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Productivity

My Essential Oil Productivity Secret Weapon

My Essential Oil Productivity Secret Weapon

My Essential Oil Productivity Secret Weapon

It’s no secret that I love and use essential oils on a regular basis to help me manage my mood and my productivity. For some, the topic of essential oils falls into the woo-woo category, it’s not actionable strategy, it isn’t a true productivity tool that can aid you in staying organized or remaining on task. For some, the concept of aromatherapy is on par with inspirational quotes and meditation, and that’s fine. But I’m here to tell you today that I don’t care how woo-woo it seems to use essential oils, I know that the affects of aromatherapy have drastically helped me improve my life and I want to share with you my number one essential oil secret weapon that does help me increase my productivity!

If you are someone who has a hard time waking up in the morning. If you are someone who looses focus throughout the workday or falls into the afternoon slump where you just want to take a nap. THIS SECRET WEAPON IS FOR YOU! Anytime I use it, my mood instantly turns to one of action and empowerment, and it seriously helps me boost my productivity for the day.

Let me tell you a little story!

Back in April, I was lucky enough to be invited to speak at a planner convention in Atlanta. I flew in for the event, met up with a great bunch of girls and we spent the evening before the event dining and having fun. I admittedly enjoyed myself a little too much, stayed up past midnight and had one too many drinks. My friends were slightly concerned that I may not wake up in the morning on time for our event, but I told them I would be there on time, bright eyed and bushy tailed!

The next morning, when my alarm went off at 6am, I immediately grabbed my secret weapon essential oil, sat in silence with it for about ten minutes breathing it in and waking myself up for the day. After that I drank down a bottle of water, got dressed and headed to the event. I was one of the first to arrive and I was on my feet for a solid 8-10 hours that day full of energy, no caffeine required. All the girls thought I was some sort of wonder woman and wanted to know my secret weapon, which I gleefully shared with them. It gave me the energy and focus to push past exhaustion and a hangover to put my best effort into the day ahead.

So, you’re probably wondering, what is this secret weapon? I’ll tell you…

Doterra Elevation Joyful Blend Essential Oil

Let me just take a moment to explain, this isn’t an advertisement or promotional post, I am not being paid to talk about this oil- it’s just seriously a tool in my arsenal that I use to get me up and at em when I need that extra lift. Some people turn to coffee, and I definitely do on a regular basis, but coffee doesn’t always sustain my energy and can leave me feeling even more tired once it’s affects wear off. Some people swear by pills or energy drinks, again, we are talking artificial chemicals or sweeteners and not our bodies own natural resources. When I take a few minutes to sit calmly and breathe in the scent of Doterra Elevation, I am stimulating energy resources inside myself. I’m not adding sugar or chemicals or addictive substances to my body, I’m flipping a switch inside myself that turns on my own juice!

Okay, so you’re probably wondering, what’s inside this Elevation Oil and how do I use it?

The elevation oil is a blend of floral, sweet and citrus to uplift your mind and produce energy. It’s ingredients include: Lavandin Flower, Lavender Flower, Hawaiian Sandalwood, Tangerine Peel, Melissa Flower, Ylang Ylang Flower, Elemi Resin, Osmanthus Flower, and Lemon Myrtle Leaf essential oils.

I like to use this oil a few different ways.

  1.  In the morning when I wake up, I like to sit quietly crossed legged, open the oil and keep it to my nose as I breath deeply in and out for a few moments. I will personally tie this to a gratitude or meditation practice where I am breathing the oil and thinking my positive, calming thoughts for the day at the same time.
  2. During the workday I will either diffuse a few drops of the oil in my office space OR I will rub it onto my wrists so I can keep the scent lingering around me as I work. You could also add a few drops to your favorite hand lotion if you have sensitive skin that is easily irritated by scented oils.

