recharge yourself

Falling into a hectic daily grind can be exhausting, I swear I get a new case of the blah's every other day, but finding ways to recharge can help you get out of any rut.   When the every day routine can start to feel not so fun, it's sometimes easier to continue doing it rather than finding a way to reset.  With work deadlines, home life, trying to make everyone else happy- its easy to forget you, but you shouldn't.  These are some helpful tips to ease those blah days away, feeling recharged and ready to go again!

get up or get out.

keeping your body and mind active is a great way to feel refreshed.  whether that means exercise, running errands, cleaning your home, meeting up with a friend for coffee or going for a drive.  anything that gets you away from what you do day in and day out.  for me,  getting out for a walk around our neighborhood in the morning or going for a long drive into the city at night, are great ways to unwind and truly focus on my thoughts instead of having them in the back of my mind while working. getting away from your duties is sometimes the best way to do them better.

disconnect.

distractions are everywhere nowadays.  seriously, what did anyone ever do before texting, emailing and scrolling were a part of their life at all moments of the day?  have you ever been in a waiting room or a check out line and looked around you and noticed that almost every one was on their phones?  thats a great time to put yours away.  stop being distracted by what everyone else is doing and try to focus on yourself.  allotting a set time for social media/emails/etc instead of making it an extension of yourself is so much healthier and allows to truly be present in your own life instead of giving away all that energy to others.

write.

sometimes you just need to get out of your own head, writing is a great escape.  if that means making lists, scheduling out your week, starting a journal or just sending a letter to someone.  grab that trusty old pen and paper and get to work.  i'm a habitual list maker and love the feeling of accomplishment that comes with crossing something off that list, theres just something so rewarding about writing it down that provides a quick recharge for me especially since i'm usually in front of a computer, my phone (for my social media freelance jobs) or in my studio making things.  a good list is good for the soul!

drink.

ya heard me! now, i don't meant hitting the bottle hard, but usually when you are drinking something you are taking a small break- a moment for you.  so go out for drinks with the girls, meet up with a friend for coffee, grab your significant other & take a stroll around the neighborhood with cold sodas- or do something as simple as grabbing a glass of ice water, and actually enjoying it.  this goes back to disconnecting (above), take the time to sip and relax.  if that means five minutes to yourself, that break is better than no break at all.

tidy up.

if your surroundings are messy its probably a given that your mind is too.  keep your immediate work area clean and tidy if possible or use your break time to get up and organize.  when i'm down in my studio (its on the lower level of our home) it really bugs me if our upstairs living area is messy- if that means quickly making the bed or doing some dishes, knowing those things are done and not waiting for me after i'm finished working are a huge help!  if you work away from home try to keep your workspace clean and i promise you will feel so much better.

spoil yourself.

this can be of monetary value if thats your thing, but however you like to treat yo' self, do that.  small rewards are a great way to recharge because you earned it!  go get that manicure, or do them yourself.  buy a new dress or just window shop. whatever floats your boat and means 'spoiling' to you, have at it.  i love at home beauty days- a treatment in my hair, manicure drying, something sweet to snack on and a cheesy hallmark type of movie playing.  now thats what i call pure bliss!

rest.

this one sounds easy and is sometimes the hardest for people to do.  if you're feeling run down, take it easy.  go to bed earlier, sleep in if you can, take a personal day, read and chill, netflix it up- whatever equals rest to you.  taking care of yourself should always be a top priority, even if that means canceling plans and tuning out everything and everyone else, it all equals a better you.

Guess what?  You can't do it all and thats okay so give yourself a break by stepping out of your normal routine to recharge- pretty soon you won't even remember that rut you were in!  What ways do you like to recharge?

be proud of you

Today I'm going a little off course as I get to be part of the incredibly kind and talented Hilary of Dean Street Society's Happy Hour Blog Tour.  Along with a group of other amazing women, I get to help promote her new book, the 4-Part Entrepreneur Cocktail.  She has gathered 30 bloggers & entrepreneurs for 30 days in November to share 30 stories- our stories about the ins and outs of what we do, why and behind the scenes of things we might not regularly talk about here.  Check out all the posts on the Happy Hour link above and if you have a moment visit yesterdays post by Chivon John and tomorrows post by Ali Rittenhouse. 

The dreaded question- "So what do you do for a living?".  I could tell them about all the hats I wear or I could keep it simple, but do they really actually care?  Occasionally I will answer with a lack of confidence "I'm self employed and do some online stuff".  Thats when I get the blank look followed by 'ohhhhh cool, etsy?".  Rarely I bravely say that I own an online accessories boutique and I write an online publication.  Thats for days when I'm feeling fancy.  I notice it happening to others too- when you are a creative type, a self employed woman, a blogger, a stay at home.  Don't get me wrong, I see some shouting from mountain tops about their successes, but so many of us don't really take pride in our acheivements.  Why is it that we as woman so badly want to be equal (with other women, with men & what is defined as success) and so often don't put ourselves up there where we so rightly belong?  Why do we allow others lack of understanding what it is that we do, make us feel less for doing it?  

I was at an antiques shop a few weeks back and this girl had an amazing tote bag, I asked her about it and she said she made it.  It was beautifully handcrafted and before I could ask for a card or even if she had a shop she said "I just own this dinky little online shop, I don't have many sales".  I wanted to shake her and say that description she just gave is no way to share her talent, why would she call it little when what she is doing was great.  She had no cards on her and I can't figure out the shop name because I know she mentioned it was spelled funny.  All these things stuck out to me that either she was not serious about her business, isn't confident in how great she really is or just doesn't have anyone that understands what she is doing.

