Episode 26: Sustainable Self-Soothing and Productive Self-Care

When does self-care become self-soothing? The phrase “self-care” seems to have morphed into a catch phrase and punch line these days. Is a glass (or bottle) of wine after a tough day really self-care? Are you really taking good care of your colleagues by bringing a couple dozen donuts to the office? Part of making the distinction between self-soothing and self-care is that self-care allows you space to be uncomfortable. 

Here is what you can expect in this episode:

  1. Definitions and examples of self-care and self-soothing.
  2. First aid for emotional road rash.
  3. Questions to ask yourself to determine if you need self-care or self-soothing.

Listen at the link below or search for “Sustainable Productivity with Susan Sanders” everywhere podcasts are available.

Links to Learn More

Links mentioned in this episode of the Sustainable Productivity podcast:

We would love to hear from you. Send your feedback on the episode, suggestions for future show topics or guests, and anything else to Susan@SustainableSue.com or in a DM on Instagram.

By |2023-07-31T08:42:25-04:00July 31st, 2023|Show Notes|0 Comments
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Sustainable Sue Travels for Work

While travel is fun, I love being home so so much. But you know what is rude? Reading a book while eating dinner with your loved ones. Or anyone really. 

Therefore, when I travel alone I indulge all my bookish, introverted habits. Here is a sneak peak into how a Sustainable Sue travels for work.

Coming and Going

It starts in the airport – where no one is in control over anything. I always hit the Read and Return for a book. Sometimes the airport has surprises like this one did with its wall of Jelly Belly candy dispensers. Cotton candy jelly beans and a book? Yes please!

Meals

I often hear people – especially women – say that they would never eat in a restaurant alone. They say that they would feel too weird, like people were staring at them. This is why I take along 4-5 close friends in whatever book I am reading at the moment. Choosing to eat WHATEVER I want, WHENEVER I want it, then reading while I eat? Yes please!

Business of Work

Of course the purpose for the travel is to get work done. While this usually requires onsite at a facility, sometimes since travel spits me out at weird times I have flexibility to work outside of a facility for a block of the day. I cannot be trusted in a hotel room alone with HGTV so I love to find a library to work in. Coffee shops are fun too, but I find larger tables at the library. Library energy and a latte? Yes please!

Sustainable You Reflections

When you know you have a less than comfortable situation coming up (travel or just going to the grocery story – whatever it is for you), what can you do to soften the blow?

Until next time remember to create productive results in a way that you can sustain and that work for you. 

By |2023-07-11T20:22:36-04:00July 25th, 2023|Mental Well-being|0 Comments
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Episode 25: Sustainable Sue Talks Time Management

Does it seem to you like some people are just better at time management? Why is it some people seem to be able to accomplish so much more than others? Why do some days feel like you really nailed it and some days feel like time just got away from you?

Spoiler alert! It is not really about time.

Time is a fixed entity each day – we all have 168 hours in a week. How you approach time and the systems you set up around that times is what matters. This means that you need to decide what are the most important things in your day first and fill in the other tasks and activities around it or deflect them to another day, time or person. This episode will help you do that.

Here is what you can expect in this episode:

  1. Why time management matters.
  2. How to get real and honest about what you want to spend time on.
  3. Practical suggestions to make time work for you – all 168 hours per week.

Listen at the link below or search for “Sustainable Productivity with Susan Sanders” everywhere podcasts are available.

Links to Learn More

Links mentioned in this episode of the Sustainable Productivity podcast:

We would love to hear from you. Send your feedback on the episode, suggestions for future show topics or guests, and anything else to Susan@SustainableSue.com or in a DM on Instagram.

By |2023-09-11T17:12:26-04:00July 24th, 2023|Show Notes|0 Comments
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Shattered Plans

I was standing in line at a delicious taco joint in Asheville, NC and saw a photo on the wall of a beautiful pottery bowl. It looked like it had gold strands delicately painted in zig zag, meandering lines on the outside. It somehow shimmered in the sunlight coming through the window even though it was a photograph. 

There were words underneath it so of course I made Bixby place our dinner order and I got out of line to investigate. I thought it would be the origin story of the painter or the potter that created the piece. Maybe somehow connected to the restaurant? I am a sucker for a human interest story and had to know more. 

I am also a sucker for a story about serendipity, which leads me to tell you the story of this gold flecked pottery today. 

Shattered Plans

My carefully planned goals are not coming along as planned. I am not sure who is running my life, but she needs to be fired. Time is somehow bending and moving faster than I remember it does. Unless of course it is my body recovering from a long bike ride, then time drags. 