Of course, these aren’t the only ways you can use the oil, but it’s the way I use it on a daily basis. I sincerely love this oil and consider it my number one productivity secret weapon for a reason- it really does help me to naturally elevate my mindset and promote productivity when I’m loosing focus! Definitely give it a try today, here is a link where you can purchase the oil if you are curious! If you use Elevation yourself or would like to recommend any other oils to me, I’d love for you to tell me about it in the comments.

xoxo,

Alexis-Signature

Personal Development

Preventing Burnout, Perfecting Emails & Creating Compelling Content!

June Link Roundup!

It’s link roundup time! Check out some of these articles for some personal development, productivity and business inspiration!

Personal Development

Productivity

Business

I hope you enjoyed these articles and if you have any others that you think I would enjoy, please feel free to leave them in the comments below or tweet me the link @MissTrenchcoat!

xoxo,

Alexis-Signature

Personal Development

7 Habits of a Highly Successful #GIRLBOSS

The 7 Habits of a Highly Successful #GIRLBOSS

7 Habits of a Highly Successful #GIRLBOSS

Many people ask me how I define #girlboss and although you may think that the term relates to a woman who is running her own business, that’s not my take on the term. When I think of a #girlboss, I think of a woman who is in control of her own life. She’s clear on her purpose, taking responsibility for her actions and working towards her goals. Now, this doesn’t mean she is 100% aware of her plans all of the time, but, it does mean she has a spirit of achievement and determination to make things happen for herself. Of course, although this is easily said, it’s not always easily done! It takes a lot of mental strength and the support of well rounded routines to ensure you stay focused and energized to tackle whatever life throws at you!

You really want to know what it takes to cut it as a #GIRLBOSS? Well, listen up because I’m about to give you the seven essential habits of a highly successful #GIRLBOSS!

1. A #GIRLBOSS is WELL-RESTED

When we evaluate the success secrets of #girlbosses, we always see one significant habit rising to the top and that is sleep. Getting enough sleep is always touted as the number one productivity AND happiness tip according to most who study how daily routines effect success. If you want to show up for your life and make things happen for yourself, it’s crucial that you prioritize rest and get your full 7-9 hours uninterrupted. In order to do this, you most likely will need to go to bed earlier and get yourself into a regular night time routine that limits screen time and snacks before bed, and I would personally recommend picking up an aromatherapy diffuser and a relaxation oil blend to diffuse by your bed. This is the diffuser and oil I use and recommend.

2. A #GIRLBOSS is BALANCED

I’m not talking the ability to stand on one foot balanced, I mean mentally and emotionally balanced. Serious mental health issues aside, for most of us our minds get worn down and cluttered from the weight of emotion and information we carry around with us everyday. For this reason, I think its important to regularly rebalance ourselves through some sort of meditative practice. Yes, I said meditation, but don’t interpret that as me telling you to meditate everyday because I think many of us have our own ways of meditating that we need to find that’s less traditional and more personal. Your meditative time could be prayer, exercise, reading, knitting or cooking. Whatever activity it is that you feel relaxation in doing and can execute on in an autopilot like mode where your mind is able to turn off a bit- this is your meditative zen activity! Figure yours out and do it more often so that you can find a sense of peace and balance in your mind.

3. A #GIRLBOSS is HYDRATED

This one may sound simple but common knowledge is not always common practice. Hydration is super important to your mental and physical well being and its probably the easiest thing we can do for ourselves health wise. I always think I’m drinking enough water as long as I’m not thirsty but the truth is when I’m measuring it out, I’m not getting enough water for my body. So, how much water is enough for you? Take your body weight in pounds, for every pound you weigh, you need 1/2 to 1 ounce of water. So if you weigh 140lbs you need 70-140 ounces of water each day. Yes, I realize this sounds like a lot, but that’s just because you have been used to dehydrating your body for such a long time. Yes, drinking this much water can be difficult in terms of finding the time and remembering, which is why I like to keep a large water bottle and make sure I am filling it up and drinking it at regular intervals. Try to get in the habit of waking up and drinking a quart of water immediately to get it out of the way and pace yourself the rest of the day. You will see a difference in your energy levels, and perhaps even your skin!

