Regaining Balance & Clarity Peacefully

Podcast Description:

Naomi Annaand teaches us how she regained balance and clarity after recovering from burnout and chronic fatigue, through practices of self love, empathy, and yoga.

Show Notes:
0:05 Intro

2:15 Yoga for Motherhood

5:12 Dispelling the Myth of Perfectionism

7:06 What Yoga is in Everyday Life

12:22 Naomi’s Chronic Fatigue Journey

22:11 Flow Not Force

29:42 How to Let Go of Suffering

36:12 How to Start Yoga

Important Links:
Be sure to follow Naomi at https://www.instagram.com/naomiyoga/?hl=en

3 Key Takeaways:
• Yoga can take the elements of a physical practice and teach you to apply them to your life such as flowing, not forcing and finding acceptance for where you are on your journey, regardless of what that looks like or how it compares to others.

• Life isn’t always about perfecting your environment or eliminating the chaos, it’s about how well equipped you are to handle that chaos and get recentered again.

• Having a connection and communication with your body allows you to open up to a greater sense of awareness of what’s going internally and externally.

How to Avoid Losing Your Marriage to Business & Stress

Podcast Description:

Work life balance is difficult and if you’re juggling a business, marriage, family and more challenge and stress are inevitable. In today’s Everyday Vacation Podcast episode, Richard & Laura Behney of The Couplepreneur Life share how to avoid losing your marriage to business and stress, as well as how to deepen your connection and create success together.

Show Notes:
00:04 Intro

02:04 Challenges Couples Face

05:00 How to Balance Work Life

08:11 Managing Roles in Your Relationship

12:34 Living & Creating a Life Outside of Business

15:05 Managing Friendships & Socialization

19:32 Seeking Help Outside of Your Relationship

22:49 Healing Broken Trust & Rekindling Love

30:50 How to Unhinge from Being Busy

32:49 When and How to Prepare for Empty Nesting

34:45 How to Guarantee Quality Time

36:55 Setting Boundaries Between Work & Personal Life

38:49 Setting & Managing Goals Together

39:58 How to Create Lasting Love

42:35 Special Announcement

43:57 Conclusion / Wrap Up

Important Links:
✓ Be sure to follow The Couplepreneur Life at - https://thecouplepreneurlife.com/club/
✓ Sign up for Couplepreneur Con, Jan. 28th 2023 - https://thecouplepreneurlife.com/con/

3 Key Takeaways:
• Love is a CHOICE. Deep love isn’t a twitterpated infatuation that happens overnight. Love is an investment that grows over time.
• Having boundaries and systems in place are essential to work-life balance, a successful business, and lasting marriage.
• When challenges and conversations come up facing them together as a team is what grows your trust, bond, and intimacy.

5 Ways to Recession-Proof Your Life

Is there a 2023 recession? Here's the thing, a recession is inevitably going to happen.

We are overdue for a market correction. It's been a long time coming, and it has been knocking at our door due largely to Covid, the Russian-Ukrainian war, supply chain issues, underemployed people, highly-priced stocks, and the real estate market falling.

People are responding by traveling less and spending less. This recession is about to hit and it's about to hit hard. Thinking about this makes me anxious about the resources I’ve saved up and whether my business will sustain us.

I’ve worked hard, and to be honest, I’m exhausted. This is partially due to launching some new segments of business this year and having a one-year-old that keeps me quite under slept.

Ultimately, we need to find a way to find peace of mind and resolve and take positive action to bulletproof our money and bulletproof our minds.

Budget and Save
The first thing you need to do, if you haven’t already, is to budget out all of your expenses and cut, cut, cut as much as you possibly can. Keep in mind that this recession is only temporary and in booming marketplaces.

It's great to have fun and to feel positive about abundance, however, when it comes to a recession, you need to dial it back, hold tight, and ride it out until it goes by. Make small changes and budget cuts where you can and it will really add up.

Work It
Take the extra work when you can. You’ll be thankful for it. Personally, I’m in a place where I’m trying to work as much as possible. It’s a bit of a sacrifice, but I would rather feel like we have a buffer rather than living on the edge.

My intention is to stash more cash, as much cash as possible, because investing in recessions have a tendency to make a great return.

Buy Low
The stock market has been in turmoil, and while it’s impossible to predict where the top or the bottom of the market is, if you are cost-averaging into a depressive market, there's only one way it can go once it hits bottom, and that's up.

