1. START WITH A MORNING RITUAL
Starting today simplify your life by focusing on less. That’s right boo, focus on less by letting go of those things that no longer serve you.
When you focus on less, it helps you disregard the negative mental chatter, because you know exactly what you need to do every morning. And the right morning ritual can help you build a mental fortress so you stay focused, productive and purposeful.
And as a high caliber female entrepreneur, this is what you will need:
Begin your morning with a high caliber daily ritual. A morning ritual can be whatever gets you in a productive zone:
- Exercise
- Journalling
- Make your bed/Meditation
- Enjoying a cup of coffee or tea
- Reading
A morning ritual is the best habit you can incorporate if you are trying to structure your life or develop self-discipline.
It is a positive way of getting your morning kicked off without being stressed. It’s allowing yourself to schedule a routine that’s self-directed, and this habit enables you to feel good about yourself.
And when you feel good, this strengthens your self-esteem so you will a little bit more confident in the morning because you’ve self-directed a daily routine.
Check this out mija, consistently practicing a morning ritual will give you momentum. And this momentum will encourage you to keep going because if consistently performed overtime there will be a return on investment (ROI).
“When you decide to get up a bit earlier to focus on your morning ritual, you are practicing self-discipline.”
And when you have self-discipline in the morning, then chances are you will practice self-discipline throughout the day.
According to Brendon Burchard, “If you master your morning, you master your day.”
But I get it boo, waking up early in the morning is not fun. Especially in the beginning because you’ve grown accustomed to taking advantage of sleep. But you see that’s what most people do, and nothing gets accomplished in that comfort zone.
So why not be different? Start pushing yourself starting today!
My recommendation is that you START now because this habit of waking up earlier strengthens your mental toughness.
It prepares you for the stressors that lie ahead. Morning rituals greatly contribute to mental toughness, emotional toughness, weight loss, less stress, productivity and more clarity.
Don’t be like me where you are forced to practice something new because you may be practicing self-destructive habits.
In the Summer of 2010, I admitted myself to the emergency room after experiencing an anxiety attack.
It was a scary moment because I knew I had to make healthier changes to my life. One of them was waking up earlier so I could exercise.
Let me just share with you that I have never looked back and that small decision I believe saved my life and has served me in so many other ways.
Don’t be indecisive, if you need more help on getting started, grab my wellness guide that will show you examples of what you can focus on. You can click here to access your free guide.
2. SCHEDULE EXERCISE & MEAL PLANNING
Schedule exercise and meal planning every week. Look at your planner and pick out the days of the week you will exercise.
What exercises will you do throughout the week? If you don’t know I can help you with this.
After being released from the emergency room, I knew that my health was deteriorating due to stress and other overwhelming circumstances.
So I knew I had to make crucial changes in my life if I wanted different results. You must do the same!
Schedule the days of the week and the times you will exercise before the commencement of the week.
Plan out specific exercises ahead of time. That way you know exactly what you need to do when you get to the gym.
This morning ritual of exercising before work enabled me to lose 25 lbs. and transformed my physique.
Moreover, it served as a high-caliber habit that has helped me transform other areas of my life.
“Be proactive not reactive and give your life direction.”
You want to live your life by DESIGN, not by default. This time-frame of working on yourself should never be compromised and do your best to follow through. I did this when my girls were younger so I went to the gym at 4 am.
Another thing you want to do is what day will you make those staple meals?
Choose one day when you will cook most of your meals for the upcoming week. Plan the number of meals for the week for you and your family. I don’t believe in cooking everyday, especially if you are busy.
Planning ahead will keep you structured and having those staple meals readily available will prevent you from cheating or grabbing junk food.
The biggest contribution that meal planning has is that it will greatly enhance your health and even save you money.
As a certified health coach, one of the most important things I advocate for women entrepreneurs is the necessity of planning your meals in advance.
Especially if you are a woman entrepreneur!
When you plan your meals in advance you know when and what you will eat. For example, just have chicken ready and you can make, chicken salad, chicken and rice, chicken tacos, chicken sandwiches, whatever you feel like eating that day.
This will make you disciplined, and the goal is to portion your meals so you are not overeating.
All of this contributes to mental clarity, more energy, and better moods.
And don’t worry if you are tired the first time you do this, the brain is doing something new and it will suggest you to stop in the beginning. Keep going, your brain is just a suggestion engine looking for a comfortable way out. If you keep practicing, it gets better and faster with practice.
Think about it? I see you in your kitchen, you’re already eating the same meals throughout the week.
Why not make them at home?
And I can relate, as a full-time working mother who consistently maintained 99% of the household responsibilities, it was making meals that consistently took most of my time.
But it is your responsibility to raise your family the right way. Get your kids involved too.
Practice making your homemade meals because it will lead to dramatic changes in your body, your mood, and your budget.
3. SET-UP YOUR HOME
Is your home a mess? Are you living in clutter and can’t seem to organize your house? I can help you with this.
Step up and take pride in your home.
“Your house is your retreat, it’s your safe haven and you should maintain an organized and peaceful home.”
