Setting Up Your Ideal Morning Routine with Catherine Beard
Feeling overwhelmed with creating a morning routine that you love and can stick to? Catherine Beard of The Blissful Mind joins me as we talk about how to set up your ideal morning routine. Catherine shares her best tips for planning out your day, how to incorporate balance, and some of the tools she uses to plan it all out.
How to Create a Morning Routine That Works for You: Insights from Catherine Beard of The Blissful Mind
Introduction: In this episode of The Mindful Productivity Podcast, I’m excited to have Catherine Beard join me. Catherine is the creator of The Blissful Mind and a life coach who shares her expertise in mindfulness and self-care with her vast audience. Today, we dive into how to build a morning routine that truly serves you, setting the stage for a focused and productive day. If you’re ready to transform your mornings, this post is packed with actionable insights to help you start your day with intention.
The Benefits and Struggles of Morning Routines
Why We Struggle with Morning Routines
Morning routines aren’t one-size-fits-all, and many of us wrestle with establishing one that feels right and sticks. Catherine shares her journey, admitting she initially thought she was “terrible at sticking to routines.” She loved planning them but often found herself falling off track. “A routine doesn’t have to be boring. You can switch it up, and it can still be a routine,” she says.
Finding Flexibility in Routine
The freedom to personalize a routine is empowering, and Catherine emphasizes that routines shouldn’t feel rigid. “A lot of people think routine is boring or too repetitive, but you can switch up a routine daily or weekly to keep it exciting,” she adds. This flexibility allows us to evolve routines over time, adapting them to our needs.
Building a Morning Routine: The Power Hour Approach
Mind-Body-Soul Routine
One of Catherine’s most popular ideas is her “Power Hour,” where the first hour of your day focuses on mind, body, and soul. This concept breaks down as follows:
Mind: Start with something that brings mental clarity. This might include meditation, journaling, or a mental check-in to set intentions for the day.
Body: Engage in a short exercise, like yoga, stretching, or even a brisk walk, to boost energy levels.
Soul: Connect with something that brings joy or peace, like listening to music, reading, or spending time on a creative hobby.
“The great thing is, you can switch up each activity based on what feels right that day. It doesn’t have to look the same every morning,” says Catherine. She’s found this simple structure offers motivation and a sense of accomplishment.
How Morning Routines Enhance Productivity and Wellbeing
Having a morning structure doesn’t just help us feel grounded; it also boosts productivity. Catherine explains, “Having a structure like this actually motivates me to get up and look forward to my mornings.” When our morning practices align with our personal goals and desires, we’re more likely to feel energized and positive as the day unfolds.
Tips for Sticking to a Morning Routine
Avoid the Snooze Button
Many people struggle with staying consistent because they’re tempted to hit snooze. To overcome this habit, Catherine suggests creating a routine you’re genuinely excited about. “The more you look forward to the activities, the easier it becomes to get up,” she says. She personally sets her alarm for 6:45, a time she finds “productive yet realistic.”
The Role of Habit Tracking
Tracking progress is a powerful motivator. Catherine explains how using a habit tracker can help encourage consistency. “I was using the Calm app to meditate and got up to 70 days in a row,” she shares. Many apps help you track streaks, reminding you of the progress you’ve made and motivating you to keep going.
Simplify Your Routine
Rather than overloading your mornings, start with one or two essential activities. Catherine’s advice? “Focus on one small habit that would make your morning simpler.” For example, pre-making breakfast or laying out clothes the night before can ease you into the day without feeling rushed.
Setting Boundaries When You Work From Home
Working from home offers flexibility, but it can also make sticking to a routine harder. Without a structured work environment, it’s tempting to sleep in or start the day without a clear direction. Catherine recommends setting boundaries and establishing a schedule to combat this. “I start by planning my day the night before and blocking off time for each priority task,” she says.
Key Mindset Shifts for Morning Routine Success
Your Routine Can Be Unique: There’s no need to copy someone else’s approach. Find what resonates with you and adapt it to your needs.
