What is the biggest struggle you’re facing today? I ask that to my clients and the #1 answer I get (and that I give to my coach) is time.

–> I don’t have enough time.

–> I need more time.

–> How are their only 24 hours in the day?

Sound familiar?

While I can’t create more time in the day, I can give you some the productivity hacks I have been implementing lately to get ahead of the holiday hustle and bustle. (And yes, Halloween was about two days today and we are already using the word “holiday” ALOT!)

SCHEDULE TIME FOR SELF-CARE
My coach has told me this ALOT this week. And it really does sound silly, but self-care can me as simple as setting the alarm an hour later, going to see a movie with friends, finding time to paint your nails or watching that favorite Netflix show. (The trick is is moderation right!?!?)

CHOOSE WISELY
This is hard. But choose what you are going to do with the rule to not over book yourself. My general rule is one weeknight activity as week. And then I work on one family activity a weekend and one “date night” activity as weekend. A few questions to ask….

–> Will it be fun?
–> Do I feel obligated to go?
–> Are their people I want to be around?
–> If I went last year, how did I feel?

OUTSOURCE!
I have worked in IT all my life so this might be a little easier for me, but there are so many great apps and subscription services these day that make life a little more plannable.

–> Stitchfix. I swear by this service. It has changed my wardrobe since the girls were born and is affordable. If you have a holiday party or event coming up, ask for a specific outfit. They will include everything from the shoes to the jewelry.  Another one that I have seen pop-up lately is Front Door Fashion. I haven’t tried it yet, but it looks super cute!

–> Google Keep. This is like post-it notes on steriods. You can access it online or on your phone. I tend to use the app the most. You can share post-its with friends, categorize them, color-code them and even add pictures and links to them super easy. I store recipes here, my to-do list, motivational quotes to keep me going and more!

–> Voxer.  No time to call friends? Need to describe a grocery item to your husband? Try Voxer. I use this when I am in the car to leave messages to friends and clients. You get the personal touch of hearing each others voices and one without having to schedule a phone call.

–> Meal Delivery Services. There are a lot of ways to think of this and it isn’t just your Hello Fresh or Blue Apron option.  (Check out a review of dinner delivery services here).  Other options include schedule take-out with Amazon Restaurant delivery (there is a coupon in the link!) from your favorite new healthy trendy restaurant that your kids might not love (ok maybe that is me!). We also schedule our grocery pickup for Friday afternoon so that our family can use the weekend to get ready for the week without having to run a ton of errands.

FOCUS ON GRATITUDE
You may have seen this in some of my posts this week, but every day I write in a journal and write down 3 things I am thankful for. Sometimes it is as simple as it is Friday, or I got an extra hour of sleep. Other times, it is more. But in this time of busyness, remember you are lucky. You are worth it. And others are thankful for you too.

I hope these help you as we turn the corner into the busy season as I call it! I would love to know what works for you!