Have you ever tried to do something new or challenging on your own?
I’m not even talking about big things like… start or explode your business.
Or create a super healthy self-care routine… when you’ve been a couch potato for the past several months (or maybe even years LOL).
Some days, it’s challenging just to get through the damn day.
I know you know those kinds of days.
Where it seems like whatever can go wrong, will.
You start off by waking up by the sound of your dog puking on your carpet.
BT Dubs, they should for realz make an alarm that sounds like that.
If you have a dog, then you KNOW there’s nothing that gets you out of bed faster. LOL
Anyway…
So you wake up to that fun situation…
And you go to the kitchen only to realize your husband snaked the last K-cup yesterday.
No coffee for you this morning!
So you go, ok cool, looks like I’m hittin’ the coffee shop when I leave the house today.
And then you hit every light. Every light.
And there’s NO parking. ‘Cause some dumb dumb decided to take up a spot and a half.
And why is it always a monster truck? LOL
You finally get your coffee… and spill it all over the console in your car. And your seats.
Then head back home to start your day.
Guess what? You can’t find your laptop charger. And your Wi-Fi goes out.
Or your kid took your phone to another room and you search the house for a good 10 minutes trying to find it.
Meanwhile, that gorgeously-scheduled calendar full of plans you have for the day…
Poof… there is goes.
Bye bye beautifully-organized day.
First thing I do in these circumstances is google to see if Mercury is in retrograde.
I’m serious… there’s actually a website that will tell you if it IS in fact in retrograde… or nope, there’s something else bumming you out. LOL
Anyway, all that to say – we’ve all had these days.
And there’s ONE trick I wanna offer you today to help you shake it off, as my girl Taylor Swift says.
And that’s to plan for breakdowns.
I mean, they happen all.the.time.
And yet every time they DO happen… it’s like this huge surprise.
But what if we decided to PLAN for the chaos?
To use it as an opportunity and literal wakeup call to re-evalute what’s important to us?
That’s actually something my friend Marie Forleo has been talking about lately.
What to do to get back on track with not just your TIME… but your actual mindset and RELATIONSHIP with time…
When things go off the rails.
‘Cause we all know they do. And they will.
Which actually reminds me.
She’s got an upcoming class I’m going to… and I wanna invite you to come with me.
It’s called “3 Productivity Mistakes You Can’t Afford to Make”
And because this time-poverty and time-scarcity thing is such an epidemic right now… she’s made it so it’s free to attend.
‘Cause she wants to get this info into as many hands as possible.
She is picking up on this time scarcity mentality people have, too
So you can pick up your free ticket for a super limited time by going to: www.hayleyhobson.com/marieclass.
That will let her know I sent you – and she’ll ensure you get your pass free.
You can also just DM me or comment the word THREE (as in spell it out - the word THREE) on any of my social account.
And I’ll make sure you get the special link that makes your ticket free.
PHEW – glad I remembered to tell ya about that.
Anyway, back to this whole “shifting your mindset about how you approach your day, your time, AND your plans to literally expect breakdowns” thing…
This is so critical… and totally doable.
But it’s also really hard to do in a vacuum.
I mean, yes, of course you get to coach yourself when you’re in the moment.
(If you know how to coach yourself).
But it’s not always so easy to be present and mindful and aware of this. Especially if you’re feeling emotional about it.
Which is why I believe in the power of sharing.
Of having a community and core group of people around you who are all on the same page about this…
Who are working together to build the SAME habit?
In this case, the habit of resilience and planning for breakdowns (obv)… so you can remain positive, productive, and purposeful.
I like to think that YOU guys are my core group of people who are on the same page as me about it.
Having a support system – AKA community – can make all the difference in whether you actually follow-through on the changes you wish to make.
Without a community…
You won’t have accountability.
You won’t have anyone to cheer you on.
Worst of all.. You won’t have anyone to bounce your annoyances off of.
Or, as I sometimes refer to as “word vomiting in a bucket” to. lol
Or, as one of my coaches refers to as purging.
About the day from hell situation. And the guy who doesn’t know how to park. Or your husband gas lighting you with the coffee. LOL
And yes, while it’s totally find to vent (or purge), get that stuck energy out of your system so you can clear space in your head and your heart for what’s really important to you…
Your community of people on the same page as you can help encourage you to shift out of that default “this all sucks” mindset…
And into the new, expansive mindset you’ve been cultivating.
A mindset of gratefulness.
Grateful that you actually woke up today.
And own a car to sit at every traffic light in.
And actually have Wi-Fi. Most days.
A mindset of expansiveness.
With thoughts like “there is always enough time to wipe down the coffee spill off the white seats in my car and clean up the dog puke.”
Or “there is always time to go look for my phone and revamp what I had actually planned to do today.”
Your community is also your consistency champion.
Because you know that consistency is the key to making ANY change.
And when you have a team or rockstar likeminded peeps in your corner… you actually amplify your chances of success.
‘Cause it’s more than just YOU reminding you to be consistent.
I’ll give you a hashtag relatable example from my biz.