4. A #GIRLBOSS is ORGANIZED

Of course, she would need to be organized to keep on top of all her important projects and plans! I really do believe that organization is in the eye of the beholder, meaning that there is no one way to be organized and everyone needs to find the systems that work for them. It is very important, however, to find those systems and stick to them in terms of planning, home/life management, and goals. If you are currently in a state of disorganization, you could start getting your life under control with a book like the Life Changing Magic of Tidying Up, or build a project plan to help you achieve specific goals!

5. A #GIRLBOSS is PRODUCTIVE

Many people confuse working very hard with productivity, but it’s really not the same thing. Yes, if you work very hard and for long hours you will get a lot done (if you don’t, you may really have a productivity issue!) but a true #GIRLBOSS knows that it’s not about working 24/7 to get it all done, it’s about working smarter, not harder! Click here if you need to up your productivity game to read about my best strategies and advice on the subject or head on over to my shop and search for your next favorite productivity tool. I’ve got lots of courses, books, and printables to help you organize your life and get more done!

6. A #GIRLBOSS is A SELF-CARE PRO

That’s right! She can work hard but she can play hard too! With everything she is juggling, a true #GIRLBOSS knows that she NEEDS to be on top of her game and ready to perform every single day in order to make things happen for herself. And how does she do that? Self-care, of course! You need a fair amount of downtime as a #GIRLBOSS if you expect to execute at a consistently high level everyday. Sleep and balance are part of that equation, but also having a plan for regularly pampering yourself is important to. I have my arsenal of go-to relaxing activities and I try to fit one in every evening if I can. Anything from listening to a book on tape, laying down with a face mask on or even just taking a quiet nap with my aromatherapy diffuser, everyday I prioritize some “me” time, even if it’s just 30 minutes!

7. A #GIRLBOSS is GRATEFUL

This one may be listed last but it’s certainly not the least of the essential habits of a successful #GIRLBOSS! Gratitude is an incredibly powerful way to transform your mindset and open your mind to the bigger picture. That is why a die hard #GIRLBOSS will always strive to keep a regular practice of gratitude in her life. She may add a grateful thought or mantra to her daily meditation, keep a gratitude journal where she lists out all she is thankful for, or simply take time out of her day to say thank you, and mean it, to someone who helps her! If you would like to integrate a gratitude practice into your life, here is an insert I designed to help beginners get started with the concept and develop the regular habit!

I hope you enjoyed this post and that you learned some tips for helping you to become the #GIRLBOSS you always wanted to be! Personal development is something near and dear to my heart so I would love to hear any other tips or suggestions you have for personal success. Please leave yours in the comments below!

xoxo,

Alexis-Signature

lifestyle

Recharge this Weekend with these Tips

recharge-this-weekend

Since we have a holiday weekend coming up this week, many of us are likely enjoying some extra time off. So, I wanted to share with you some tips for recharging over the weekend because as an adult, it’s so easy to run yourself ragged during the week and then repeat the process over the weekend, when you should really be focusing on rest. Hope these tips help you as much as they help me!

1. Go to Bed Early: I know it’s the weekend and you are probably thinking you can stay up later and then sleep in, but often this plan makes you less productive and gives you a less rested feeling, especially if you sleep in a room with a window where your body can tell when it is day time! Try getting to sleep a few hours early and see how it makes you feel in the morning. You will most likely find that you will wake up earlier and feel the need to be more productive the next day!

2. Avoid Salty or Fatty Foods: Again, the weekend is notorious for being the time of the week when we like to “cheat” by eating take out or fried foods, but that extra salt and fat can make you feel dehydrated and worn out. It’s almost like giving your body a hangover once Monday comes! I’m not saying that you have to eat super healthy, but just eat normal foods that have been prepared in a healthful way!