My recommendation is that you begin with your bedroom.
The way you find a bedroom staged like Pottery Barn is the way you should display your room and closet. Why the heck not?
Raise your standards and give your room a make-over. Do what I do, go to Home Goods, love that store you will find everything there.
Find creative ways to store your bags, shoes, and clothing.
Think about Jennifer Lopez’s house, do you think she has clutter? I’m pretty sure her home is a perfect example of the photos you see in Pinterest.
You must do the same!
Have fun while you are doing it, and buy baskets or beautiful storage containers that will enhance the room.
Even your junk drawer should be organized.
Decorate your bedroom the way an interior decorator would decorate her room. Look for inspirational photos on line and try to replicate the same look based on your budget.
Trust me, it’s doable!
Personally, I want to walk into my home and think I’m in a model home. This will enhance your overall wellness, and home decoration further expresses how you feel and live.
When you take the time to decorate your home, it reflects who you are and how much you value your home.
If you need more help with this don’t be afraid, and please reach out to me.
Thankfully, I have found a way to streamline my house so it’s neatly maintained, and in impeccable order.
Here are some ideas to help you:
- Wake up earlier and make your bed, this is the best habit and it will give you a sense of accomplishment.
- Be intentional with what you will do everyday.
- Delegate housecleaning services. Hire that sweet Mexican lady on a weekly basis who will do the job for you.
- Stay away from negative people.
- Set the example everyday, do it for yourself.
4. STRUCTURED SOCIAL MEDIA
Social media time should also be structured throughout the week.
If you are like most people, you wake up, grab your phone and spend time a lot of time on social media platforms.
Social media can really help your business OR it can be detrimental to your life, and business.
Why?
Well because it zaps your productivity especially in the morning, and it’s easy to numb ourselves with social media when we are bored, don’t want to speak to others, or prior to going to bed.
Be careful with your social media consumption because it can alter the way you feel about yourself because you are being exposed to other people’s lives.
And what do you see?
You see perfect photos of beautiful people, traveling and doing wonderful things. Ha ha! I post those things too, guilty as charged!
Most people post their best photos just to increase their traffic and engagement with other people, myself included because it helps us appeal to a specific target audience.
What you don’t see is what they look like at home, when they are stressed or dealing with real problems.
What you see is perfect bodies, and beautiful faces and these photos can be misleading because you compare yourself.
And when you compare yourself this can lead to lowered self-esteem and dissatisfaction with yourself and your life.
Be careful of what you constantly expose yourself to because it can affect your mood.
“Social media is also keeping us from connecting or interacting in social settings. We are communicating less and this leads to isolation and depression.”
My recommendation is that you monitor the times you are on social media so you can see how many hours throughout the week you are spending on social media.
For most women entrepreneurs, this might increase because you depend on social media to attract new clients and new leads.
This is how you generate business, and social media algorithms are requiring you to interact through live stories, photos, and direct messages.
These platforms have found unique ways to increase your visibility if you are constantly engaging other users and posting on a consistent basis.
From a technology perspective, we are connecting faster with anybody in the world but we are not connecting on a deeper level.
It’s effects can lead to stress, anxiety, and depression because we are communicating less. Use to your advantage, don’t let it use you!
5. SIMPLIFY YOUR LIFE
Simplify your life by shifting to what is important. Be more present with your daily interactions and learn to say “NO” to more people.
You are here to please yourself, not other people.
In your pursuit for simplification, learn to silence yourself and your environment.
When you silence yourself, you have more self-awareness and can connect to your inner guidance. What’s your intuition telling you to do?
Listen to what’s CALLING at you, not what is CLAWING at you.
Your intuition is guiding you, and you need to listen.
The problem is that most people are distracted with the external environment and are easily misled.
“This process can alleviate stress and help you pinpoint internal and external distractions.”
Simplification leads to happiness because now you have the mental bandwidth to focus on creativity, and can produce more of what you want without the external distractions.
And I know you are like most women entrepreneurs; you’re multifaceted and can do many things well but that is not the point.
The point is to practice single-minded focus in one area so you can experience results and the momentum you need in order to reap the benefits.
Here are some ways I’ve added simplicity to my life:
- Stay away from television during the week
- Silence negative mental chatter
- Shift your relationship with money
- Stop procrastinating
- Spring into action, and declutter your home
- Schedule everything in your planner
- Surround yourself with high caliber people
“As a woman entrepreneur, your most precious resource is your time.”
When you simplify you reduce time and can focus on writing that book, starting that course, or work on a presentation.
Furthermore, when you have high-caliber habits in place this helps you reduce decision fatigue.
And this helps with mental toughness so you can redirect your focus on what is truly important.
When you structure your life, you don’t worry about what you will eat, and when you will exercise. You don’t worry because it’s already done, and with practice it becomes habitually ingrained.
And when you consistently practice the 5 ways to structure your life, it will done on auto-pilot!
What struggles are you having with structuring your life? I would love to hear from you. Message me mija, if you need daily motivation check out how I make my bed and follow me on Instagram @coachsandragonzalez.