When you’re a kid your daily mood and productivity for the day isn’t a thought in our heads, for me, my teen years being productive and being in a “good” mood was definitely not something I was tracking.   As I became more responsible for myself and started working I began to understand productivity, time management, and working with other people like clients or customers you are expected to be pleasant and smile.  But it really wasn’t until I became a mom that being positive and productive became a real challenge for me.  I’ve spent many years trying to figure out how to be more productive and in better spirits. It’s like there was not hours in a day to get everything I need done, and that lead to me being annoyed and disappointed.  I’ve read books, articles, blogs and for the most part they all say the same things.  Routine and consistency, two things I find so hard to do evermore so when you are a mom.

So in the last few years (yes people you read right, years) I’ve slowly started a routine.  Now I read somewhere that if you do something consistently everyday for 30 days it becomes a habit.  To add to that a friend of mine once told me to start with a small task and add to that as you go along.

So the first thing I started with was to make my bed everyday. Now that seems like something that some might not think would really matter much but let me tell you, that has made such a difference for me.  After my bed is made I am less tempted to lay back down and I feel like that is one thing checked off the list for the day.  My day just gets to a slow start and I tend to procrastinate on the days I don’t make the bed.

The second thing I began once making the bed was a routine was Brain dump or meditate.  There is no specific time of day that I do either, but I do try to do one or the other before the day is out.  I have a notebook where I just sit down and just write any and everything that comes to mind. It is helpful when your having a tough day and you need to just clear your mind.

Third I started working out regularly.  Working out everyday is definitely not the easiest to do for someone like me, but I have figured out a plan that works for me and I am definitely in better spirits after I am done.  I have more energy to get things done and it gives me another outlet to letting out any emotions I may have built up.  Its great for your physical health but also for your emotional and mental health.  We all have stresses, for some its work or health, or raising children, or even financial issues.  Working out can help relieve the tension the stress causes. I always feel so much better after a good work out.

Last I started scheduling screen time.  I never really noticed how much I was on my phone, we usually don’t.  The amount of time you spends on social media alone would surprise you.  It wasn’t until one day I was laying down waiting for my phone to do a system update and all I kept thinking this is taking forever.  That new update had a new feature that would notify you of much time you spend of your phone and what apps you spend the most time on.  Well when you see all the time spread out like that you start to put things into perspective. I now give myself about an hour a day, 30 minutes in the morning to check emails and messages and 30 minutes in the evening after dinner to do the same. It’s given me the freedom to really be present in all that I do.

I have so many more thing I plan on making a habit, but these are the first few that have really made a difference for me. My productivity level has increased and in turn that makes me feel good.