The lies of defeat tell you there is absolutely no hope.  I believe that is simply impossible.  No hope is never an option.  You find it, you create it, you hang on to even the tiny slivers of it. The tiny slivers are what build us back up from the depths tiny piece by tiny piece to become impenetrable forces of hope and victory.  

No, what I’m talking about are lies of protection that are actually holding us hostage.  These lies keep us from doing things we want to do, from dreaming big, from chasing goals and ultimately stifle our calling.  These lies are planted by others in encounters that may or may not be intended to stop us.  These lies are born out of our own fear, our own self consciousness and out of our own limiting beliefs and even the projection of what people think of us.

Lies of Inability hit us all, but we can fight back by discovering who we are in God and walking out our destiny with and through him.

What do I mean to get settled in? I don’t mean throw everything down and lie face first on the bed hoping that TSA or the trunk of the car hasn’t shuffled everything around so terribly that you can’t find anything in your own suitcase. It’s a little more work on an already tired body but well worth it for every day after this one.

Unpack! If you’re going to be at your spot for more than a couple days, unpack. Hang up your clothes, use the drawers and other spaces to settle in. This will be your home, your base, your respite from the outside world while you’re traveling.

Planning the return before you even leave along with prepping to go can seem a little overwhelming but I promise when done in bite-sized chunks over the course of a week or so it will make your life, your vacation and transition back to real life seamless and enjoyable.

At the end of the day our body is a precious gift.  If we don’t invest in our health and fitness now with nutrition and exercise  we will invest in it later with doctor’s bills.  Start now.  Start loving yourself and showing yourself love by doing what you were made to do - move.  Feel your heart pump, have to catch your breath, feel the sweat drip.  The burn stops when you do but the residual effects keep going.  You will gain more from losing 30 minutes of sleep, tv watching, social media scrolling to workout than you can account for.  Block out the time and get in a daily workout. 

Creating a routine for sleep can be a useful way to send the signal to your body that it can relax, shut down and rest. A lot of people struggle going from the business of the day to closing their eyes in a dark room waiting to be tired or allowing their mind to quiet so quality rest can be achieved. Finding a way to prepare your body and mind in a bedtime routine can create a solution to slipping into relax mode. Here are some steps you might include in your bedtime routine:

Particularly for a morning routine you’re setting the tone for your day.  You are waking up and easing yourself into the feeling you want to have, the goals you want to accomplish and the attitude and energy you want to carry with you for the entire day.  (That doesn’t mean you can’t reset if things get sideways. Your morning routine should be something that helps you get out of bed and moving, not something you dread.)

In my own life when implementing the pomodoro method I found that it was more helpful to me to adjust the amount of time I was working and the amount of time I was taking breaks. I found that 25 mins was just long enough to really get on a roll with something, then the timer would go off and I’d get distracted. I started to be controlled by the timer more than actually getting things done.

“Habit stacking” is a technique where you take a new habit you want to form and "stack" it onto an already established habit. This can help make the new habit easier to remember and integrate into your daily routine. You can stack any two or more habits into a block of time you have carved out to get stuff done.

As you are creating your schedule for a normal day and you get to a point where by the end of the week it seems that all the major blocks have been checked start thinking about what life looks like if you have a kid home from school sick or you have appointments during the week, you have a getaway planned or a work trip coming up, maybe a birthday to celebrate or anything that disrupts your usual 24 hours. Start looking into these situational changes and see how you don’t have to give up getting stuff done. It might take some creativity to feel as productive when the chaos starts to swirl but you can have a plan and feel better about the day. These alternate schedules are also a great place to practice giving grace. A sick baby at home needs your attention. The days of snuggling on the couch are fleeting but there will always be laundry to fold, just something to think about.

A routine is a set of actions that are regularly followed. These actions can be related to various aspects of one's life, such as work, personal care, and leisure activities. Establishing and maintaining routines can be beneficial for a number of reasons.

One benefit of having routines is that they can help to increase productivity. When you have a routine in place, you know what tasks need to be completed and when, which can help to reduce procrastination and increase focus. Routines can also help to reduce stress and increase feelings of control, as you know what to expect and can plan accordingly.

When you have a routine in place, you know what tasks need to be completed and when, which can help to reduce procrastination and increase focus. Routines can also help to reduce stress and increase feelings of control, as you know what to expect and can plan accordingly. Routines control chaos and in turn deliver more time for other activities.

Blocking out time is an important part of staying organized and productive. It is important to dedicate specific blocks of time to specific tasks in order to create a sense of structure and focus. When you block out a certain amount of time for a specific task, you can better plan your day and prioritize tasks that need to be completed. This can help you stay on track and get more done in the same amount of time.

Another important reason to block out time is to ensure that you have enough time to complete a task without feeling rushed or overwhelmed. When you block out time for a task, you can work on it at a comfortable pace and have enough time to complete it properly. This ensures that you are able to complete tasks with a high level of quality and accuracy. Blocking out time can also help reduce stress and make it easier to stay motivated. With structured time blocks, you can have a clear plan of action and know exactly what needs to be done and when.

Most importantly, and why you can find this here is you need to block out time specifically for yourself. It is true that you can’t pour from an empty cup and it’s also true that exhaustion and overwhelm happen when you are feeling most depleted. Blocking out even a short amount of time to take care of yourself can improve your health, mental well being, perspective on what needs to get done and progress you further into your goals.

Block out the time is here to help you begin to look at your day, block out the necessary time for necessary tasks, suggest routines and rituals to help you get stuff done and at the end of the day, show you that you can do it. Busy isn’t an excuse. You don’t need hours of free or uninterrupted time. Get organized and Block Out the Time.