Pivot
As you work to cut your budget, increase your income, and create a buffer of cash, you need to be prepared to pivot. Have a plan B or a C. Keep in mind ideas of what you would do if you couldn't sustain your current work or lifestyle. Even if you never need to use it, it’s empowering to have that option. Being prepared for it mentally allows you to move on quickly if you need to.

Stay Positive
If you fill your mind with negative media, you’ll create a fear-based perspective. This deep-seated fear can block you from being able to see opportunities and having the vigor or motivation to see what options are available to you. Stay positive and remember that this is only temporary.

I like to visualize what outcome I want to occur with a focus on how I’ll feel mentally, physically, and emotionally. This helps me tap into who I want to show up as, regardless of the market situation, and cultural or global fluctuations.

These can be trying times, but it’s what happens in real life. The best thing you can do is prepare yourself, make good choices, and identify what are the most important things in your life? What is your goal and what actions bring you closer to that goal?

Ultimately, we all want to live a fulfilled life. One that is balanced, at peace, and brings us joy. I believe you can do that through a market correction by simplifying down to what really matters most.

My Top 5-Minute Time Savers

Did you know that anything you spend five minutes on daily costs you over 30 hours of your life every single year? One of my biggest secrets to getting so much done in life is by cutting five minutes here and there wherever I can.

There is a caveat to all this. Before you look at cutting five minutes, you have to weigh whether or not the cost of setting it up and paying for the items below are equal to X amount of hours that you save. To determine this, take your net value of time and compare that to the amount of costs you pay upfront, and weigh that against how much time you're actually saving to discover when you break even.

Today, I’m sharing 15 things I do to save at least 5 minutes daily, saving me tons of time and energy throughout the year…

Automatic Gate Opener
We spend 3-4 minutes each time we leave and exit our property to open and shut the gate. This happens two to three times a day, which adds up to just over 21 hours per year. The gate cost about $1,000 and eight man-hours to install, which means we will break even in about a year. Then I’ll be able to reap the benefits of all the energy and effort that I've taken to set up this gate system.

Robotic Vacuum
This is a purchase that pays for itself quickly!  I found my Roomba on sale for $250 and it didn't take any time to set up. That is saving me at least 5-10 minutes of my time every single day, which amounts to well over 30 hours per year. This kind of investment is a no-brainer.

Dishwasher
Upgrade your dishwasher to the fancy kind that doesn't make you rinse your dishes. You can put an extremely dirty plate in there and it comes out perfectly clean. Compare this cost against hand-washing dishes, we save 30+ minutes per day.

Pool Vacuum
Just like the Roomba, this will save you time scrubbing the pool.

Automatic Feeders for Pets
This is easiest with animals that are free-fed, like chickens and cats.

Automatic Chicken Coop Door
This is another automatic opener and closer that makes life easier.

Roll Away Nesting Box
This device causes eggs to roll away, which means saving time on collecting eggs three times a day. Instead, we can go out there once a day or every other day, check on the chickens, and grab the eggs.

Second Fridge
Less grocery store runs and we bulk up on fresh produce and items that we eat regularly.

Thermal Printer
This is a relatively inexpensive purchase that saves time printing, cutting, and taping labels.

Subscribe and Save
Lots of retailers offer this option, and it’s especially great for things like supplements and pet foods that we use on a regular basis.

A Nest System
This system lets us automate the alarm system, the temperature in the house, locking and opening the doors, and communicating with the family.

Watering Plants From a Pail
This one is simple and practical. While the pail is filling up, you can take the watering canister and dunk it in and keep watering your plants while the pail continues to fill up. This saves a lot of time compared to waiting for the watering can to fill up every single round.

Easy Folding
Stop doing Marie Kondo-style folding. While it saves space and makes things look neater, it takes too much time to fold. I’ve found huge time savings on simple folding.

Food Processor
You can get these in small sizes that will help make salsas, sauces, slaws, and more in minutes, versus hours of chopping and dicing.

Organizing
You don't necessarily need more organizing spaces or boxes, but if you can put something in a place that is more accessible and functional for your space, then that can help make a space feel homey and less cluttered. Keep in mind, the point of these organizational items is about accessibility and not about storing more useless things.

I have calculated the items on this list save me 547.5 hours per year. That is 22.8 days of my life! Implementing these things has saved me a whole month of time, which is well worth the effort and cost of these items.