Fun fact – I don’t actually manage my own calendar.
My assistant slash project manager does it.
Told ya… relatable. LOL
I’m just kidding… I know most people don’t have this… but I’m illustrating a point.
So, yes, I actually have a built-in accountability buddy when it comes to my actual calendar.
But after YEARS of rushing around… being late or arriving at the last possible second, out of breath, stressed, and with my sweater on backwards…
I decided to make a change.
I didn’t like how living my life that way made me feel.
I didn’t like the energy I showed up with.
And I didn’t like the impact that had on the people around me.
So I decided to do something about it. Because it was – and IS – important to me.
So first thing I did was actually document how long things took me.
I know – not all that revolutionary of an idea… but almost no one does this.
And it’s so freaking simple.
And what I discovered is…
Shit usually takes me way longer than it does in my head!
And I was literally creating my OWN stress but not being CLEAR with myself about what reality is.
Once I realized things like… a proper grocery run actually takes me an hour and 40 minutes. Not the hour I had in my head.
And, going to my morning workout class actually takes me 90 minutes to 2 hours…
When I account for getting ready, filling up my water bottle, driving there (in traffic thank you), parking, walking up the stairs to class, taking class, and back home again – with a juice or coffee stop on the way home…
And recording this podcast actually takes me 40 minutes instead of the 20 or-so minutes it is long…
‘Cause I screw up my intro (which I’ve said 1000 times).
Or my mic all of a sudden is not working.
And of course, I have tech setup and tech closedown on either side of recording this episode.
I then the process I have to let my editor know the audio is ready for him to clean up and cut out my flubs LOL.
So it actually takes me twice as long as I initially thought.
Point being… until I got intentional about discovering the TRUTH about where my time goes…
My calendar was a massive source of stress.
Every day I was feeling compressed.
Because I didn’t build in time for prepping, doing, and ending.
I didn’t build in time for mistakes. For chaos. For breakdowns.
And now?
Well, I pad my time.
And when I manage to get through part of my day without a breakdown… I use those little pockets to be productive.
Or, I dunno… actually relax?
Enjoy being someplace not frantic and sweaty and wishing I hadn’t had that second Americano.
Practice my Spanish on Duolingo?
Listen in to a course I’m taking online?
Binge on Selling OC - if you Iiked Selling Sunset…. Drama intensified. Oh my!
Anyway, point being, in my life and biz, my assistant is my go-to accountability buddy.
I check in with her when I notice we get to make shifts in how my day is scheduled.
She makes sure I have what I need to start and end my time blocks effectively.
And she helps me stop overcommitting by holding me accountable when I tell someone I can do something…
And I won’t be able to do it without shifting back into this time-scarcity, stressed out, and rushed mode.
Now again, I understand not everyone has this.
But there are simple ways to create and utilize a community to be accountable.
For example…
If you find yourself wanting to work on your fitness, go with a friend.
Do it together.
You’ll be much less likely to bail out on someone else than you are to bail out on yourself.
You want to expand your network for your business?
Go to an event with a girlfriend.
Commit to showing up, even if you only go for an hour or two, and schmoozing with people other than yourself.
Make it a game if you like.
That’s something I actually do when I find something unpleasant.
Give myself a challenge. Find something that amuses me or makes it fun for me.
Like, I’m gonna introduce myself until I meet 3 people whose names start with the letter A.
Or, my friend and I are going to compete to see how many business cards we can hand out without it being weird. LOL
A friend of mine who is an introverted real estate does this at events.
And yes, there ARE introverted real estate agents out there. LOL
Point being… get creative.
Find a way to tap into a community of like-minded people with similar goals and mindsets.
Particularly around how you use your time to accomplish what you desire.
This whole episode topic has been inspired by MY friend Marie Forleo.
I recently heard her talk about amplifying your life.
“Simplify to amplify” is what she actually said.
And she’s referring to your mindset around priorities and goals and going after what REALLY matters to you.
And using TIME as the conduit to get there.
Deciding what’s important to you – and what’s not…
Rewiring your brain for fresh thinking about time and what you actually do with it…
And then following through on your commitments.
The things that actually matter to you.
This is what she’s talking about in her upcoming class, “3 Productivity Mistakes You Can’t Afford to Make”.
There are several different timeslots to attend – between September 29th and October 6th.
See all available class times by going to www.hayleyhobson.com/marieclass.
That’s my private link so Marie knows you’re part of my inner circle and you get your pass free.
You can also drop me the word THREE on any of my social posts.
Reminder, that’s T-H-R-E-E. The word “three”.
And I’ll get ya the link that way too.
I’m super curious to know…
What do you think about this idea of shifting your mindset about time to account for chaos?
To literally build it into your daily plan?
And to use a core group of likeminded peeps to not just stay accountable to your commitment to change…
But actually make it EASIER for you to follow through?
Let me know here in the comments… or drop me a DM!
And definitely sign up for Marie’s class. Duh. Wouldn’t miss.
I’m gonna be there… and I hope to see ya there too.
Until next week… have a good one and I’ll see ya online.