3. Drink Lots of Water: During the week we are often too busy to drink all the water our bodies need to remain properly balanced and hydrated, so make a conscious effort over the weekend to drink more than enough water.  Start your day with a big glass of water or two and replace soda’s or other drinks with water during meals and throughout the day! Your body will thank you!

4. Get in some Meditation: Meditation is a great way to relax and recharge your mind and body! It doesn’t have to be too intense, but just take some time in the morning when you wake up or before you go to bed at night and just sit or lay down on your bed and breathe consciously. Listen to your breath and even throw in some positive thoughts while you are at it and in about 10-20 minutes you will feel a real difference!

5. Turn Off things that Beep: Sometimes I think that our notifications are slowly driving us insane and making us all way to tense. Think about it, your body knows there is going to be some notification or call that comes in from your phone at least once or twice an hour so it’s secretly bracing itself! Let your body and mind fully relax for a while by spending the weekend with your notifications off. I think you will reach a new level of peace you never even knew existed!

xoxo,

Alexis-Signature

This post first appeared on Strange & Charmed on January 23rd, 2014 and is being reposted for your enjoyment!

Personal Development

5 Essential Strategies to Jump-start your Life in 2016

5 Essential Strategies to Jump-Start your life in 2016

5 Essential Strategies to Jump-start your Life in 2016

In 2015 I spent a lot of time sharing information, strategy and products with my community that revolved around the topics of productivity and business. I think that for so many of us, there is a real desire to make things happen for our lives and lately I have seen so many people step up and acknowledge that one way they see themselves taking control of their lives is by taking control of their careers by creating their own jobs. My motto for my life in the last few years has been “Your dream job does not exist, you must create it,” so I understand full well the power that running your own business can have in helping you create a life tailored to your needs. In the last year, however, I have also heard from many people within my community that know it’s not one of their goals to start their own business, but they still look to me as an example for how to pursue a meaningful life.

Whether you are a budding entrepreneur, a small business owner or not, most of us have a desire to feel like we are truly living a full life but many obstacles seem to stand in our way.  I’m not ashamed to confide that for years I felt like a helpless victim in my own life’s story, waiting for the day that I would be able to step into my life, the real life that I always dreamed I’d have. It has really only been in the last few years that I have finally felt like I have “made it” to that place I wanted to be. It took me a long time, years of sticking to the straight and narrow path before I could see the fruits of my labor, and even now, although I feel like I’m truly living a charmed life, I know that I still have more to overcome and will always have some resistance to face for as long as I am alive. After all, life in and of itself, is a struggle. It takes enormous amounts of energy everyday for us to live and when you pile the stressors of daily life on top, like work, finances and relationships, it just gets harder. The key to living well is not removing these stressors from our lives completely, we could really never do that without great hardship, but we must learn the strategies to accept them and manage them seamlessly. In the coming weeks, I am going to share a resource with you, something of my own design to help you learn to manage the ins and outs of daily life, but until then, I wanted to share with you some simple yet powerful strategies that you can implement immediately to help you jump-start your life in this new year. Are you ready to get started?

Strategy #1: Take a Personal Inventory

The first step to getting things moving for yourself is to take a personal inventory regularly.Where are you in life right now and where do you want to be? What have you accomplished that you are proud of and what areas of your life are opportunities for growth both personally and professionally? It’s very important to have a sense of accuracy as to where you are in life and to also have a sense of gratitude for your situation, no matter how much more you want or how much different you wish your life were.

Strategy #2: Set Yourself a Challenge

Many of us set resolutions or goals at the start of a new year, most of which is quickly discarded due to lack of planning and adequate preparation. I have a whole workbook about strategic goal setting if that is something you need, however goals won’t propel you forward in life unless they are challenging to you. I’ll admit that I am guilty of often times setting goals for myself that are almost like forgone conclusions. Things I know I can achieve within my comfort zone. As they say, life lies right outside your comfort zone, so without creating challenge in your life, you can never expect to grow and fulfill the greatest potential for your life.

