiday Season, so make the most of your vacation time and sneak in a few of these productive activities that are sure to keep your work and life manageable in the new year!
Clean Out your Smartphone
Like most people’s homes and desks, smartphones usually accumulate a lot of extra stuff in the form of apps, photos, information and contacts that need to be sorted through and in some cases deleted. Its the end of the year after all and there is no better way to start off the new year than with an organized smartphone. While you’re at it, make sure you have all your emergency contact information and necessary phone numbers stored in your contacts just in case you need them one day!
Listen to a book on tape
Now, this doesn’t have to be a work related book, nor does it need to be a non-fiction or self help book! Reading is a great way to de-stress and I think listening to a book on tape is just as good for your mind and your productivity! So, if you have a bunch of chores or other to-dos, throw on a book on tape while you’re busy and it will help keep you cheerful and motivated! Audible.com has a great smartphone app that makes it easy for you to find any book your looking for, but you can also stop by your local library and borrow a book on tape the old fashioned way!
Spend some time on yourself
If your busy and trying to use your Christmas Vacation time to get some important to-dos checked off, you may not think it a productive use of time focusing on yourself, but trust me, it will have long term benefits. So, carve some time out of your day, take a bubble bath, listen to some music, have a nice workout or just lay in bed and relax because your peace of mind is so important for increasing your productivity and most of us don’t spend enough time working on that!
Learn a new simple and quick recipe
When it comes to meals, I would venture to guess that most of us have a repertoire of a few dishes that we continuously cycle until we get sick of eating them and then order out! So, I think its incredibly valuable for each of us to learn a new recipe that we can add into to our normal routine that may end up saving us time and money in the long run. Spend some time thinking about meals that you enjoy and see if you can find a quick recipe online that you can perfect during your downtime!
Connect with family & friends
Look, with so many of us out of work for a day or two, it really makes sense that you should spend time with loved ones during the holidays. You don’t have to do anything too stressful, just a day together walking outside in the snow or a meal cooked and shared together can be the difference that makes you feel more satisfied and in control of your life.
So, what are your plans for this Christmas Vacation? Let us know in the comments!
This article was first published on Strange & Charmed on December 19th, 2013 and is being reposted as part of my Holiday Prep Hiatus! For the months of November & December I will be recycling some vintage S&C content that you may have missed in order to give myself some extra time to finalize projects and spend time with my family during the holiday season. All reposted content will be marked as such. I hope you enjoy this blast from the past blog post!
Does this ever happen to you? You sit down to start an important project, you know exactly what’s expected because you have either done it before or are familiar with what the end result should be, however, even before you have begun, those expectations begin to nag at you. You begin to worry that you may not do a good job, you obsess and knit pick over elements of your project and after all your mental anguish and second guessing you finish your project and it all turns out fine. Maybe you have also experienced this second scenario. You sit down to start an important project, but this time it’s something you have never done before. You’re not exactly sure how to begin or how things will look by the end, but you think about your project logically, put in a solid effort and in the end, it turns out spectacular! Why does that second scenario usually turn out better than the first? You would think that someone would do better in a situation where they had more experience and understood the expectations, but that isn’t always true. It’s beginners luck! You may have heard of it before, it’s a common phenomenon where someone attempts something new and ends up successful in their effort. Now, while “beginner’s luck” has never been statistically proven, most of us have experienced it in one way or another and we can certainly learn a thing or two about how to do great work from it!
Beginner’s luck is tied to the idea of expectations. When you attempt something new and admittedly know very little about it, you often find that when you give it a try, you are much better than you would have assumed. That’s because you didn’t expect much, but you gave an honest effort none-the-less! As humans, we are often tied up in notions of what is possible and what is impossible, and in that mindset we project upon ourselves what we think we can do, what we think we can’t do, and we end up surprising ourselves when we actually succeed where we had no expectations of success.
Okay, so how do we use this concept of beginner’s luck to our advantage? There are a number of ways where a shift in your perception to this beginner’s luck mentality can help you do your best work and live your best life!
1. Don’t be afraid to try new things, you will do better than you think!
This goes for work and personal situations. Although many of us are plagued with fear of the unknown, beginner’s luck tells us that when we try something with an honest effort we get a better result than anyone would have guessed. Even if you have tried something before with a negative result, giving it an honest shot the second time around may prove fruitful!
2. Reach for the “impossible” because that standard is imagined.
Voices outside and even inside of ourselves are often telling us what is possible and what is impossible. Think of these voices as bookies at a horse race giving you the odds in a situation. If you bet on the long-shot and lose, you just lost the few dollars you initially bet, but if you win you will rake it in! The odds may be against you in a certain scenario, but taking beginner’s luck into account, anything is possible. When it comes to your future and your dreams, if you have more to gain than to lose, trying for impossible is actually a better bet!
3. Let go of your expectations and just get to work!
Don’t think, just do! Thinking can often over complicate things and cause irrational fears to pop up. If you let go of your expectations for the end result, you will be open to whatever direction you are led to while you work. Some of the most creative and brilliant solutions have been found by accident while trying to find a solution to a different problem. Do not think, become.
Are there any areas of your work where you feel like expectations are getting the better of you? In what ways do you plan on letting go of your expectations and embracing the concept of beginner’s luck to help you do better work? Let me know in the comments how you think you can execute these ideas in your own work life and feel free to share any success stories that may have resulted from your own beginner’s luck experiences!
This article was first published on Strange & Charmed on July 10th, 2014 and is being reposted as part of my Holiday Prep Hiatus! For the months of November & December I will be recycling some vintage S&C content that you may have missed in order to give myself some extra time to finalize projects and spend time with my family during the holiday season. All reposted content will be marked as such. I hope you enjoy this blast from the past blog post!
You probably didn’t know that the cold winter months can take a toll on your gadgets and tech devices! Its true, the cold weather creates a unique set of issues for gadgets that you should be aware of in order to keep your tech working properly. Here are 5 tech tips to help you treat your tech right this winter!
1. Do not leave gadgets like computers, smartphones or iPods in your car while its cold outside. The weather can freeze internal parts of your devices and potentially cause damage.
2. Keep your gadgets in heavy duty cases to protect from precipitation and drops onto snow or ice. Otterbox and Lifeproof cases that cover ports and openings in your gadget will help to make sure no excess moisture builds up in sensitive areas of your device.
3. Keep a stylus on hand in case your fingers are too cold to register on your touch screen devices.
4. If a gadget is excessively cold, be sure to bring it up to a normal temperature before turning it on or using it or else you could compromise internal parts.
5. Carry backup chargers for important gadgets as batteries drain quicker in the winter!
I hope these tips were helpful to anyone who is experiencing cold winter weather or who may live in a region where cold weather is the norm! Do you have any other tech tips to share to help us get through the chilly winter months with our smartphones intact? Let us know in the comments!
This article was first published on Strange & Charmed on January 28th, 2014 and is being reposted as part of my Holiday Prep Hiatus! For the months of November & December I will be recycling some vintage S&C content that you may have missed in order to give myself some extra time to finalize projects and spend time with my family during the holiday season. All reposted content will be marked as such. I hope you enjoy this blast from the past blog post!