I hope you find some value here too, and I’d love to hear what your favorite time savers are! Comment below!

When World Drama Weighs You Down

The global community is dealing with a lot of important topics, and while it seems we’ve reached a level where we're actually having difficult conversations, we can still do better. A larger problem is starting to develop: We’re starting to become a society that has zero tolerance for differences.

Imposing our perspectives and judging other people simply isn't healthy. It is absolutely draining on our energy. The division keeps us from focusing on what's truly important.

Here are 3 ways to avoid this energy wormhole and instead work toward solutions…

#1 Stay Open
It’s important to listen and try to understand both sides. The more that you listen, the more you empathize. The more you empathize, the more you learn. The more you learn, the more you realize …you don’t know.

Aside from extremists, each side typically has very valid points and you can see how both sides are just trying to do right by what they believe. Oftentimes you can see where the conflict exists and why it can be so difficult to decide what you feel is right or wrong, and why you can have differing or opposing topics.

#2 Stay True To You
Hold firm to your values and priorities, but also understand that other people are trying to do the same. We’re only human. We have differing perspectives, experiences, goals, priorities, and beliefs.

If it is your right to live and experience those perspectives, it is anybody else's right to live and experience theirs. It’s one thing to be enabling something that is extremely wrong and harmful to other people, the planet, or to humanity, but most of these topics are simple arguments of preferences.

#3 Find Love
At the end of the day, we’re all people, and we all want love. Most people just want to be able to live life as openly and as beautifully as possible. A lot of people want what's best for society and for the future. Instead of fighting about whether or not something should be allowed or not, let's focus on the actual problems and create solutions together.

If you really truly care about these bigger problems that exist throughout, then it’s time to really focus on what the true goal is. Eliminate the rest of the noise. I challenge you to lead with love.

It's really important to talk about our differences, bring up hard topics, and think about ways to move past our differences and toward solutions to hard problems. And I think it's really important that this is done consciously with the intention of love, openness, understanding, and support, regardless if we agree or not.

Without that, there is no solution. There is only separation, which leads to energetic drain, too much stress, and compromised health of both individuals and of society as a whole. We can do a lot of great things together, and that is my hope for sharing this here. So love and light to everyone, and may you go forth and spread it out into the world.

My Fatigue Came Back! - Chronic Allergic Inflammation

I had a recent bout of Chronic Allergic Inflammation that caught me completely off guard. I was eating home-raised eggs, grated cheese, and hot sauce daily. Though my allergy panel says I have food sensitivities, specifically to gluten, eggs, and dairy, I don’t normally have a strong reaction, so I assumed this was a safe and healthy meal.

After several weeks allergy symptoms started to surface. My first instinct was to look at the environment. We were in the heart of allergy season, and I had itchy, watery eyes, and continuous sneezing.

My face and skin were itchy and then I started to wake up with my eyes crusty and goopy. It felt as if I had sandpaper under my eyelids. These symptoms were common when I was a young kid, but I've never had this severe of a reaction as an adult.

My symptoms slowly developed and worsened over time. Eventually, they got so bad that I was afraid to leave home without allergy medication and eye drops. I would start sneezing, my nose and eyes would run like a faucet, and everything became itchy. My face would flush and I’d have to run to the bathroom to wash it.

This is when my allergic inflammatory reaction became debilitating.

Not only was my body uncomfortable and agitated, but I felt exhausted and groggy. Furthermore, my vision was blurry for weeks.

In a desperate attempt to stop the reaction, I began to wash my bed every other day, increased the HEPA filters around my home, and mopped and dusted my house like crazy. Nothing helped until my husband brought up my diet. He encouraged me to cut the allergens out entirely, since I had only reduced my consumption of them.

I was desperate and willing to try anything, so I eliminated all gluten, dairy, and eggs at once. I didn’t notice much of a change at first, but by week 3, there was a slight difference. It was so subtle I questioned whether what I was doing was effective.

At this point, we were in the middle of the holiday season and surrounded by delicious meals. I usually let myself “cheat” during this time of year, but instead found myself saying “no” to everything.

Fortunately, it was worth the effort because, by week 4, I woke up without crusty eyes. My vision started to clear, and I realized that the itch and agitation, while still present, were only mild. Along with these changes, the fear of going out without allergy meds eased.

