The juggle and struggle as a busy career mum is real!

Would you like to feel happier, calmer and more fulfilled instead of being overwhelmed with all the things you “should be doing”?

Would you like to break out of that vicious circle that you feel you’ve been in for quite some time now – the one where you start something healthy and then quit in a few days or weeks? 

I get it because I’ve been in those shoes. But, I’ve been wearing a different and more comfortable pair for many years now. “But how? Where did I start?”

The secret lies in the habits I’ve established in my life. My healthy habits are exactly what has helped me stay grounded as a working mum. Because we all know the reality is that life is going to throw you curveballs, your kid’s going to get sick, or you’ll have a deadline at work or whatever it is. And actually, your habits are what is going to keep you afloat in these crazy times (aka normal everyday mum life).

So, what is a habit?

It’s a routine or practice performed regularly as an automatic response to a specific situation.

If you are thinking that habits are part of who you are and they are too difficult to change, especially now that you’re a grown woman, let me assure you that it’s not at all as scary as it may seem. Bear with me a bit more and I’ll make you a believer.

Let’s start with the premise that we always assume the best intentions with people. We all do this – it can’t be denied. So, why don’t we do that for ourselves?

And now we come to that ‘A-ha!’ moment.

It’s your mindset that needs to change. Don’t you agree?

When was the last time you put yourself first, and not because you were selfish (don’t let the mum guilt kick in here), but just because you knew that it was going to make you a happier version of yourself? When was the last time you were kind to yourself?

Now that I got your attention, we can begin your transformation journey. I talk more about this in Episode 1 of my Thriving Woman Project podcast.

The second step is working out what your current habits are, but also the absolute fundamentals, almost those values that are going to keep you on the well-being path, and keep you as the healthiest version of you.

Remember that we are all different which means that we have different core values and different interests. This, in turn, means that we will all need to establish what specific healthy habits we want to introduce in our lives to be that person we have always wanted to become.

And, PLEASE don’t get sidetracked by all the social media standards that are being pushed on us every single day. Why? Well, because it’s what other people are choosing to show you in terms of the best bits of themselves. I’d say think about what you want to embody as a mum, not what you think you need to.

Here’s a visualisation exercise that will help you understand what will do it for you to be healthy and thriving.

• Sit in a quiet place and take those few seconds (while you are hiding from your kids) and think about where you see yourself in the future, maybe three years, maybe even a year from now.
• Think about how the best version of you is showing up. And that’s not the perfect version of you before you jump to that. Is it someone who shows up for her family, her friends, her community? Is it someone who prioritises her well-being and self-care, who looks after her mindset, who nourishes her body with good food, who moves her body, etc.? Or maybe it might be something completely different for you.
• When you’ve got that picture in your mind, we’re then going to work on the step you are going to take to move you to that next best version of you.

A bit of advice here to keep you on the road to healthy habits success:

The thing with habits is that people want to do all the healthy habits. When they first start, they want to do all the exercise, healthy eating, getting eight hours of sleep a night and much more. But then, when they fail on one of those things because they’ve tried to boil the ocean, they feel like a failure.

What I advocate for is picking two to three healthy habits. They may be two bigger things or three little things, but generally, it’s two to three things that you want to improve.

For example, if you’re going to improve your sleep pattern, you might decide on setting a particular time to start your bedtime routine, which may mean ditching all devices or putting on your blue light glasses to allow your body to release melatonin (the sleep trigger). It might be reading a feel-good book, or whatever else does the trick.

That one little thing can be considered a habit that moves you closer to the goal of having better sleep quality.

‘Done is better than perfect’ is my go-to self-encouragement mantra. Do make it your own, too and reap the benefits of becoming a healthier and more content YOU every day, one small step at a time.

You can read more about building habits in the book Atomic Habits by James Clear. It’s so worthy of reading – such an eye-opener!

So what 2-3 small healthy habits are you going to start with? 

My top tip is to make yourself accountable by tracking them.

You can do this by downloading my Habits of Health Guide which also includes a visual habits tracker.

I love to print this off and put it in a prominent place (like my fridge or bathroom mirror), so it reminds me daily of what my intentions and goals are.  Every day that I complete that action step/habit, I tick it off.  This instantly builds self-esteem and creates positive reinforcement for me of completing it, which makes me want to keep doing it over and over until it becomes an automatic habit.  Then I can focus on another one and do the same until that becomes a habit.

Remember – you don’t need a “new you”, you just need 2-3 healthier habits to become that next-level version of you. Because the only person you’re in competition with is the person you were yesterday.