Small Steps Lead to Big Changes: Consistency is key, and you don’t need an elaborate routine to make a positive impact. “Just start with one small change, and gradually build on that,” Catherine advises.
Embrace Flexibility: Morning routines aren’t meant to be rigid. Adapt them based on your needs or energy levels on any given day.
Catherine’s Final Advice for Morning Routine Beginners
For those feeling overwhelmed, Catherine offers simple guidance: “Just start with one way to make your mornings easier. Maybe that’s getting up a bit earlier or preparing your breakfast ahead of time.” Avoid trying to mimic the routines of others and instead focus on what will genuinely serve you.
Follow Catherine Beard and The Blissful Mind
You can explore more of Catherine’s insights on her blog, TheBlissfulMind.com, where she shares additional resources and tips on mindfulness and personal growth. Follow her on Instagram @theblissfulmind for daily inspiration.
In Closing
A fulfilling morning routine doesn’t have to be complicated. By focusing on core activities for the mind, body, and soul, you can create a meaningful start to your day. Take it one step at a time, adjust as needed, and watch as the benefits unfold.
Mentioned Links & Resources:
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Sarah Steckler
You're listening to episode 18 of The Mindful Productivity Podcast. And I'm so pumped about this episode.
I have an amazing guest joining us today.
And chances are, if you've ever been on Pinterest and you've Googled anything about mindfulness or self care, you've probably been to the Blissfulmind. Com today. Katherine Beard joins us today. She is a life coach, blogger and the creator of The Blissful Mind, an online guide to helping you find calm in your daily life. And we're talking all about morning routines and setting up a morning routine that really feels ideal to you. I love this interview with Katherine. I can't wait for you to listen. So if you're interested in improving or even starting a morning routine, keep on listening.
Sarah Steckler
Welcome to the Mindful Productivity Podcast. I'm your host, Sarah Steckler, and this is the place to be to live a more mindful and productive life. If you're ready to turn daily chaos into calm and start your days with intention, then get ready to join me. As we dive deep into mindful living and personal productivity, it's time to connect with your true self so you can live the life you want to live. And it all starts now.
Sarah Steckler
Katherine, I'm so excited to have you on the podcast today. For all of you listening, Catherine actually was a coach that I used in the beginning of the year to help me with my morning routine. So I'm really excited to have her on here to share her expertise. Catherine, thanks so much for being here.
Catherine Beard
Thank you so much for having me. I'm really excited to talk with you today.
Sarah Steckler
Yeah, it's going to be fun before we jump in. I have several questions and stuff, but I just kind of wanted to talk about a little bit about I think the struggles that we have with morning routines. I know for me it's constantly changing throughout my life, and I think a lot of people struggle with this, and I'd love to hear too kind of like what your struggle has been with morning routines in the past and kind of what got you started on thinking about ways to improve that.
Catherine Beard
Yeah, well, I guess for me, I've always been someone who's loved routine, but I've also had this time in my life where I thought that I'm really bad at sticking to routines. I had this mindset around. It like, oh, I'm just terrible at sticking to a routine. I love the idea of creating them and looking for inspiration to see what other people do. But when I actually came to trying to do one, I had this mindset like I couldn't stick to it. And I think that hold me back from actually trying it out and sticking to it.
Catherine Beard
And a lot of people and myself included kind of have this sense that a routine is boring or that you're doing the same thing every day and that can lead to just monotony. And then it's not serving you anymore. So I think one struggle is just recognizing the routine doesn't have to be boring. You can switch up a routine, and it can still be a routine. But just getting over the initial hurdle of telling yourself you're bad at sticking to things and being like, well, there are plenty of other things I've stuck to in my life.
Catherine Beard
So why wouldn't I be able to do this and just getting over that little mindset? Whatever you're holding yourself back with.
Sarah Steckler
Yes, that really resonates with me and makes a lot of sense. And I think two part of the reason why, for such a long time or, like, different periods of my life have been like, no, I don't want a morning routine is because I thought it would box me in where I didn't think that I could be flexible with it, like, Well, it's going to be this regimented thing. We're like, minute by minute you're going to have this routine. And I think sometimes we forget that it can be flexible and it doesn't have to be this, like, regimented thing.