I realized that when changes are made in the body, those effects aren’t always immediately noticeable. Often changes happen at a level almost too imperceptible to discern, but as we move forward on our journey of cleansing, correcting, and restoring, we start to see a more dramatic difference over time.

It’s completely normal and completely human to feel like, “Am I doing this right?”

Just as the road to recovery is a series of subtle shifts towards normal, so the onset of chronic allergic inflammation is a slow progression of symptoms. It’s easy to lose sight of how ridiculous all the accommodations were, but eventually, I realized that my life had become uncomfortably inconvenient!

I am now more aware than ever of how my body reacts when I start to compound stressors, be they food stressors, or environmental stressors, and how they create stress and inflammation in my body, which then transforms into chronic inflammation and fatigue.

If you find yourself experiencing discomfort, you might be having a chronic allergic reaction. Maybe you notice skin discolorations, tiredness, or feelings of overwhelm. The inflammatory response expresses itself in different ways.

My big takeaway message for you is that if you haven't looked into testing your allergy panel, get it done. Ask your doctor for a skin panel and a blood test to get a clear picture of what might be aggravating you.

I have so much empathy for anybody and everybody who doesn’t feel comfortable in their bodies. We experience life through our bodies. They impact the way we think, perceive the world, our emotional intellect, and how we react.

All of this affects our whole health system and the balance of our hormones. If you are not feeling 100%, then do yourself a favor and get it checked out.

Reducing Stress & Bringing Joy Into 2023

New Year’s is a time to set goals and prepare for what 2023 may bring. There’s a lot of buzz about an upcoming and imminent recession, and this post is meant to give you hope and peace of mind as we move through it. Read on to find tips on how to prepare, get through, and move out of this challenge with minimal stress and a focus on moving toward your goals.

Identify What Adds Value
Lean into activities and things in your life that you really appreciate and start cutting the excess. This allows you to move forward without distractions that bog down your life or create unnecessary expenses.

Review + Set Budgets
Take the time to review recurring bills, set a budget, and eliminate anything you can, such as streaming services, fancy treats, or other ‘splurges.’ Remember, it’s only a temporary cut!

Stock Up Savings
Stock up on your cash and savings; a recession is like the best clearance sale you could ask for. If you know how to invest wisely when the markets are low, you can make really good money. Now is the time to get really clear and focus on the markets so you can take advantage of this opportunity.

Plan Your Business
No matter what the economy is doing, it’s still a good time to plan your business. It might not be a good time to invest in large amounts of products or in a very specific consulting endeavor, but you can use this time to create your product and make it accessible to the marketplace. Just because businesses and people are struggling doesn't mean the world comes to a complete halt. The economy is still running, so you want to make sure that you’re still out there. This gets you ahead when things stabilize, and you might even find a niche that does exceptionally well in the recession!

Get Creative With Your Resources
It's time to get creative about what you do with your time, money, and energy. Try finding or rediscovering sources of entertainment that cost little to no extra expense. Things like playing family games, rock painting, hiking, going to local parks, or exploring scenic places require very little expense. Instead of going out to eat, pick something from a recipe book and take the time to make it together. Bonus: Leaning into these kinds of activities increases your level of quality time.

Revamp Your Health + Lifestyle
This is also a great time to revamp your lifestyle to make sure that you are progressing toward your goals. Even in a recession, you can and should have goals, so set a plan for yourself to move toward leveling up your energy and optimizing your life so that you can live your everyday vacation on your terms. Focusing on small, incremental wins is the best way to get the fastest results.

Nothing is super grand or super life-changing when you're trying to manage your energy or recover from fatigue. What it really takes is small, continuous wins on a daily basis. It's those incremental steps that will move you toward your goals, regardless of what the economy is doing. And, as always: Keep your head up. Stay positive and visualize a positive future. Keep your mind focused on your vision because that vision will program your mind to take action toward it. Happy New Year!

You Have Adrenal Fatigue... Now What?

If you’re fatigued, you may not know where to start your healing journey. The #1 thing you can do is this: Get tested! If you don’t know what's causing your fatigue, then you don't know how to heal. When your body is out of balance, many similar symptoms will have different causes. 

Test #1 - Hormone Panel
The first recommended test is a hormone panel. This is beyond the general blood test from a general practitioner. See a hormone therapist or endocrinologist to get this hormone panel; this is important because a full hormone panel will give you extensive detail of what's happening within your system. 