Strategy #3: Find a Creative Outlet

Whether or not you are a creative person by nature, I think that self expression in one form or another is essential to understanding yourself and what you want in your life. For me, designing stickers, inserts and other printables for my planner is my favorite creative outlet, one that also helps me feel productive. Playing with stickers and stationery, for me, is a way that I express my style and unleash my creative side. It helps to reduce my stress and often, while I’m playing around with paper and pens, I find that business inspiration will randomly strike!

Strategy #4: Set a Reoccurring Date with Yourself

In her book, The Artist’s Way, author Julia Cameron advocates taking regular artist’s dates in order to unleash your most creative work, however, I think this concept is something that anyone, not just artists and creators, can benefit from. Again, not everyone has creative or artistic aspirations, but I do believe that by regularly spending a bit of uninterrupted time with ourselves in contemplation or meditation, we can find a sense of balance and calm that will naturally bring more inspiration and productivity to our lives.

Strategy #5:  Find an Accountability Partner

It may sound trite, but as we journey through life it’s important for us to find like minded individuals to share our experiences with that can also serve to mentor and inspire us. If you truly want to make any sort of lasting progress with your life, finding someone to help you remain accountable is going to be crucial. I think that it’s important that this person be someone new that you bring into your life and not someone you are already friends with or someone you are related to. Social media is a great place to find such a person by stepping outside of your comfort zone and finding a new friend in a mutual community or program you may both be a part of.

Next Steps

Although these strategies are relatively simple, they are by no means easy to achieve, so my recommendation to you is to begin on these one at a time for a period of 30 days each. Choose the strategy that to you seems the most urgent or speaks to you in some way and begin with that. Once you have successfully integrated the strategy into your life in that 30 day period, you can add in the next one that draws your interest. I would love to hear your experience as you execute on these concepts so please make sure to leave me a comment to let me know your plan of attack and keep me updated with tweets or Instagram updates through your process. Good luck and I can’t wait to see what you achieve in 2016!

xoxo,

Alexis-Signature

Productivity

How to Build Confidence, Boost Your Productivity & Be Your Own Boss!

How to Build Confidence, Boost Productivity & Be Your Own Boss- Link Roundup October 2015

How to Build Confidence, Boost Your Productivity & Be Your Own Boss!

It’s time for another link roundup! With only two months left in 2015, we have now reached that part of the year where we make our one final push to hit our goals and get organized before the new year begins. For me, I find the best way to get inspired is to immerse myself in great content that provides insight and advice to challenge my thought processes and engage in meaningful solutions to my everyday problems. That’s why I love doing these link round up posts for you! It gives me a chance to share the content that inspires me and helps me to be a better content creator for you, and in turn, I hope you find solutions and inspiration to help you make an impact in your life. So, here are some articles I have been reading and thought you might also enjoy!

Personal Development

Business

Productivity

I hope you found something new and inspiring to read from this post! If you have any other articles you have read this month that you loved and want to share, please do so in the comments below! Also, if you are a female entrepreneur, small business owner or aspiring #girlboss, I would love to welcome you to join my #CHARMEDBIZ COLLECTIVE Facebook community filled with like-minded women who are supporting each other to build their online empires! I hope to see you there!

xoxo,

Alexis-Signature

Productivity

Add one of these activities to your morning routine for less stress and more productivity

Add one of these to your morning routine for less stress & more productivity!

Add one of these activities to your morning routine for less stress and more productivity

As an entrepreneur who works from home, I have found that how I spend my morning often reflects how productive the rest of the day will be for me. It doesn’t matter what time I wake up per se, but how I spend that first hour or so upon waking can lead me to either have a productive day or a wasted one! There are many different idealized morning routines you can adopt that promise health and wealth, but let’s be honest- designing a whole new routine is pretty hard. So, instead, start off with one of these and add it to your existing routine for a day that promises less stress and more productivity!