Sarah Steckler
But I know that you've tried a bunch of different routines, and I love your blog and how you're always experimenting with things and saying, like, oh, this month I'm going to try this out. Do you remember, like, what may be one of the first kind of, like, morning routine things was that you tried out. Yeah.
Catherine Beard
And I guess it goes back a long, long time ago. Like, even when I was in College, I felt like I had a pretty solid morning routine. And that's because I had the structure of I had a specific class at a specific time. So I had to get things done. And back then it was like I would get up, I would throw on my gym clothes, I'd eat breakfast, and then I'd go to my first class. And then I think I had two classes in a row, like, 08:00 a.m..
Catherine Beard
09:00 A.m.. And then after that, I'd go to the gym. And that, in a sense, was like my morning routine. And it was easy for me to stick to because I had the two classes I had to go to them. There's not really a way around that. So I had to kind of stick to it. But then once I got out into the real world and I was working a nine to five job, I found that it was such a struggle, even though I didn't have to even get up as early as I did when I was in College.
Catherine Beard
Like, just finding the motivation to get up in the morning was really tough. And part of it was just because I wasn't excited about going to work in the morning. So something that I came up with, and it's probably one of the things that people have seen on my blog and know me for is this idea of, like, a power hour in the morning. And I won't say that I do an hour long thing in the morning anymore. But I think the structure of it is what got me excited in the morning.
Catherine Beard
So basically doing something in the morning for your mind, something for your body and something for your soul. And I love that kind of structure because it allows you to switch up the things that you do in the morning. Like, if you decide just to kind of expand on that a little bit like your mind, if you're doing something, it could be like meditation or anything that gets you into just a better state of mind in the morning, because often when we wake up, we feel overwhelmed by our to do list immediately.
Catherine Beard
So I like to do something that will kind of center me, get me ready. And then in terms of taking care of your body, I would do, like, yoga or Pilates, go for a walk or something like that. And then for the soul, it's all about something like a hobby or a passion or something that really lights you up. And it doesn't really relate to your work necessarily. But it's something like, I don't know, journaling or drawing something creative or even just like, talking to a friend or something like that.
Catherine Beard
And that's kind of the structure that I have followed for a long time now. And the great thing is that you can switch it up every single morning if you want to. But you still have that kind of three categories of things to structure your morning by.
Sarah Steckler
Yeah. And I love that. And I love that you put it into an hour because I think sometimes it's like, for me, I find it helpful to be like, okay, well, if I'm going to start decluttering a room to actually give myself a time limit, like, be like, okay, just give yourself 15 minutes and go. So having an hour of being able to break that up into three main categories, I feel like, for whatever reason, that's just so much more doable because there's, like, an end amount of time.
Sarah Steckler
And I don't feel like it's like this endless thing. So I really love that. And I think too. I remember one of the first times when I started my nine to five in my early 20s. I was talking to a friend and she was like, oh, yeah. I got up early this morning and I was like, vacuuming and stuff. And I was like, Wait, what you were doing stuff like, you were doing things before work to me because in my head, it's like it was just always this mad dash out the door.
Sarah Steckler
I was always running late. My hair was half dried, and I was like.
Catherine Beard
This woman is like.
Sarah Steckler
Getting up and vacuuming up level. That's crazy. So I love the idea of having these three things. And I think too, it's realizing what those give you so when you started doing the mind, body, soul things like, how did that impact your day throughout the day? Yeah.
Catherine Beard
Well, I think the first thing was that it just got me excited to get out of bed and not snooze my alarm so much if I had something that I could look forward to, so that's part of it is just and I think that's why so many of us do snooze our alarms. Either we are not excited about getting up and what we have to do, or we just are, like, completely unclear about what we need to do for the day. But once I started doing that, I just felt like I was so much more productive.
Catherine Beard
Like, once you do things in the morning and you kind of set yourself up for the day, you already feel productive. And for me, too, working out in the morning is huge. I really struggle to do it in the evening because I think throughout the day then you can have so many excuses as to why you shouldn't do it when you get home from work and then you just talk yourself out of it. So I really try to do it in the morning. And then that in turn, just gives me more energy throughout the day and helps me to focus more and be more productive.
