Episode 39 #4: Why You're Always Running Out of Time (and How to Fix it!) (Copy) (Copy)

ITUNES | SPOTIFY

This is the fourth in a four-part mini-series all about Why You're Always Running Out of Time and How to Fix It!

Are the apps, planners, and productivity tools you’re using actually working for you? Or are you wasting time trying to force something that just doesn’t fit your lifestyle? Tune in to this episode to learn how to choose tools that truly support your tendencies, situation, and needs, so you can stop chasing the latest tools and focus on what actually helps you get things done.

Plus, don’t forget to register for my live class, Plenty of Time, on April 10th, where I’ll walk you through the four steps to create more space in your working mom schedule! Register at themothernurture.com/class.

links & resources mentioned in this episode:

  • You are listening to the Life Coach for Working Moms podcast, the show where we are talking about what it actually takes to make life work as a working mom. I'm your host, Katelyn Denning, a full time working mom of three and a certified life and executive coach. I'm so glad you're here and I hope you enjoy this week's episode.

     Welcome to the podcast and to this special series called Why You're Always Running Out of Time and How to Fix It. I wanna remind you really quickly that I am teaching a live class on Thursday, April 10th. It's called Plenty of Time, four Steps, create More Space in Your Working Mom Schedule. You can head over to themothernurture.com/class to register and be sure to add it to your calendar. Alright, this is the fourth and final reason in this series for why you're always running out of time. Let's get into it. Reason number four is that your productivity tools do not actually work for you. All right. What are productivity tools? Let's just start there with sort of a baseline understanding.

    When I think of productivity tools, I think of anything that you use in your day-to-day life to help you be more productive. I. So this could be everything from a paper planner or notebook, bullet journal, project management software like Microsoft Planner or Asana, Clickup monday.com. Notion there's so many to apps like Trello or Todoist to even just a digital notebook like OneNote or Evernote.

    The options are endless. I know. I just scratched the surface on what is available in this category, but you know what I mean. And I'm sure your own examples popped into your mind, as I said, productivity tools. But I want you to be honest, how many different solutions have you tried?

    Over the years, I know I've tried so many, I can't even count. We are always looking for the next thing, the secret weapon that's going to finally help you get organized, help you keep track of all of the things, automate those task reminders, or just help you feel like you have it together. And everyone has an opinion too.

    Oh my gosh, don't get me started. Why? This way of managing things is the best. Or, oh my gosh, you have to try this tool, or, I love this new software. It finally has all of the pieces that you've been wanting and wishing for. I recently switched project management tools for my business. This is a tool that I use to track projects in my business so that I can collaborate with my team.

    I have an assistant who helps me with a number of things behind the scenes, and I had to laugh at myself because. I had been using for the last couple of years what I would call a fancier project management tool. It had all of these bells and whistles, so much so that it actually felt a little overwhelming to me, and I realized recently that for what I do, I could switch to this more basic tool.

    And actually use the free version, which if you are familiar with software subscriptions these days, the free version is like the base model. And it works just as well for me because here's the thing about any of these tools, they all work. It's true. They all work. I know that's probably not what you want to hear.

    You wanna hear that some are terrible and this one's the best and you need to go over here. But they all work. They wouldn't exist if they didn't work. They work for someone, they work for some people, and every single person who writes or shares or tells you about what they use and how amazing it is, they're right.

    What they do is amazing. But that's because the thing that makes any one of these tools successful is in its features, though there are always certain considerations. Absolutely, you should think about certain things that you will want depending on what you're trying to do with the tool, but the thing that makes any tool successful is you.

    Let me say that again. The thing that makes any tool successful is you, you using the tool.

    So if you are, for example, using a digital. Tool to plan your days or to keep your running list because that's what you think is the best thing to use. You think that's the future, or it's so handy or it sinks across all of these platforms? Well, those. Things are great, but if you yourself are still reaching for a post-it note or a scrap piece of paper, or a random notebook to jot things down or to sketch out your plan with pen to paper, then that isn't the tool for you.

    That digital tool isn't working because you are not fully utilizing it. You're wasting time and energy trying to make something work that just isn't the right fit for you and your lifestyle.

    And when you try to make something work, you try to force fit something, you end up losing time when things fall through the cracks. Or you don't add everything to that app, or you have things scattered across several different solutions, it becomes this wild goose chase just to find things, or you don't have the full picture because you've not been consistent with using your tools to add deadlines or the upcoming projects or lists or notes that you need.

    And you end up right back where you started feeling like you're always running out of time and not making the progress that you want to be making. Not to mention that when life gets busy, as it always does, I mean, we are working moms. There's always something unexpected around the corner. It's always changing.

    There's always something else. The last thing you want to be doing is trying to force a tool to work for you to be using something that feels too complicated.

    Or maybe it's not even that. It's complicated. It's just a tool that doesn't feel easy for you to use. This is when I see so many women stop. They just throw their hands up. They go back to just holding things in their head and planning and thinking about their plan in their mind, just like the previous mini episode.

    And so they stop altogether. They stop planning, they stop adding to their list. They stop categorizing. They stop thinking about what their actual priorities are. They just throw their hands up and they wing it and they end up feeling even more behind

    in my group program, beyond balance. There is actually no recommended app or planner or software. I don't tell you this is the tool that you should use. This is the best one for working moms because I don't think the best exists for everyone. What we do instead is I help you think through what will actually fit, what will fit your work, your lifestyle, your natural tendencies, the inclinations that you have to either pick up your phone to jot something down or to grab a piece of paper to be able to put pen to paper or to type with your fingers on a keyboard.

    Those tendencies matter. I want you to use something that you'll actually use. And so , in our current group, for example, everyone is using something different. And I love that because they are all unique with different circumstances and different tendencies. Different work environments and needs.

    I often think of kitchen gadgets in a similar way. I don't know what your kitchen philosophy is, but if you think about it, right, you can absolutely have all of the latest and greatest tools and appliances you can have all of the gadgets. But how many of those things just end up sitting on the shelf unused?

    When really all you need are just a few really solid staples. You need a, in my opinion, cast iron skillet. You need a good chef's knife, you need a sauce pan and a cutting board that you love.

    If you know how to use those solid foundational tools in the kitchen, you can still make the most amazing meals.

    I am here to help you find your solid planning staples, the tools that will support you through all of the seasons, all of the changes, all of the planning that you are going to do from here until forever. So that you can stop wasting time on flashy gadgets and just use what works for you because when you have tools that work for you and a process that works to plan your time.

    You are able to get things done, not just get things done today, but consistently day after day, after week after week,

    And when you're doing that. You are using your time. You are not running out of time.

    If you want to learn more about Beyond Balance and about the four planning steps that will help you create more space in your schedule, be sure to register for my live training on April 10th. It's called Plenty of Time. You can go to themothernurture.com/class to save your spot. I hope to see you there and I'll talk with you in the next episode.

    Until then, take care.

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ProductivityKatelyn DenningWorking Mom, time management, productivity