Time I block out to do a Sustainable Sue project is stepped on with a late meeting from my day job (which more often than not lately is turning into an evening and night job). I plan to swim on a Saturday and Sunday only to have lightning close the pool intermittently. Meal plans are torpedoed by the grocery store not having the ONE INGREDIENT we needed for BOTH recipes. 

Truly none of these is a big deal, it is just having to reshuffle a shattered plan repeatedly is tiring. Last weekend I just left the proverbially shattered plan on my desk and read three books. I’m not sorry about it. 

Which is where the serendipity comes back in. The taco stand’s photo of the gorgeous pottery with golden strands streaming through was kintsukuroi (Japanese for “golden repair”) or kintsugi (Japanese for “golden seams”. The technique of kintsukuroi has roots in the 15th century and is making a comeback in today’s world. An artist uses lacquer and gold pigment to repair a shattered piece – sometimes more beautifully than the original creation.

Once I saw that photo and description in Asheville, I saw kintsukuroi everywhere. Most recently on a mindless scroll this weekend after abandoning my shattered plan in my office. If I could play fast and loose with the metaphor here, I used the lacquer of naps and gold pigment of reading to repair a shattered plan into something much more peaceful. 

Instead of feeling wrung out and left with a racing mind on a Sunday night, I actually felt ready to take on a work week. 

Sustainable You Reflections

  1. Think back to a time where it felt like things were going against you. With the benefit of hindsight, was the shattered plan replaced with a better outcome?
  2. In the weeks ahead, when (not if) your plans fall apart, can you purposely hold space for a “golden repair” of your own? 

Let empty space on the calendar take the shape naturally instead of filling it. You might be surprised at the beautiful creation you end up with. 

Until next time remember to create productive results in a way that you can sustain and that work for you. 

By |2023-07-11T09:09:16-04:00July 18th, 2023|Mental Well-being|0 Comments
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Episode 24: 10 Tips for Conquering Clutter

When we talk about physical clutter we are talking about two kinds – paper and objects. Paper and objects both come into your life for different reasons and hold different meaning. These are the stacks of papers that don’t ever seem to be filed or the influx of children’s artwork that you can’t stand to throw away, but also can’t stand to have stacked on the dining room table. This is the lack of systems that make you miss paying a bill. These are the gifts that you received / inherited that you did not like but feel the need to keep. We are talking about the paper and objects that make you feel weighed down when you see them. This is what we mean when we refer to clutter. 

Here is what you can expect in this episode:

  1. How many hours you lose to lost things and what it means for your physical health and wallet.
  2. Real life examples and how all dimensions of Sustainable Productivity are impacted.
  3. Practical suggestions to slowly but surely address the clutter.

Listen at the link below or search for “Sustainable Productivity with Susan Sanders” everywhere podcasts are available.

Links to Learn More

Links mentioned in this episode of the Sustainable Productivity podcast:

We would love to hear from you. Send your feedback on the episode, suggestions for future show topics or guests, and anything else to Susan@SustainableSue.com or in a DM on Instagram.

By |2023-07-17T08:12:49-04:00July 17th, 2023|Show Notes|0 Comments
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Gratitude

At the end of each day I spend a couple minutes jotting down a few things that made me happy or grateful. This does not mean that every day is an overflowing pot of rainbows that I have to whittle down into a couple lines. Some days I forget to do it until the reminder on my phone goes off. 

I do this as a reminder that no matter how unraveled I am, there are moments on beauty in each day. There is a breeze in the hottest of days and moments of rest in the most tiring of treks. 

The Bible refers to beauty from ashes and spiritually tells us to look for the message in the mess. Writing down 5 things I am grateful for helps me to make a conscious effort to connect with these moments or consider why these moments were brought in our path in the first place.

A more mainstream way to think of this is gratitude. Anyone who has lived on a planet with Oprah has heard anecdotes of how we should keep a gratitude journal. But there is scientific evidence that Oprah is right – at least about the gratitude stuff. 

What is gratitude

Sure, there is a fancy definition of gratitude and there is the Thanksgiving experience of dinner table gratitude. I like to think of gratitude as the intentional connection with something that brings me positive feelings. 

This does not always mean joy, but often does. It might just be a warm knowing that I noticed what the universe / my Higher Power / Nature / God meant for me to notice. It might mean a solid understanding that I picked up the breadcrumb that assured me I am on the right track. 

The more I notice these breadcrumbs, the more breadcrumbs appear. A self-fulfilling prophecy of sorts. And it is not a coincidence that as these breadcrumbs build up, my health and happiness has improved as well. 