Catherine Beard
And if I'm able to do something in the morning, that for my soul, something that kind of fuels me up. And sometimes it's just listening to inspirational podcasts or YouTube videos. I just feel like I am way more prepared and inspired to take on the day.
Sarah Steckler
Yeah. And I think it's a huge mindset shift, too, because I have often felt like, oh, well, I don't really get to have that kind of time for myself. Like, the workouts like I've done in the past in the morning. But for the past. I remember when I first started getting into the adult world. It was like, oh, well, I'll do stuff like I'll meditate or I'll do that stuff like, that stuff is for the evening or that stuff is for the weekend. And so I think putting it at the front of your day changes everything because then you're doing that self care and you're nourishing yourself first.
Sarah Steckler
And I know recently I started I've been going on, like, really early morning walks with one of my good friends in the morning. And sometimes it's hard to get out of bed. But we go out in nature. And I'm like, wow, like, I was telling her the other day. It's not just about the exercise. It's about getting out in the morning and not being on my phone and being in nature completely changes my whole day. And I was actually driving back home the other night and I was going, Wait a minute.
Sarah Steckler
That walk was this morning. It feels like three days ago, and it's like, I think you're actually giving yourself a gift of an expansion of time when you are doing stuff right away first thing in the morning.
Catherine Beard
Yeah. And it's so funny that you said that because actually something that I've done in the past, like, two weeks since it's been getting a little bit warmer in Seattle has been morning walks. And instead of necessarily doing yoga, applies, which I usually do at home, like actually going outside and I'll make a cup of tea and I'll put it in my tumbler to go just so that I can sit on something while I'm walking around the block. And I also have been making a note to not take my headphones with me, because when I go for walks, I either like to listen to music or listen to podcasts.
Catherine Beard
And sometimes I feel like when I listen to podcasts, I'm like filling my brain too much information, and I just don't want to overwhelm myself in the morning. So I've been listening to the birds, whatever is going on, it's just been like a really nice start to the morning.
Sarah Steckler
I really love that. I think it's tough. One thing I find is because I'm the same way. I love listening to podcasts when I walk, but sometimes I've actually found myself like, this is so silly. But I'll be listening to a podcast like, oh, my gosh, I don't want to forget that. And then I'm like, literally stopping opening up Evernote on my phone, taking notes that I'm like, no, this is defeating the whole purpose. I love really being intentional about that, too, that's you yeah. And one thing that you've mentioned that I think it's almost easier sometimes when we have a lot going on.
Sarah Steckler
Like, I know there's this little bit by Jim Gaffigan, and he talks about how like, if you're super busy, you'll get more done. He's like, but if it's a random Sunday and all you have to do is go to the ATM, you'll be like, I want to put on pants. It's just really hard to do it. And so I think when we're in school or College or when we have a nine to five and we have to be somewhere at a specific time, it almost gives us like, okay, here's these other time pockets.
Sarah Steckler
So I know I have to do this here and there. But I think where the struggle comes in is for people that work from home or have a more flexible schedule. Or maybe they're stay at home parents. And I know that that's been a transition for you as well. So what kind of tips or advice do you have for people that are trying to structure a routine in the morning? They don't have to necessarily be anywhere at a specific time.
Catherine Beard
Yeah. And I know that we've talked about this before because I never anticipated that it would be a struggle for me because I've always hated the idea of the nine to five and having to work those specific hours. But in reality, now I find myself working the same hours. But something I've been struggling with this lately, too, is like I wouldn't call myself a morning person. I don't necessarily wake up early, and I'm usually cranky in the morning, and that's something I think people have this misconception that you have a morning routine.
Catherine Beard
You have to be a morning person, but you don't. But I found that I will in the morning, I'll set myself an alarm, and then I will just turn it off and go back to bed. And whenever I do that, I feel so groggy afterwards. And I'm always like, Why did I do this to myself? Just because I can. Why am I doing this? And then I feel flustered the whole rest of the day because I'm like starting work later than I really wanted to. So actually, just this week, I have been setting my alarm for 645, going for a morning walk, assuming it's not raining.
