What's Bringing Me Peace Right Now

The following is a transcription of Episode 5 of The Peaceful Entrepreneur Podcast! Click here to listen on all platforms!

AMY: Welcome to the Peaceful Entrepreneur Podcast, where together we are finding peace in the process of everyday business ownership by improving one step at a time, how we think and what we do. I'm your host, Amy Stout.

Welcome back! Thank you so much for joining me for another episode of The Peaceful Entrepreneur. We are halfway through the season. Can you believe that? So I figured it would be a fun time to kind of break things up and talk about what is bringing me peace right now. Another title I entertained for this episode was "What's Saving My Life Right Now?" because I love listening to those kind of episodes.

So what do I mean by "What's Bringing Me Peace Right Now”? Because this is a question that I ask each of my guests at the end of our episodes and though you've only heard me ask one guest so far, you will hear me continue to ask it. And I love this question because it's so broad. Anyone can answer whatever they want. It could be something in their personal life. It could be something in their work life. It could be an item. It could be a habit. It could be a person, you know, it's like a totally open-ended thing.

So I wanted to really dive into this and share kind of three categories of things that are bringing me peace and saving my life. And these are things that I've found over time. I obviously did not start my business with all of these things in place. And so I'm hoping that if you are just starting out or you don't have piece in your business right now and you're looking for ways to find it, that this episode would hopefully give you some helpful suggestions. So let's get into it.

The common thread that runs through all of these things that I'm going to share is that they are, in one way or another, a system or a structure. And those two things are so important to have. And I'm telling you, even though they might be annoying to set up initially, they are going to save you so much time and stress.

So the three categories that I'm going to share are what's saving my life and bringing me peace within technology, lifestyle, and then mindsets and habits. Let's get started with technology.

Okay. Probably the number one biggest thing that saves my life and keeps my brain from going insane is Asana. Asana is a project management system. So it is where I have a hub for all of my clients and all of my team members because I have multiple clients at a time and I have four team members that are doing work for all of those different clients and there's a lot of moving pieces. So you need to have something that is going to keep everything in one place and organized so everyone knows what they need to do and where we're at in the process of their project. So you don't necessarily have to use Asana. There's other things out there like ClickUp and Notion, and honestly use whatever works for you, but Asana is what has worked for us and our team. And I am so grateful that the free version accommodates everything that we need.

So basically I have each of my clients broken down into different “projects”. And everybody on that project can see everything within the project, but they can't see anybody else's. So my clients can't see each other's stuff. And it is just such a blessing that I do not have to pay a monthly fee for that. So that is definitely a huge plus to Asana. And it also has a phone app. So you can access it just as well on your laptop as you can on your phone if you work on the go. So it is super helpful.

The next thing is something that I click probably a hundred times a day on my phone. And that is Voxer, which is a messaging and voice texting app. And it really truly does save my life because I can pull it up on my computer, my iPad, my phone, and I can have all my work messages in one place. And then I'm not using my personal texts for work, therefore like mixing it all together.

And let me tell you, I did that for a long time and it stressed me out so much because you're always on constant alert of like, when's something gonna come in? And I am a person who feels like I have to respond to things right away. Like I have to like resolve issues as quickly as possible. And that's a problem that I need to work on, but that is just like my natural wiring. And so separating work in personal texts, along with turning off push notifications for work texts has given me so much peace. So I choose when to click the Voxer app. It does not choose when I look at it. I do. I have full control and my clients know that they can expect to hear from me if they text me between nine to five. And if not, I just don't look at the app, you know?

So it is a great way to set a boundary and it is such a helpful app 'cause you can start group messages. So I have groups with my clients and the team members who are doing the work for them. And I have individual messages and it is just the best.

The next system that I use on a super regular basis is Bonsai. And that is where I do my invoicing and sending my contracts. So it is a great system to, again, have everything in one place. It also does time tracking, it does proposals, it does forms. I mean, it does a lot of things and I only use it for probably like a quarter of what it can do. But it has served me well the entire time I've had my business and it continues to do so. So I'm just gonna keep on with it.

Next up is Google Suite. I use Google for my emails, my calendar and Google Drive. And they pair really nicely with Asana because Asana is where I keep all my tasks and then Google's where I keep all my meetings. And it's also a place where we can upload files and stuff like that.

So as far as like business operations, Asana and Google are really like my two and I love that it's so simple.

The next thing that I absolutely love is Canva. And I know that if you are like a high-end graphic designer, you probably are judging me right now because I know that Canva has a certain reputation and it is no Adobe Illustrator, but for someone like me who does not have a graphic design background, Canva is so intuitive and I can do so much with it. So I literally use it all the time for my clients, for myself and I just love it.

Speaking of the Adobe Suite though, I do have that because we do editing and so Luke uses Adobe Premiere for editing and I have started using Adobe Rush to edit my TikToks and it is so nice. I know that other people use like CapCut and Splice but I was like, hey, I already have this whole suite like why not use their like short form editing app and it's great, it's so smooth and easy to use and you can even add a voiceover in on the app. So I could truly do the entire TikTok there and just upload it and call it a day. So I love it.