Test #2 Full Allergy Panel
The second recommended test is a full allergy panel, which tests for over 100 allergens, both food and environmental. This makes a huge difference because it helps you identify triggers that cause mental fog and fatigue. Your body might be fighting something every second of the day, and if so, no wonder you’re so exhausted! Becoming aware of your sensitivities gives you a lot more control in getting to that next level of clarity and energy. 

Test #3 GI Mapping
The next recommended test is GI mapping/gut mapping. The GI Map was designed to detect microbes that may be disturbing normal microbial balance or contributing to illness as well as indicators of digestion, absorption, inflammation, and immune function. They say in the health world, that your gut is your health. What your immune system does is directly related to the health of your gut, this is why GI mapping is so important. 

Test #4 Heavy Metals Test
When you have a high level of heavy metals in your body, you're going to feel that toxicity. You’ll feel fatigued, and your body won’t function normally. These tests are non-invasive and something that you should do regularly. 

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Regardless of whether you have chronic or adrenal fatigue or something else, here are a couple of key things to help promote more energy, reduce stress, and feel better.

Tip #1 Take Inventory
Taking the time to think about your lifestyle balance will pave the way for healing and recovery. Take inventory of your life. Try using the priority matrix, which is a four-quadrant chart that helps you decide on priorities. This same matrix assists you with taking action. This affects your energy and your physical well-being positively by helping you unload as much stress as possible, which helps you restore your energy.

Tip #2 Adopt a D.R.E.S.S. Lifestyle
Another key is to implement a lifestyle that helps support healing and restoration. Enter, the D.R.E.S.S. lifestyle, outlined below. 

·       D = diet. A supportive, nutritious diet reduces the amount of stress and improves the amount of optimization that your physical body can have. 

·       R = rest. This is different than sleep. Resting is your state of mind in a conscious place when you can relax, get present, be mindful, and tap into restoration mode.

·       E = exercise. If you’re chronically fatigued, you might not be able to exercise without crashing and burning. This is completely normal, but what this E means is to just get up and move your body. It could be sitting on your yoga mat and breathing deeply or walking five minutes outside and sitting down, getting some fresh air. The importance lies in moving your body, continuing to show up, and eventually working into higher levels of exercise.

·       S = sleep. Quality sleep is imperative, but it’s often neglected. You need to get the proper amount AND quality sleep. 

·       S = stress management. How do you manage your stress? How do you recover from it? Keeping these five things in mind (diet, rest, exercise, sleep, and stress management) will help create a supportive lifestyle to recover and heal in the most efficient way possible.

Tip #3 Always Be Curious
This is a lifelong journey and process. While you may be exercising, you may not be improving your knowledge of yourself and deepening your understanding of what it takes to create total health. Take 15-20 minutes a week to learn something new about your health and take action for yourself.

Start with one step at a time and don't overwhelm yourself. Every incremental step to improve your general health and overall well-being will lead you to more energy.  This will keep you moving forward. Identify the things that are actually making a difference and double down on those!

The Secrets to Limitless Energy with Ellie Teng

From staying in top physical and mental condition, to running a successful business, the underlying factor for doing it all is based on the state of your health. Ellie Teng, founder of Clever Yoga, tackles everything in life with zest and excitement, and today she’s sharing how she juggles everything that she loves to do while keeping optimal health and balance.

Staying healthy and building healthy habits will look different to everyone; the key is to listen to your body, treat it well, and find what works best for you. Ellie is well-versed in building limitless energy through minimalism, moderation, stress management, and self-care practices. Take some of these tips with you as you chase your next big dream!

Show Notes:
1:45 Hacking Amazing Energy
4:10 Succeeding in Business, Fitness + Social Relationships
7:10 Minimalism Mindset
10:27 Staying Open to Everything
12:10 Sleep, Nutrition, and Understanding Your Body
20:27 Business as a Tool for Living Better
27:00 Finding Life on YOUR Terms
29:40 Thriving in Challenges + Managing Expectations
31:20 Creating + Spreading Joy

Important Links:
Clever Yoga - https://cleveryoga.com/
https://www.amazon.com/stores/page/3C8C8C9C-476D-489E-AB48-E450FF37C1EE

3 Key Takeaways:

• With a willingness to do things and work to make things happen, you can live without limitations. Make a decision, and just go for it; never give up.