Catherine Beard
Otherwise, I'll just kind of do my work out at home. And I don't really know what shifted within me. But I think telling myself that I have to get up and I can't snooze that alarm has just made it so that I get up earlier. And I don't know what it is about the time of 645. But for some reason it sounds better to me than seven.
Sarah Steckler
I'm getting up at six, right?
Catherine Beard
Yeah.
Sarah Steckler
Right.
Catherine Beard
It makes me feel more productive.
Sarah Steckler
I don't know.
Catherine Beard
Yeah. Definitely been something I've been struggling with, and I think you do have to set that structure for yourself. And something I've been doing, too, is planning my days the night before. So literally, like going into Google calendar and mapping out what time I'm going to be working on different things. And so right now I have it in there as my morning routine is going to happen from, like, seven to eight. Then I'm going to get ready, and then I'm going to get started working at, like, nine ish.
Catherine Beard
So I think you have to just set those boundaries for yourself and try to start working at a certain time and work yourself backwards in terms of what time you're going to have to wake up in order to get that stuff done, because it is so tempting to just do whatever you want when you have that flexibility in your schedule. But I know from experience that if you're waking up late or you just feel like your whole day is kind of not going the way that you wanted it to and then you feel flustered.
Catherine Beard
Basically.
Sarah Steckler
Yeah. I totally relate to that because I know in the beginning it's kind of like when you're little and you're like, Well, I don't understand why adults just don't have, like, a freezer full of ice cream all the time if they can, why aren't they doing it? And I remember when I started working for myself, I definitely was, like, well, if I want to sleep in, I'm going to. But I quickly realized I quickly had the same kind of experience. I actually feel way better when I have that structure in the morning, and it really just propels you and sets you up for the rest of the day.
Sarah Steckler
And then it's like if something happens, like, you've already got your workout in or you've already got this, and I know for me it's just really tempting when I have a lot going on to be like, oh, I don't need to do my walk or I don't need to do this. I don't even need a shower. I'll just roll over to my Mac and just start working with coffee in hand. And even though that feels like maybe I'll get more done that way, it never ends up being that way.
Sarah Steckler
It's amazing how when you take time for yourself, it just expands everything. It just improves everything.
Yeah. 100%.
Sarah Steckler
So I love this idea of mind, body, soul. And one thing I was thinking about, as you were saying, that is like, even just I think you even have, like, a printout or something for that. I can't remember if that's what we'll have to link to that in the show notes. But I love to the way you have that structure where it's kind of just like thinking of different ideas and brainstorming. And I think that's where the flexibility comes in, because you don't necessarily have to meditate every morning or go on a walk every morning.
Sarah Steckler
You can be having different things. And I know for me it's like, sometimes I'm like, I don't feel like running. I don't feel like walking, but yoga. Okay. I Canva do that. Or maybe I don't want a Journal. Or maybe I want to, like, bright lists instead. So I like that idea of just having maybe a bucket list or just a list of different ideas to kind of get you going.
Catherine Beard
Yeah. And as somebody who loves routine but also loves flexibility, which can be really hard, I feel like people think they're either type A or type B. But what if you're kind of, like, in between? Then I think this is kind of, like, the perfect way to do it so that you can have a structure, but you can switch it up and not get bored of it.
Sarah Steckler
Yeah. I love that. And I don't know if you've read The Miracle Morning or if you've tried. I think it's like sabers, like, scribing, affirmations, visualization all that. I've tried that a little bit, and I found that it can be helpful. But one thing I found was that sometimes it was like, too much like it was like, oh, I have, like, five or six different things. So I kind of like the idea that you broke it down into just like, three main things, like three focused things that you need to do in the morning.
Catherine Beard
Yeah. I've actually never read the book, and part of it is because I already know about the savers. I've watched plenty of people talk about what the book is about, but I haven't read it because I feel like I already. I don't know. Maybe I should just read it anyways, but like you said, I always feel like if you have to do what is that? Five or six things in the morning. It seems like a lot to me. And if you miss one step, I don't know.