Guided Meditation

Meditation is one of those activities that you expect to find on lists like these, however, as someone who has tried every which way to incorporate meditation into my days and failed, I know it isn’t as easy as you’d think. Forcing yourself to sit still for 15-30 minutes without falling asleep is hard. Having to control your thoughts in the silence of your room is hard. But listening to a guided meditation instead, while you sit or lay in bed, is actually pretty doable! I keep a few guided meditations found on YouTube saved in my iPhone’s bookmarks, and in the morning when I wake up, I put one on. This routine works for me because it fulfills my need to stay in bed when I first wake up, and because I know all I have to do is turn on the guided meditation and listen. I can stay in bed, remain in a reclining position and just listen. It’s a very peaceful way to wake up in the morning, especially if you’re not a wake up and jump out of bed sort of person! If you aren’t sure where to start with something like this, here is the YouTube channel of an account that I love to go to for my meditations. This guys voice is very soothing to me and he has targeted guided meditation audios for a number of common issues.

Breath deeply

Starting your day with a workout is often touted as a secret of success for many, however, that exercise doesn’t have to be cardio. Even a simple routine of yoga in the morning where you are controlling your movement and breathing deeply is an excellent way to keep in shape, and lower stress. If you want to get started with Yoga, but think it’s too complicated, check out this article to get some helpful tips and tricks for beginners!

Journaling

In Julia Cameron’s bestselling book, The Artist’s Way, she instructs to keep a journal to write in stream of consciousness each and every morning. A few pages a day is all it takes to process through the events of the previous day that may still be having a sway over your mind, and really help you start your day with everything off your chest. It’s like having a morning therapy session with yourself! So, if you find that you wake up anxious and feel stress from the moment you step out of bed, I suggest keeping a journal by your bedside and giving this a try!

Make your bed

Making your bed in the morning is the start to a great foundational morning routine. Not only does it leave your space neat for your return in the evening, but it gives you an easy mental win in the morning because you have checked one item off your to do list without even leaving your bedroom. Start making your bed in the morning as soon as you get out of it and you will feel the positive affects on your day!

Hydrate early and often!

After hours of lying in bed, your body is in need of hydration immediately. Try drinking a big glass of ice water or start your morning with some warm water with lemon! You may want to reach for the coffee machine first, but caffeine actually dehydrates you further, so make sure to get in a good 8-12 ounces of water before you touch any other liquids!

So tell me, do you have any morning routine non-negotiable activities that aren’t included on this list? I’d love to know how you spend your morning!

xoxo,

Alexis-Signature

Productivity

Mind Over Matter, Social Media Marketing Trends & Productivity Hacks You Need to Know!

June Links: Self-Improvement, Business & Productivity

Last month, the community reaction to my link roundup was so positive and supportive. Many of you really connected with the fact that I too struggle with my own productivity on a regular basis, as shocking and unbelievable as it may seem. I love talking about productivity and really consider myself a student of it, not because I believe I’m naturally inclined towards it, but rather because my instinct is the complete opposite. I tend to be very lazy, so over the years, in order to not only survive, but to flourish, I have built up a repertoire of life hacks, organization methods and productivity shortcuts to help me get more done in less time. If there is a quicker way to do something, I am all over it. Have a method to cut down on your number of tasks while still remaining a high performer, yes please, I’d love to know! To be honest, most of my knowledge of these sorts of things doesn’t really come from me, but rather, from books, magazines and articles I have read over the years, which is why I love sharing these sorts of link roundups with my community. On one hand, this gives you some insight into the sorts of articles I read on a regular basis, but on the other, it helps you to develop the positive habit of reading, self-improvement and continuing education. So, in an effort to share and help inspire my community, here is a selection of articles I read and think you may also find enlightening!