The last technology thing that saves my life is actually iCloud. There are some situations where shared albums on iCloud make a lot more sense than a shared Google Drive. So this happens when clients send us their content that they post on Instagram and we repost it for them on other platforms. And it is just so much easier to get from phone to phone and keep the quality. If we have a shared iCloud album. So we love those. And we also love AirDrop because Luke and I are working in the same space. And so if we have something we need to get to each other, it's so much faster to just drop it. And then I am AirDropping to myself between my phone and my computer all the time.

So I didn't want to spend too much time on the technology because like that's not really the fun part. But if you are an entrepreneur looking for better online systems, I did want to hit on what really has served me well.

So now that we have kind of chatted about the technology, let's move on to lifestyle. If you watch my Instagram stories, none of these will come as a surprise to you.

The first thing is my over ear headphones that Luke got me for Christmas. They are so nice. They are Sennheiser and I love them. And they are noise canceling and they're cute and they actually are able to be wired or wireless. So I can like plug them in to record a podcast episode and get super crispy, amazing audio quality. But if I'm up and around cleaning, I can also just use them wireless. So they're great.

And the thing you don't know is what I'm listening to. And a lot of times it is this Apple music playlist called Beatstrumentals. Like, take instrumentals, cut off the first part and replace it with beat. It is such an incredible playlist. It's just like calming, no words. I don't know about y'all, but I can't focus and think if I have words coming into my head in any way. So listening to songs with lyrics while I'm working just isn't a thing. Beatstrumentals is perfect and it is calming. I use it to listen to when I read sometimes or when I just need to focus and it just cuts out the background noise and allows me to zone in. So highly recommend if you have Apple Music. If you don't, I'm sure there's some sort of Spotify comparable thing.

Next is my Stanley cup dupe that I've been talking about. It is actually a 32 ounce instead of a 40, but it's a 32 ounce glass cup with a cute silicone sleeve and a bamboo lid and a handle. And I love it because I can just remember that I need to drink two of them a day and I'm solid. So I have been actually filling it up with two thirds water, one third coconut water, and then a ton of lemon juice. And that is how I've been getting in a little bit of extra minerals, extra hydration. And it's a lot more fun to drink than just plain water.

Now, if you're on TikTok, or if you're watching the Peaceful Entrepreneur Instagram, you will know that I have an espresso machine. And that is saving my life because it's saving my wallet. I've kind of made this new resolution since I got this espresso machine that I am going to make my fancy drinks at home so that when I go to a coffee shop, because I still like to go for the environment, I can just buy drip coffee or tea and save so much money in, because all of my cravings are being taken care of at home 'cause I can make all my fancy lattes and cold brews and all of that here. So you know me and my coffee videos, those aren't going anywhere and the espresso machine is just a joy of my life and it makes me more excited and happy to work 'cause I have something yummy to sip on.

Speaking of, coffee shops really do save my life because we don't have a designated office space that we go to, we work from home. And that is so comforting and wonderful and I love working from home. But sometimes I just can't get my brain to focus like it needs to. So a lot of times when I need to be really focused and like knock something out, I will go to a coffee shop. So that is like, oh, that's such a blessing and so valuable to me. And thankfully where we live, we have a lot of coffee shops. So I can kind of switch it up based on my mood And I love that.

So let's shift over into mindsets and habits, which does kind of still incorporate lifestyle, but I wanted to kind of separate the places and products from the mindsets and habits.

The first thing that is so important for an entrepreneur to get your day started right and to start peacefully is to have a healthy morning routine. And that can look like a lot of things. And I can't go into all of it now. So I want to do a separate episode just about morning routines, but I'll just say for now, having one is really important and it makes a huge difference in your productivity.

Second habit that I've been incorporating lately is walking and doing the sauna. And I try and do like a pretty high intensity walk. So I get sweating and I get my heart rate up. And let me tell you, ever since I started doing this, I have had such higher energy levels, such better moods on a regular basis. and it feels like I am not doing that much. Like I'm not doing this intense run or weightlifting or whatever, but man, is it making a difference. I feel like the sauna is kind of becoming trendy right now, which is funny, but it does have a lot of health benefits like cardiovascular endurance, it helps your skin, helps reduce anxiety and stress, it helps you sleep better, and there's a lot more too. And just from personal experience, I would recommend starting with 10 minutes and then building up because I overdid it and stayed in too long, too fast and like didn't feel great afterwards. So word from the wise, warning from someone who's done it the wrong way, ease in a little bit.

Right along the same line, something that brings me so much peace is having a meal plan. So at the beginning of each week, I plan out our dinners for the entire week and we usually do three dinners and then eat leftovers the next night. And then I'll also plan two to three options, both for breakfast and lunch. So I always have a couple things on hand and I can just pick what I wanna eat based on my mood. And I try to intentionally buy things that are healthy so that I don't have the unhealthy options just grab and that's something that my mom did that really was frustrating back when I was a kid but is great now because it's a habit so thanks mom, but not having to think about what I'm going to eat and not having to get stressed about spending money because we're eating out too much brings so much peace and so whatever way meal planning works best for you do it but some sort of plan is going to be super helpful.