Catherine Beard
It might make you feel like you've thrown off the day or something like that. But I still think it's probably a good read anyway.
Sarah Steckler
Yeah, for sure. It definitely is a great book. I think, too, just for me, I tend to be kind of a perfectionist. So I feel like the less I have to do in the morning, the better. And one thing I wanted to talk about, too, is kind of like the power of habit tracking. And I know you're huge on that. And I know in one of your popular and really great blog posts you talk about, I think it was, like, five ways to boost your morning routine or something like that.
Sarah Steckler
You talked about kind of using a habit tracker. So how do you kind of, like, implement that into a morning routine?
Catherine Beard
Yeah. Part of it is I do have, like, you mentioned a printable for if you do want to do, like, a mind body soul kind of thing. There's like a seven day challenge where you can track it and write down the different things that you do during the week. But for me, I remember there was one point when I was trying to meditate every day, and I use the Calm app, mainly because it has a tracker and you can see the calendar and how many days you've meditated.
Catherine Beard
And for me, that's really motivational to be able to see that. I did it yesterday, and it kind of puts the pressure on you to keep doing it and not fall off the bandwagon. I got up to, like, 70 days of meditation.
Sarah Steckler
Wow. That's awesome.
Catherine Beard
And then I forgot, like, there was a Sunday or something, which is the weekends are, like, harder because I don't necessarily follow the same morning routine on the weekends. But yeah, I was like, oh, my God, I meditated for 70 days in a row. It's crazy, but yeah, because I was tracking it, and it motivated me more to keep trying to keep going.
Sarah Steckler
Yeah. One thing, too, that reminds me of is I think there's this app. I need to look up the name of it, but it's basically to help you be on your phone less. And I think depending on what you set your goals for, every day that you meet them, there's actually, like a forest or something. And, like, a new tree will grow or a new plant. And so the goal is to have this huge forest. And if you mess it up, then they start dying and stuff.
Sarah Steckler
And so it's kind of this visualization of visual of how to stay on track. And so it just kind of reminded me of some of the self sabotaging or just completely distracting things that we can do in the morning that can prevent us from doing our morning routine. So I know for me it's like if I'm going to get up and go on a walk, I really need to get up and go and not lay in bed looking on my phone. And so I know that's one of them.
Sarah Steckler
And like, can you speak to ways like, maybe that you've because I know in the past you've mentioned that you've tried not looking at your phone in the morning. Is that still something you do?
Catherine Beard
Yeah. So I sleep with my phone across the room, and my phone is actually always in do not start mode, like, always. So when I wake up, I really try not to look at my email, because emails can be the one thing that stresses me out, especially if I feel like I need to respond to something right away. So it's better for me if I just don't look at it. And the same with Instagram, because I will get lost on Instagram for an hour. And I actually saw somebody posted on Instagram the other day, and she was talking about how part of her morning routine was to go on Instagram because she found it super inspiring to see what other people were up to.
Catherine Beard
And I was like, That's really interesting. And so I think that can work for some people. But for me, I know that I will be in there for far longer than, like I intend to. And for the most part, it doesn't inspire me. I'm just scrolling to scroll, so definitely try to stay away from that and just open up the meditation app on my phone as soon before, I can think about doing anything else, just open it up and then force myself to do it.
Sarah Steckler
Yeah, I know. It's just like I can't believe how many times I woke up in the morning. And then it's like I've spent 20 or 30 minutes on my phone. And that was kind of like to the detriment of me being on time when I worked in nine to five or just rushing to the bus or whatever was being like, Where did the time go? Like, oh, I haven't even had my breakfast yet, and it's because I wasted all this time on my phone. So for sure, that's a huge one.
Sarah Steckler
I guess another benefit of routines that I'm just thinking about is how when we start incorporating a routine into our lives after a while, it becomes more of, like an automated habit, and it requires less mental energy and less decision making. And I think part of why I felt stressed in the past with my mornings is because I was running around. And then at the same time, I was being like, what should I do? Should I do this first or this? And it was creating a lot of chaos.
