Empowering Women Leaders to
Reclaim Their Time & Rediscover Wellness
Are you ready to reclaim your time?
Imagine how you would feel.
Imagine what you could do!
You could wake up, refreshed, before everyone.
You could move your body with careful, unrushed attention.
You could slowly savour a whole hot cup of coffee.
You could lose yourself in a beloved hobby.
You could get into deep focus at work.
You could unwind in a hot bath, cocooned in peace and quiet.
You could relax with your family without the pressure of time constraints.
You could enjoy a nourishing meal, lingering around the table over meaningful conversation.
If any of that sounds lovely, I hope you'll apply the 5 tips below to reclaim your time – so you can have more space to do the things that make you feel more energized and joyful!
And if you want to go deeper, I hope you’ll join me for one of my Wellness Retreats or Women’s Coaching Circles, or book me to speak at your workplace or conference.
1. Add wellness to your calendar
Just as you would a meeting or medical appointment, input workouts, meditation, meal prep, and bubble baths (or whatever you know is necessary for serenity and satisfaction) into your calendar app.
It's easy to skip things we don't prioritize. Putting self-care in your calendar is prioritizing it – not only so you see it and do it, but so that no one else can take that time away from you.
And don't forget relationship-care! Add uninterrupted family time, meal time, nature adventures, and date nights to your calendar too.
2. Use the Pomodoro Technique
I first learned of this great time-management technique years ago from publication coach Daphne Gray-Grant, who learned of it through a Wall Street Journal article.
The Pomodoro Technique uses a timer shaped like a tomato (pomodoro is Italian for tomato) to track 25-minute increments of uninterrupted, focused work.
I just use the timer on my phone or computer in increments of 25 to 90 minutes – generally 45 minutes, depending on the task at hand.
I usually break my workday up into 3 morning "Pomodoros" of 45 minutes separated by 5- to 10-minute movement breaks where I stretch, or do a quickie workout, or a quickie cleanup (put on a load of laundry, or empty the dishwasher, or vacuum), followed by 1 or 2 Pomodoros of 45 minutes, separated by movement breaks, in the afternoon before calling it a day.
I get so much done in so little time! It's amazing.
I use this technique in my personal life too (more of turning distractions off, less of actually timing it), to create uninterrupted, focused periods of time with my husband and daughter.
All you need to do is set a timer and turn off all distractions to focus on the task at hand – whether it’s writing copy, joining a meeting, or having dinner with your children.
3. Honour inner boundaries
When it comes to keeping promises to yourself ("I'm going to work out 3 times a week" or "I'm not going to look at my phone after 8pm") make them short, simple and specific so they’re impossible not to keep.
I have always been a fan of small, achievable goals, which is why the close of my online and in-person events always includes a 3-part personalized plan with short, simple and specific actions.
Says Jack Canfield, author of The Success Principles: How to Get from Where You Are to Where You Want to Be, “When you start with small, achievable steps you can easily master, it reinforces your belief that you can easily improve."
Honouring your inner boundaries builds self-trust and pride, which both add fuel to the fire of MOTIVATION.
“Authentic pride is the reason for intrinsic motivation," says Jessica Tracy, author of Take Pride: Why the Deadliest Sin Holds the Secret to Human Success.
On the flipside, neglecting your inner boundaries is a real time suck.
Not only are you wasting precious time thinking about the thing you're not doing – and then wasting more time doubting yourself – when it comes to self-care and relationship-care, a lack of healthy habits makes you much less productive and focused so you're spending more time on simple, much-less-important tasks, when that time should be going toward your serenity, joy, energy and satisfaction!
Self-belief is served by honouring your inner boundaries.
“When you make an agreement and you don’t keep it, you undermine your own self-trust,” says David Allen, author of Getting Things Done: The Art of Stress-Free Productivity.
4. Script outer boundaries
Get clear on your time boundaries and then create a short, clear and definitive script so it’s easy for you to speak them to others.
“Sorry, I don’t work on the weekends.”
“Sorry, I simply don’t have time.”
“Sorry, my schedule is full."
My serene, joyful, energized, satisfying schedule is FULL of very long spans of quiet, disconnected time.
(Is it too Canadian to preface everything with "sorry"?!)
5. Take a sacred pause
When we never take time to pause and reflect, and we’re always go-go-go, it feels like time is scarce and always getting away from us.
Although it might seem counterintuitive, creating space between things actually EXPANDS time.
I learned the beautiful phrase "sacred pause" from Jack Kornfield via Tara Brach, and it's something to absolutely try weaving throughout your day.
Pausing gives us the space and time to reflect, be reminded of our intensions, listen to our inner wisdom, and calm our nervous systems, so that when we begin the next thing – whether it’s an important conversation, a work task, or precious family time – we’re more calm, present and focused.
We get more out of life when we make time to pause.
I hope these tips will serve you!