• Life and business will always have challenges. Everyone will make mistakes, but you have to learn from them and move on. The most important thing is to be present and live the life you have right now.

• When you have your health down, listen to your body, and know what your priorities are, you can really enjoy life. And enjoying life enables you to spread joy to others.

Things I No Longer Buy to Save Money & Time

Less is more… and when I buy less of these things, I find myself with more money and time. Here are the top 20 items I no longer buy:

1. Snack Foods 
   These lack nutrition and bulk up the grocery bill.

2. Specialty Superfoods
   They don’t provide much of a nutritious boost, especially if your diet is balanced fruits and vegetables and keeping up with supplements.   

3. Upgrades at Restaurants
   Eating out occasionally is fine, but when Chipotle wants to charge $3 for extra guacamole, thanks, but no thanks! I also skip appetizers, drinks, and sauces to save a bundle.

4. Food Delivery
   Grocery stores offer affordable, pre-made foods that taste homemade and have fresh ingredients.

5. I Buy in Bulk as much as possible
   Buying things like grains, protein powder, or beans in small packages, the costs add up. Instead, I look for items I know I’ll use, buy them in bulk, and save money exponentially.

6. Things on Sale
   This is an easy mistake to make because it seems like saving money. If the clearance sign is flashing but this is not something on the “needs” list, I skip it.

7. Spice Jars
   Spice jars can cost anywhere from $3-$10 each. Instead, I buy bulk spices. If I only need a specific spice, I only buy enough for that recipe. I save a lot of money by only buying what you need.

8. Insurance & Extended Warranties
   I don't buy these things unless the item itself is too costly to replace. If the insurance costs more than 30% of the price of the item, then it's probably not worth it.

9. Dry Clean Only Clothing
   I save time and money by avoiding items that need special cleaning. I skip the hassle of going to the dry cleaners or dealing with dry cleaning bags at home.

10. Free Movies & TV Shows
    If it's not free or for rent (and no, not those $19.99 rents that you see on Disney when a movie first comes out), don't buy it. One great way to save money in this category is Amazon Prime. When I opt for delayed shipping speeds, they give digital credits, which I can put toward digital purchases like kindle books, movies or TV rentals.

11. Save on Hair & Nails
    I do my nails at home and have even become the family hair cutter! If you’re not ready to take that step, just find a low-cost option for quick trims rather than spending a bundle on expensive hairdos.

12. Don’t Buy New Clothes
    I shop on sites like Poshmark or Mercari before buying something new. Thrifting is fun, inexpensive, and you find some awesome deals.

13. Say Goodbye to Plastic Wrap
    I use glass containers with lids or cloths dipped in beeswax for items that need to be wrapped.

14. Say Goodbye to Paper Products
    There’s nothing wrong with keeping paper towels for occasional messes and toilet paper for guests, but I find that most cleaning towels, napkins, and even toilet paper can be replaced with towels and reusables.

15. Find Sustainable Feminine Hygiene Products
    I swapped out bulky pads and tampons and instead invested in a few good pairs of menstrual underwear and a menstrual cup. Another great option are small tampons without an applicator, which are great for swimming or exercising.

16. Pass on Gift Wrapping
    I call “pass” on the fancy wrapping paper and instead, save things like brown paper bags or packing paper to wrap around a gift. The crinkles give a rustic, homemade look, and you can even add a splash of paint and tie a bow to it so it looks unique and cute.

17. Skip Fashion Jewelry
    Choosing timeless, high-quality pieces that are perfect for everyday use rather than pieces to match specific outfits saves me tons of money and decision fatigue.

18. Avoid Individualized Bottled Drinks
    I avoid bottled water and drinks and instead, purchase these things in bulk or make them at home.

19. DIY Cleaning Products
    I make most of our home cleaning products with vinegar or alcohol, water, and essential oils. I have an awesome video of the 5 Ingredients I use for Complete House Cleaners Recipes. Check it out!

20. DIY Greeting Cards
    Instead of purchasing new birthday cards, I use nice stationery and handwrite personalized notes. For special occasions, I often create a beautiful design online in Canva and simply text the card. This saves time, money, and energy – and it's sustainable.

Those are the top 20 things I no longer buy to shrink my budget and gain more time. How many are you currently doing? Let the community know.