Self-Improvement

Business

Productivity

Have any other articles you read recently that you think I would love? Please tweet me the links @MissTrenchcoat or go ahead and leave them down below! 

xoxo,

Alexis-Signature

Productivity

How to Craft Your Own Personal Mantra

How to Craft Your Own Personal Mantra

For a number of years now, I have been very interested in the concept of personal mantras. For those of you who may not be familiar, a mantra is traditionally a word or sound that one uses during meditation to focus energy and concentration, but more liberally speaking, a mantra is also an affirmation or catch phrase that a person may use on a regular basis. The latter is really what I have been preoccupied with because I am someone who does really believe in the power of affirmations and positive self talk as a means to overcome a variety of issues. I truly believe that if a person believes something is true, that belief can actually change them at their very core, and the best way to get someone to believe something is to have them repeat it over and over on a regular basis until a simple phrase becomes engrained in their psyche.

So, I would say that last year I went on something of a personal quest to find my own mantra, something that resonated with me and helped me to address the specific issues I was having in my life and business. I tried out a lot of popular affirmations, but inevitably, nothing really felt like it was mine, until one day I decided to write myself a set of directions to overcome some mental blocks I was having. At the time, I was spending may too much time consuming content online and not enough time working on my own. I knew this was a waste of my time, but I kept finding myself in this trap that I would set for myself where I got bored, went online for some entertainment, saw all the awesome things other people were creating and then got own on myself because hours had passed and I had achieved nothing of substance for myself. It was causing me some serious anxiety and a feeling that I was literally wasting my life. I didn’t like that feeling. I really wanted to feel like my days were filled with a good balance of working on my own priorities and spending some time enjoying myself and other people’s content, in a normal and healthy way. So, I knew that I needed to give myself a plan, some directions and rules to guide how I would spend my time in a general way. First I wrote out what I was going to stop doing, then I wrote out what I was going to do instead, and finally, I wrote out a list of ideas and options of priorities to focus on. I really liked this short and simple statement so much that I kept it on a page in my planner right towards the front so I would always see it. I eventually realized that as time passed, I had it memorized and actually found myself repeating it to myself whenever I was getting overwhelmed. Unconsciously, this statement had become my personal mantra and without realizing it, I had drastically improved my situation. All of a sudden I was getting more work done and spending less time worrying or feeling anxiety over my work. I was producing better content and the ideas were flowing out of me at an unbelievable rate. I had crafted my own mantra and it was actually striking a chord with me on a daily basis!

Now, I know that this post can seem a little far out there, and I understand if you think this is a little hokey. The thing is though, that I actually believe that this mantra helped me to change my situation and make my life better (of course, or else I would’t be writing a blog post about it) and I think it is worth a try for you. Even if this isn’t your normal cup of tea, I challenge you to weigh the benefits and risks of this activity. Creating your own personal mantra isn’t complicated or difficult, so long as you understand what it is that you need help with and have some solutions in mind for correcting your situation, there is really no harm in giving this a try. As they say, you have nothing to loose and everything to gain. So, here are my tips for crafting your own personal mantra.

1. Think about an area of your life that you are dissatisfied with, but you also know you would have the power to change: Understanding what we can and cannot change is a hard task, but think of this in terms of problems you have control over. If you are a student in high school and live at home with your parents, I don’t think it’s reasonable to say you can change your living situation, however, if you are a thirty year old adult who still lives at home, you have much more control over that scenario. Things like your appearance and attitude can be changed, but you can’t expect to change someone else’s.

2. Swap one bad habit with one good habit: At the time when I wrote my own personal mantra, I didn’t realize that their is a lot of power in controlling your routines. So, when you have something you want to change, it’s best to swap one behavior for another.  So, once you know what area of your life you want to change, think about how you could replace a bad habit that perpetuates your issue with a good one. It may be hard to stop doing something, and it may be difficult to add a totally new behavior in, but when you swap one for another, it’s much more manageable.