Another simple lifestyle one that makes a lot more difference than we think is getting a good night's sleep, sleeping for eight hours or however much your body needs. I am guilty of probably prioritizing this too much and compromising my morning routine or my productivity for the sake of sleep. And I'm sure that has good and bad things, but I mean sleep is just going to help you so much overall with the performance of your brain with your immune system. You'll get sick less and gosh, I could just keep going, but you will avoid a lot of stress if you just get some sleep.

Another thing I like to do, and I like to do this in the morning. Some people like to do this in the evening, but keeping my house tidy is huge because I do work from home and having a clear space directly allows me to have a more clear mindset. And so I usually take time every morning in the midst of my morning routine to put away the clean dishes from last night, straighten the couch, you know, put away any little things here and there. And that allows my brain to kind of click into, okay, we're here to work, everything straight, like everything is right and good, and we can jump into what we need to do.

So those are a lot of lifestyle things that affect our work, but don't actually have anything to do with work. So let's talk about a few things that I've incorporated into my work habits that are bringing me peace.

First thing I am trying and I haven't fully succeeded yet, but that is reserving my mornings. And by that, I mean I do my best work in the morning. My brain works the best in the morning, obviously, because it's clear. It's the start of the day. I've just woken up from a great night's sleep and had a great breakfast and I have not gotten bogged down by the clutter of my entire work day or life or whatever yet at that point.

And so I have been trying to start scheduling all my meetings in the afternoons so that I can more consistently have my mornings free to get the bulk of my important focused work done. So this doesn't have to be a morning for you. I mean, whenever you do your best work, that is when you should reserve and try to protect it so that you can get your work done. And that's going to result in giving you more peace because then you're not going to be stressed about, “Oh my gosh, I still have to do that, but I don't feel like I can. So I have to push it off.” And then you feel bad because you're procrastinating and the whole spiral. So that is a big one.

Similar to reserving and protecting time to do your best work. You also need to reserve and protect time to rest. So for me, I kind of like to still follow a nine to five schedule, even though I'm not in a nine to five because it is a good structure, you know, have a couple hours in the evening to take a break and then have two full days that you give your brain some time to recuperate and rest and forget about work for a while, you know, or if not forget, just be distanced enough from it that you can process it in a different way than if it's just like in your face like it is all week. And I don't have to tell you what the benefits of this are, but I'm going to say them anyways that if you give yourself time to recuperate, the quality of your work is going to be so much better when you come back.

Not to mention, if you don't take breaks, you will eventually reach burnout. We all have different thresholds of how long we could last at a high stress schedule, but at one point or another, you are going to sputter to a halt and be on empty. And then you're going to be in a much tougher situation that you're going to have to come back from, rather than if you were to just put these in place in the first place so you don't even get there.

Another thing that I am trying and have not fully incorporated yet is a no-call day. And for introverts, I know this is very important to like have certain days within your work week that you don't have phone calls so that you can kind of recoup a little bit.

For me as an extrovert, I don't feel that as strongly. I more just want to try to incorporate it so that I don't have a disruption in my work day so that I can at least have one day a week that I have the whole day to work on whatever I need to do and just be in my little zone. So we're trying that and I'll be sure to report back how it goes.

The next thing that you are going to hear a whole episode about this season is having time with community. And what I mean by that is being with like-minded people and being able to share with each other what's going on, help brainstorm, help give feedback, help just be there when something hard is happening is so peace giving and so life giving. And I cannot tell you like how much I feel the quality of my business has increased since I started meeting with other business owners. It is just such a gift because like we talked about in the mental health episode, being an entrepreneur can be very isolating. And so you have to intentionally find people that you can surround yourself with to go through this journey together.

So those are the things that are saving my life and bringing me peace right now. And let me just say again, I obviously haven't had all these since the beginning. I have had to work to find what works for me. And saying that something is saving my life means that my life was in need of saving. So I was struggling and nothing is just going to fall in place easily. We've got to go through it to come out on the other side and figure out the best way to respond.

So let me just encourage you with that, that if you don't have all these things in place, you're on your journey. And if you could just take one thing and incorporate it, that is going to make such a big difference to you and only over time can you build a full-on rhythm of success.

So give yourself grace, give yourself time, we're all working on this together.

I would love to hear what's saving your life right now or what's bringing you peace right now. So if you want to share, feel free to hop down and either leave a five-star review with what is bringing you peace or hop over to @thepeacefulentrepreneur on Instagram and comment what is bringing you the most peace in your life right now. I cannot wait to see your comments and respond to you over there. I'll see you next time!

Thank you so much for listening to today's episode. We look forward to connecting with you more, whether that's on Instagram, TikTok, or our email list. We'd love to hear what you thought of today's episode. And if you have any additional tips to add, We will see you next week with more tips and tools to becoming a peaceful entrepreneur. Bye for now!