A Minimalist’s Guide to Gift Giving

If the holiday season has snuck up on you this year and you need some last-minute gift ideas, read on for some tips and tricks for showing everyone on your list how much you care!

Bulk Items

One of the best things you can do is narrow down one or two items that you feel add tons of value and joy, and give that same item to multiple people. This can be your favorite book, favorite treats, or even a favorite tool.

Make A Gift

This can be something simple and easy, whether it’s your favorite treats, bath salts, candles, thoughtful artwork, or a poem. This is a great way to get some mindful space, and then create something unique and special.

Experiences

People generally love giving and receiving a gift of an experience. Shopping online is an efficient way to give and get experience gifts, whether it’s dinner, gift cards, or tickets to events.

Plants

So this is one of my favorites – any type of plant is a really good idea, especially if they last longer than a week. Plants are a great addition to a home; they uplift the room and clean the air.  You might choose a decorative plant, flowers, a small herbal plant, or even a fruit-bearing plant if people have space for it. This is a really special thing to share.

Self-Care Services

This is another simple online gift – you might purchase a small kit with bath salts, candles, and essential oils, or things like Edible Arrangement or Harry and David.

Quality Time

Nothing beats your presence and attention. If you have that time and don't want to go out shopping for a gift, one of the best things you can do is give somebody a legitimate phone call. Ask them for tea or coffee or to dinner and then take the time to sit down and truly listen.

Most of the time people have their own agendas. They want to share what's going on in their life, what’s exciting to them, and what interests them. Full attention and presence are a rarity these days, and it's really one of the most cherished gifts in the world. It's a great practice and a great reminder that gift-giving doesn't necessarily have to come down to giving a material item.

Gift-giving doesn’t have to involve leaning into consumerism and spending money on things that clutter our homes. We can really focus on the things that we value the most, lean into those things, and then pay those things forward. This creates better experiences and better relationships for yourself, for the people in your life, and for the rest of the world.

Five Ways to Relax and Re-Energize

Many people go through life feeling burnt out and fatigued. We want to use our psychology and biology to create systems so that we can have success.  Let’s dig into how you can create action items to help you gain the benefits of relaxing.

RELAXATION VS. RESTING
Relaxation is an activation of the parasympathetic nervous system, which is the antithesis to the sympathetic nervous system or your body’s stress response. Relaxing happens when you are conscious and awake. Gardening, mindful art, or even sitting outside and getting fresh air can help you tap into relaxation.

Many people are in a constant state of stress response without realizing it. It could be triggered by sitting in traffic, thinking about your to-do list, or even scrolling social media. This puts our body and mind in a state of perpetual stress, which keeps you from being able to recharge and calm down.

Resting, on the other hand, is when your mind and body are in a state of ease. When your body is resting and fully supported, and your mind is not activated, you are in a state of resting and recharging your physical body.

It’s not uncommon to be stuck in a permanent or semi-permanent state of fight or flight, which means that the actions you're taking throughout the day are triggering your stress response. This makes it difficult to calm down, which is what your body and mind need most.

When planning your day, determine which activities create a stress response and which promote a state of relaxation.

THE TOP 5 WAYS I RELAX & RE-ENERGIZE
Yoga
Yoga gets you out of your mind and into your body. By creating a synchronicity of breath, mind and body, your whole being enters a relaxing state. Oftentimes, if you’re consistently in a fight or flight state of mind,  power yoga is a great way to get the tension out and end feeling fully supported, with a clear mind.

Massage
Massage can create an anchored state of relaxation. Whether you choose to get a massage or practice self-massage, you can release tension held in your muscles and set the stage for deep rest and relaxation.

Journaling
Start by outlining what you’re grateful for or envision things you want in your life.  Try to enter a state of creating and envisioning on paper, which can feel joyous and exciting! You can support this activity by listening to classical music or nature sounds.

Quiet Time
We live busy lives with a lot going on, and it’s hard to access real silence. You can create your own quiet space by using headphones with noise cancellation. This way, take the quiet with you as you clean, meditate, take a walk, or garden. Do whatever feels good to you.

You Time
This is time when you can flow without judgment and without a specific goal. This time will really depend on what makes you feel best. The important thing is to create a space just for you when you have absolutely no other responsibilities.

The big key is to identify what activities send you into a stress response and how you can balance that in what you choose to do to relax.  Good morning and evening routines can help set you up for success and maintain a stress-free state of mind throughout your day.