Science of gratitude

Researchers have studied gratitude in all three dimensions of Sustainable Productivity (SusPro) – physical, mental and environmental. They did not know about SusPro specifically, but the research proves that we are on the right track toward a life we don’t need to escape when we intentionally connect with that positivity.

Health & Fitness

A small pilot study of heart failure patients who completed gratitude journaling exercises showed reduced inflammation (an indicator related to morbidity this population). Another study reported better overall physical health was found in grateful individuals – especially in the older adults (50-80 years old) compared to the younger group in the study (20-50 years old). 

Gratitude is also linked to improved ability to fall asleep faster and better quality of sleep once you fall asleep. But it is not just our physical health. Connecting with positivity can also improve several components of mental well-being.

Mental Well-being

Gratitude can extend outside of ourselves as well. Relationships are a key part to our mental well-being. This is for introverts and extroverts. Individuals married or not. Work and personal relationships. 

A study looked at how gratitude impacted romantic relationships. Results showed an increase in relationship connection and satisfaction – so much so that authors described it as “acting as a booster shot for the relationship.” 

But wait! There’s more! Let’s look at the impact of gratitude on our environmental surroundings as well. 

Environmental Surroundings

The link between environmental surroundings and gratitude can be approached a little differently. Let’s start with digital and physical clutter. Gratitude can be the doorway to releasing the digital and physical clutter in a few ways:

Subscribing to Marie Kondo’s theories of thanking items for their usefulness before removing them from your home. 

Finding charities who need items that are just taking up space. For example, my daughter and I were able to donate 2 bags of toiletry samples and half used items this week. It was easy to let go when we knew they would be used by someone in need.

Supporting local “Buy Nothing” groups by posting items you don’t want or need. Giving them away to those who are seeking them in a way that reduces its impact on our wallet can help us loosen the emotional grip on the item. 

Understanding the Yesterday You that acquired these items is different from the Today You who no longer needs them. There is no shame in letting things go if you don’t find them to be loved, beautiful or useful. 

Sustainable You Reflection

Clearly gratitude is more powerful than we ever thought. It is more than warm fuzzies when you hold the door open – although it is that too. It changes our body chemistry. Gratitude can lay down new pathways in our brain. Gratitude can make us more generous with our time and material wealth. 

Let’s unlock more gratitude together. Each day join me in writing down 5 things we are grateful for. This can be in an email to yourself, a leftover notebook you have lying around, in a special journal you buy for this purpose, or an app on your phone. 

Just 5 things. Set a reminder on your phone for a time you are least likely to have something going on. 

Until next time remember to create productive results in a way that you can sustain and that work for you. 

By |2023-07-07T16:15:11-04:00July 11th, 2023|Mental Well-being|1 Comment
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Episode 23: Managing Media with an Eye Toward Sustainability

This week’s focus is the impact of media on your personal productivity. Media is a component of the Environmental Surroundings dimension along with clutter. Basically all the inputs that are physically and virtually in your environment – news, movies, books, TV, podcasts, social media, and magazines that you take in on a daily basis.  Learn from  Jose Ortega y Gassett: “Tell me to what you pay attention and I will tell you who you are.”

Ignoring media altogether is not sustainable – there are productivity gains to be had from its consumption. But you need to understand what is coming in and what it is doing to your productivity in the long run.

Here is what you can expect in this episode:

  1. Learn what science shows is the impact of media in your body at a cellular level.
  2. Recommended ceilings of time to consume on various types of media – think Food Guide Pyramid of media.
  3. Practical suggestions to make media work for you, not against you.

The Media Pyramid as described in the episode. Read the full article by Faris Yakob at this link.

Listen at the link below or search for “Sustainable Productivity with Susan Sanders” everywhere podcasts are available.

Links to Learn More

Links mentioned in this episode of the Sustainable Productivity podcast:

We would love to hear from you. Send your feedback on the episode, suggestions for future show topics or guests, and anything else to Susan@SustainableSue.com or in a DM on Instagram.

By |2023-07-10T07:36:22-04:00July 10th, 2023|Show Notes|0 Comments
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Independence from Burnout

The day this essay will first post is Independence Day in America (where I live). I don’t come from a military family, although I did go through the application process to play basketball at West Point. I say this because while I respect the intended purpose of the 4th of July observations in the US, I want to extrapolate this to a topic I know a little more about.

Yep – burnout.

Today is less about convincing you that you are suffering from burnout and why that is harmful. I want to offer ways that you could slowly work towards independence from burnout starting today. Yes, today. This week. Soon, not someday.

Sustainable Productivity is based on three pillars – Health and Fitness, Mental Well-being and Environmental Surroundings. I want to offer a few ways you could explore finding independence from burnout. It is less that these are THE BEST ways to heal from and prevent burnout. Instead consider these options that might get you thinking about what appeals to you.