3. Give yourself options: I’m the type of person who does much better with change when I know I have more than one option available to me. So when it came to having a successful mantra that spoke to me, it was critical that I didn’t box myself in to one narrow concept. Giving myself more than one option for how to spend my time instead of waisting it showed me examples that I could then put into action, and it also provided me with flexibility depending on my mood. For example, if you are someone who is trying to loose weight and you know that snacking is an area that gets you into trouble, you may want to tell yourself to stop snacking on bad food and replace it with good food. That’s great, but taking it a step further and saying exactly what foods you have the option to eat will make it much easier for you to choose that healthy option when the time comes because you have more to choose from.

Now, try putting these simple rules in place as you craft your own mantra, and then of course, make sure you keep your mantra front in center in your life until you have it memorized. Once you have it memorized, make it part of your routine to repeat your mantra to yourself throughout your day. Set a timer or reminders on your phone if you have to, but make sure you are using your mantra so that you actually start benefiting from it!

xoxo,

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Productivity

{Apptastic} Can Music Keep You Focused?

Focus@Will Productivity Boosting App

As a productivity junkie, I am always looking for the hottest new apps that promise to help me boost my productivity! I’ve tried games, guided meditation, and brainwave boosters, but most recently I have been using an app that creates a playlist of scientifically optimized productivity music to help you focus called Focus@Will. How’s that for a name, right? Who doesn’t want to have complete focus at will? I know I do! So when I first heard about this app, I knew I had to give it a try, so I downloaded the app, signed up for a free trial account and got started.

Now, the thing you need to understand about this app is that it’s essentially a semi-customizable playlist of relaxing, almost sound machine types of music. The UI of the app itself is pretty minimal and I found that it wasn’t quite adapted to my iPhone 6 Plus’ large screen, but then again, I guess that doesn’t matter very much because you’re not really supposed to be spending much time looking at your iPhone screen with this app on!

For those of you who may already be familiar with the concept to working to music, you may be wondering what makes this app so special? I think it all comes down to the thought that classical and similar styles of music make one more productive than other types of music, and in fact on their website, Focus@Will explains that modern music that most people listen to through the workday is not effective in forcing our concentration because such music normally evokes an emotional response that distracts us. Now, I can understand that! Personally, I am not productive at work with music on, I do better when I listen to music while cleaning the house or doing another physical activity that doesn’t require much thought. If you tend to work with your favorite playlist on in the background, you may want to ask yourself how satisfied you are with your productivity to really understand if this is an app you would want to try!

So, moment of truth, does the app actually work? Well, as I sit at my desk writing this review, it’s about 7:30 in the morning and I’ve been up since 6am working on blog posts, listening to and enjoying the music from the app. I haven’t been distracted by notifications, I haven’t taken moments to pause and rest, unsure of what to write next. I’ve been enjoying the soothing sounds radiating from my iPhone, and I think the science behind this app is correct. I don’t focus this well listening to regular music and I find that even in complete silence, I am not as productive as I seem to be as I type along to the rhythm of the spa playlist I’m currently enjoying. So, I would have to say that for me, yes, this app is working. Now, will I be signing up for a monthly subscription to the app once my 30 day trial is over? That will take some more thought. I am not completely sold on the app as a monthly subscription, although I would have no problem paying out $5.99 or even upwards of $10 to have full access to the app without a subscription fee or at least the option to buy a pre-made playlist flat out. I’m not entirely sure what sort of updates and value the Focus@Will team is adding on a monthly basis to validate the charge, which is my major hesitation right now, but I would say the app is nice, I do see a use for it and I would pay something for it, I’m just not sure how much value will come from the subscription!

If you have ever tried Focus@Will let me know what you thought of it in the comments below. I’d love to hear about your experiences with the app and if you are subscribed, let me know what value you feel you get from the app on an ongoing basis! If you have never tried Focus@Will before, definitely give the app a try, it’s available for download on iOS and Android devices and there is even a desktop client as well!

xoxo,

Alexis-Signature