Sarah Steckler
And so I'd love to talk to you, just, like, about ways to simplify the morning or if there's anything that you do, like the night before to help yourself out.
Catherine Beard
Yeah. So I think I just mentioned this, but I have been in the habit of planning my day out the night before, which has just been so important for me. I try to choose the top three priorities things I want to work on for the next day, which is actually really hard, because I feel like there's so many things that I could do, but getting clear on those three priorities and then literally just putting them into Google pal and planning out how much time I think each of them will need and then putting them at a specific time in the day.
Catherine Beard
And, of course, factoring in things. Like I got to do my morning routine. I got to eat lunch at some point dinner and just kind of putting them in that way. And that helps me know exactly what I should start working on as soon as I've done with my morning routine. It doesn't mean that I stick to it necessarily, but I think it just gives more of a structure and you have a better sense of, like, how to actually spend your time. So you're not, I guess, overthinking what to do and what to start on.
Sarah Steckler
I think that's huge, because so many times I underestimate how long things are going to take, like, I'll be like, oh, doing my makeup, five minutes, taking a shower, ten minutes, and then I find myself like, it's double that or whatever. Or I get into the shower and it's like that scene or in The Odyssey, where he goes into this temple, and for every day he's in there, it's actually like ten years or something. I always feel when I'm in the shower. I'm like, What's time? Goodbye really getting clear.
Sarah Steckler
I think I'm being honest, and I know one thing I do, too, is I try to give myself a buffer because it's really easy for, like, my Bulldogs, really stubborn. And if she doesn't go out when I need her to, then it's like that can be an extra ten minutes. So just giving myself a buffer in the morning, too, for whatever. And one thing I also just want to share is I really have been enjoying getting up and just having time for, like, stillness. And I mean, I guess that could be, like, the mind or the sole part, too.
Sarah Steckler
Right? Like, just sitting either in the living room with a cup of coffee or if it's nice enough outside, like sitting outside and just kind of doing nothing, like not rushing into the day or not checking my to do list and just kind of sitting with my thoughts has been really nice, and it kind of gives a little bit of padding to my day instead of getting up and rushing off. It kind of sets the tone like you can slow down, like there is a lot you need to do, but it doesn't have to be this, like urgency the entire day.
Catherine Beard
Exactly.
Sarah Steckler
Yeah. So I just want to thank you so much for being here today. There's so much wisdom I already know as I'm thinking about all the stuff I want to link to on your blog and everything. I just want to ask you to for someone that is really excited about morning routines, but it's kind of overwhelmed. What would be kind of like maybe the one piece of advice that you would give them?
Catherine Beard
I think just start simple and stop searching for inspiration of what other people are doing, and instead focus on what's the one way that you could simplify what you do right now, whether it's just getting up a few minutes earlier, so you're not rushing out the door or preparing your breakfast ahead of time, so you don't have to do that. What's just one little thing that you could simplify because I think that will make all the difference.
Sarah Steckler
I love that. That's so perfect. And that goes so in line with just like your whole blog and finding common and every day. And so that segues perfectly to where can everybody find you? Yeah.
Catherine Beard
Well, everybody can find me on the blueflowmind. Com, my blog where I put most of my time and energy into. But you can also find me on Instagram at the books of mine as well.
Sarah Steckler
Perfect. Yes. And Catherine's Instagram feed is so beautiful, and you do such a good job with it consistently. I love checking it, and I love finding inspiration there.
Sarah Steckler
So definitely go follow her there. Thank you guys again for listening to another episode of The Mindful Productivity Podcast. If you've been enjoying the podcast, please show the love and leave a five star review. Let other know other people know that this is a podcast you enjoy and one that they should check out as well as always. You can find all of the show notes and more information. Mindful Productivity Podcast and while you're at it, come join the new Facebook group Mindful Productivity Podcast Discussion Group. If you want to get to know everyone one else that's listening to the podcast and talk about some mindfulness and productivity topics until next time you guys.