Health & Fitness

  • Set a reminder on your phone to spend 2 minutes breathing deeply.
  • Walk or sit outside for 10 minutes – even if it is not great weather.
  • Visit a Farmer’s Market. Bonus points if you sample fruits and vegetables or purchase healthy foods.

Mental Well-being

  • Hug someone for 20 seconds.
  • Look at your work schedule for the coming week and move or cancel any appointments that overlap.
  • Explore something creative – color, listen to music, watch a cooking show, or putter around the garden.

Environmental Surroundings

  • Delete 5 pictures from your phone that you can easily say you don’t want (the blurry ones, duplicates, and 50 photos of your pre schoolers nostrils are good candidates).
  • Take the donations bags to the donation site.
  • Enjoy a decluttered space with no extra stimulation (TV, books, music, people).

If none of these ideas resonate with you, check out the No Burnout Bingo cards for more ideas. They are a free download that can help you find independence from burnout. Here is a sample. They also have blank cards that you can fill in ideas that are meaningful to you.

Sustainable You Reflections

I would love to hear or see what you put in your card or what small moves you can make today to free yourself from burnout. What better way to start the second half of 2023 than to take small action items to create a life you don’t need to numb out from!

Until next time remember to create productive results in a way that you can sustain and that work for you. 

By |2023-06-27T08:40:05-04:00July 4th, 2023|Sustainable Productivity|0 Comments
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Episode 22: How Your Relationships Impact Your Personal Productivity

Relationships are a component of the Mental Well-being dimension of Sustainable Productivity. When we talk about relationships in this context, we are talking about 2 different kinds of relationships – internal and external. In this episode we will dive into the relationship with your Higher Power (however that looks for you) as well as coworkers, spouses, and friends. Who is contributing to a sustainably productive life and what to do about those people leaving you drained and empty.

Here is what you can expect in this episode:

  1. What is one of – if not THE – most important relationships you can cultivate?
  2. When to know if cutting corners is the right thing.
  3. Science tells us how relationships impact our physical health.

Listen at the link below or search for “Sustainable Productivity with Susan Sanders” everywhere podcasts are available.

Links to Learn More

Links mentioned in this episode of the Sustainable Productivity podcast:

  • Sign up for episode emails, weekly essays, and links so you never miss a thing!
  • Read more about the nation’s return to religion as a result of the 9/11 terrorist attacks at this link
  • CIGNA’s full report “Loneliness and the Workplace” can be found at this link
  • Revisit what cortisol does to your body in Episode 1: Stress, Evolution, and Burnout by clicking here
  • Laura Tremaine’s book The Life Council gives more insight into why relationships are important and how to cultivate different types. Order her book at this link
  • Here is the recent pillow project Susan mentioned in her SPA this week:

We would love to hear from you. Send your feedback on the episode, suggestions for future show topics or guests, and anything else to Susan@SustainableSue.com or in a DM on Instagram.

By |2023-07-03T10:44:56-04:00July 3rd, 2023|Show Notes|0 Comments
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Summer Rain

We are entering out fifth consecutive day of rain where I live. Not drizzly, like cute to wear a vest Seattle rain. Deluge. Dumps. Flash foods.

I need the sun. And to be outside not soaking wet. Maybe I am actually solar powered?

Part of recovery is reframing old thought patterns. This worked well for the first few days of rain.

  • “The garden sure needed this rain!”
  • “Saves me from having to do all the watering.”
  • “I guess this is the universe giving me the time off of my bike I didn’t know I needed.”
  • “Lots of time to work on house projects and crafts [Translation: Read Books]!”

I even was embracing this quote I found years ago from Xan Oku:

But now I just want to see sunshine.

Do you ever feel that way? I want what I want when I want it!!!!

When did it get socially unacceptable to throw our bodies on the floor of Target and wail? That is the stage of rain I am in. Luckily my daughter agreed to go buy toilet paper for me this week.

Nope, don’t scroll down looking for the rationale that pulled me out of this skid. This is all I’ve got for you this week. Rain sucks. I am crabby.

Perhaps this will be helpful for someone else. Solidarity that things are not all unicorns and rainbows?

Maybe you have the reframing I need – how do you pull out of a tizzy?

Transparency is important too. Please know that just because I write and podcast does not mean I have it all figured out. They say it is best to write from scars not wounds. I might end up taking this post down, but I wanted to share where I am today.

I am inside watching more rain.

By |2023-06-23T08:12:28-04:00June 27th, 2023|Mental Well-being|0 Comments
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