I want to be proud in all of my accomplishments, but without sounding conceited.  I am constantly struggling with that fine line of where it all stands.  I've owned 2 hair salons, a photography business, an online accessories boutique, an online supply company, a subscription service, I was the Boss Lady (we couldn't think of anything better for a title) at Passionfruit Ads, was the Director of Social Media at Sidlab and now I'm about to start up a new business adventure.  I get to make hair accessories for magazines and television shows, I blog, I plan events, I go on adventures and I struggle to describe how all of these things are me. Obviously I don't tell everyone all of that, because its irrelevant to what my current title is.  However, each of them has been a passion of mine, they molded me to be where I am today and some have led me to new experiences I would have never had the chance to have otherwise.  I'm not a toot my own horn type of girl, but I want to be proud of my accomplishments because in the end this is me.

The community of hand-crafters & bloggers can be a tricky one.  There is immaturity out there, jealousy, copy-cats, competition, drama- that's just life.  But the good people, the ones that have constantly encouraged me through comments, sent along emails, liked a photo- those are the ones that know what I'm doing and are probably doing it to, they're my people.  They get me.  Surround yourself with good and you will do good.  Believe me, the petty stuff isn't worth it.  I know because at points in my online life I've been a part of it, I've let it get to me and that negative energy affected everything I did.  One day I let go and it was the best thing I could have done for myself.  The same goes with being proud (not cocky) of what I do.  When I started confidently sharing myself, opportunities opened up, conversations started and friendships ignited.  Hiding in a shell can get lonely, pop out once in a while and I promise the positive that comes from it will make all parts of your business and life better.

Self employment of any kind is hard hard work, but if you love it enough its all worth it.  I don't want to make what I do seem insignificant because I don't know how to describe it to people that don't understand or don't give a damn.  I don't want the dreams I had to be made into something smaller than they were at one point all because I'm afraid to share that I've been able to reach for and sometimes accomplish them.  I hope you keep dreaming, doing and never stop.  I know I wont.

Three /// Things: managing busy changes

Oh friends I have missed you so.  It has been a little more hectic than planned around here with the move, but isn't that the way it goes?  Its funny how much change can happen in a short amount of time, four hours from our previous home and its a completely different world here.  Add busy on top of this change and its another story!

image via designlovefest

I once heard that 'busy is a matter of choice' and that still rings true whenever I hear it mentioned.  Lately I've been learning how to manage my own busy while adjusting to change at the same time.  Here a few things that I've implemented-

Plan and be okay with the unplanned.

Its easy to make a plan, but sometimes things can happen where your plan may stray off course and being okay with that will make things so much easier.  We were supposed to have internet the day we moved here, that meant I planned on getting right to work the day after the move.  Four days later and still no connection put a dent in my plan, but I used that time to rest from the move, explore the city a little more and enjoy the down time. I try to come up with ideas or plans and get a little input from others, that way maybe if I'm missing something they can open my eyes and we can find a better way to do things.  When things don't work exactly like planned, the way you handle it can make a world of difference.  Although I am a set goals type of girl, I'm also very much a go with the flow type too.  Things happen, its not the end of the world.  Breathe, smile and make the most of it.  If you need to then make plans B, C & D if plan A fails.

Give what you can, but don't give your all.

I know that I love giving 110% in everything I do, but lately I've found that giving that much to something means I'm not giving much at all to anything else.  When I want to focus my attention on something I have found that neglecting other things can make the situation more stressful.  Big jobs, deadlines, orders.. etc. they all need to be done, but so does taking a shower, walking the dog, housework and so much more.  I would never give myself to only 10% of each thing, that would make me scatter brained and things would come out half ass.  But giving myself to just one thing means I have a huge pile of other things right behind it.  The best thing I have done for myself is to take breaks to refocus and allow me time that means I will do things the right way, instead of doing things with a fogged up mind.  I didn't schedule blog posts when we moved (as you obviously know) and I feel horrible because I have advertisers counting on me to work for them.  I lowered my prices knowing the move was coming and I hooked them up with extra time on their ads to show them that I'm still here.  However, if I gave all of myself to worry about this situation- I wouldn't have been able to focus on our move and things in my own life.  I found time to write them quick notes and was able to give what I could to my business and personal life without neglecting either.

Be open to the new.

Everything around me feels so new and exciting right now and I know that will pass, but the spark of inspiration is something I hope won't burn out anytime soon.  For myself I need visuals to be stimulated enough to do something.  Browsing a vintage store, going for a walk, flipping through a magazine or even popping over to Pinterest are all ways that visually take care of me.  If we do the same things every day we are putting ourselves in the direct path of finding a rut to fall in.  Don't find the rut (if you do its okay), but try to avoid it!  Try something new, anything.  Go to tea with a friend instead of happy hour, leisurely browse a shop with ample time to soak it all in instead of popping in just for a quick purchase, visit the library or a near by coffee shop to get online instead of sitting in your house.  Whatever it is try something new and be ready to be inspired.  If you can't control change, then make changes where you can.

Managing or making changes while taking breaks from busy have been a huge part in keeping myself calm and allowing me to enjoy every moment of it.

I'd love to know- How do you manage change or being busy?