It's time for a Mental Spring Clean! 5 Strategies for Moms with Careers.
Any time of the year, declutter, dust off, and freshen up your mind for more mental wellbeing, a positive outlook, and more energy. Here’s your Mental Spring Cleaning List. Be prepared to sparkle!
Written by Nadine Stille, who coaches moms with careers to ditch their daily grind and bring more joy into their lives.
My home’s a mess.
Well, that is to say, it looks like what you’d expect it to look like when there’s a toddler about.
And while there’s a constant attempt to clean, and organize, and keep tidy, that effort could be a full-time job at times - both for me and my hubby. So, Spring Cleaning activities - a full once-over every now and then - are in order for our household.
As a Career Coach for Moms, I asked myself:
What if a once-over Spring Clean wasn’t just for our home?
What if we have a good look at what’s going on in our minds, inside our heads, and throw out what no longer serves us, polish what needs reviving, and bring in new life and energy?
What could that look like for us personally and in our careers? The analogy between a Spring Clean for our Home and our Mind really resonates with me personally.
The simple act of compiling these tips for you, made me feel more refreshed, energized, and ready to get rid of what no longer serves me, while actively going for what I need.
I’m curious what you think.
Moms, here is your list of 5 quick strategies for a Mental Spring Clean.
1. Declutter your Mind
Let’s start with decluttering and bringing in some clarity, calm, and maybe even some peace-of-mind and harmony.
Does that sound like something you’d like?
Ok!
So, there are lots of different ways to get this done and it depends a bit on the situation and what resonates with you.
The best way is to prevent over-cluttering, i.e. your mind running on overdrive with too many things, or to stop your thoughts from running amok when you notice you’re stressed out. In both situations, the following points will be helpful:
Write it out, don’t keep stuff in your mind. Use post-it notes as reminders, set calendar appointments and notifications, or keep a journal. All this also works well if you’re battling mom-brain or a lack of sleep.
Meditation or deep breathing exercises work wonders too, both to prevent being stressed (try a mindful exercise in the morning before the kids get up or while you’re in the bathroom getting ready), or when you’re already stressed (try taking three deep, slow breaths).
Simplify. Check in with yourself and be curious how ‘this’ could be easy.
At work, decluttering might look like concentration on doing one thing at a time, instead of multitasking. It might look like scheduling your time, appointments, tasks, and, most importantly, your start/ finish/ break times. A quick 2 minutes breathing or meditation exercise could also be squeezed in during a lunch break and can bring some much needed grounding and calm..
Working with a mentor or coach can further help getting clarity about, say, your career aspirations, or co-creating a plan forward with whatever topics clutter your mind and need simplifying.
Mental Spring Clean Reflection: What do I need clarity about? What’s the opportunity for me here?
2. Dust off Self-Doubt
It’s time to dust off that heavy cloak of self-doubt and start believing in your own abilities.
You are amazing!
Build up your confidence levels by listing things you’re proud of, things you’re passionate about, and recalling situations or challenges you’ve handled successfully. Keep the list close at hand for when you need a quick confidence boost.
Also, to make your future job success that much smoother and easier, you’d want to keep track of all the extra tasks you’ve done, the times someone complimented you for your work, the times you’ve over-delivered, got a project done on time, etc.
All the information you’ll gather will not just help you with your confidence levels, but will also help you make a case for yourself when it’s time for a performance review, or for when you’ll ask for a promotion, a salary increase, or apply for a new job.
Mental Spring Clean Reflection: Who’s my confidence role model and why? What would it take for me to embody their confidence? What would I want to start working on first?
3. Store Away Worry
Store away worry seems easier said than done, doesn't it.
Over the past couple of years, and certainly since I’ve become a mom, my worry-levels have skyrocketed. Keeping everyone safe and healthy, looking after everyone’s wellbeing, battling mom-guilt, entertaining Little Ones at home, working, and the list goes on and on…
What about your worry levels?
On a scale from 1-10 (10 = extremely high), how worried are you on a daily basis?
What would be your personal ideal on that scale?
We can’t - and frankly shouldn’t - switch off worrying altogether, after all it’s a natural necessity to keep us safe.
But what if we stored worry away from time to time and concentrated on things that:
Are in our control and power to manage,
We are grateful for, and
We enjoy right now in the moment?
Mental Spring Clean Reflection: What can I gain from storing away worry from time to time? What tiny action can I take to get closer to my ideal number on the worry-scale?
By the way, if the news is worrying you, then this article might be of interest to you:
”7 Ways To Reduce Anxiety And Overwhelm From News Headlines Right Now”
4. Let go of Energy Drainers
What sucks the energy out of you?
I bet you have a few answers at the ready. Is it other people’s judgement and expectations? Is it lack of sleep? Toxic relationships? Stress and negativity? Work? Are you being too harsh on yourself?
Whatever it is, now is a good time as any to look into letting go of or at least reducing exposure to what’s draining you.
It may not always be possible to fully pull away, right in this moment. I’d like to encourage you though, to evaluate what would make a difference to you. What’s in your power to change - even if the change is gradual and by 10% at a time? Who or what would help you to let go of energy drainers?
Mental Spring Clean Reflection: What will I invest my freed-up energy in?
5. Freshen up for more Energy and Fun
Make plans, connect with people who lift you up, seek out what brings you joy. Sometimes those things can be larger undertakings, and other times it’s a simple 2 minute activity. Whatever resonates with you, fits into your fully packed schedule, and - most of all - what brings you joy.
At home, this could be a call out to your friend to meet up for coffee, a day trip to that place you’ve been meaning to go to with the kids for a while, listening to your favorite music and turning up the volume while you sing along, or simply carving out some Me-Time and doing nothing but enjoying the calm.
At work, it might mean that you’re setting a goal to ask for a new project or promotion, you’re taking some additional training, or you’re working with a Coach.
Mental Spring Clean Reflection: How can my life be more colorful/ brighter?
By the way, you may also be interested in: “Nurture Self-Love: 3 Tips And 9 Journaling Prompts For Stressed Moms”
I know our lives as moms with careers are fully packed. There’s only so much energy and resources that we have. That’s why it’s doubly important to ensure that we are using our resources for what serves us best.
Our mental wellbeing is essential. So, it does pay off to take a moment to:
Consciously take stock,
Figure out what we want,
And then make room for, and actively go after, what brings us joy.