How to cleanse your life in 4 simple steps

Before we get to the main focus of today’s post I
just have to point out the babing coat and bag I adorned when
shooting this look. I mean, a pink pastel coat paired with a printed
backpack… Dreamy! Whilst out scouting locations with my lovely photographer Zoe we literally jumped
for joy when we saw this pastel house peeking out in the distance, I pretty
much ran toward it with tears in my eyes because it was such a perfect
backdrop! Anyhu, the coat is from Boden and
the bag Radley and
they are both currently my wardrobe favourites so I just had to take a brief
moment to share my love for them both. So now that’s done, lets get down to
the nitty gritty. A post with a few tips and tricks on how to switch
off, tidy, organise and streamline your life and most importantly be present!

Day in
day out I constantly find myself thinking – ‘why is life so exhausting?’ This
thought usually occurs when I’m mid commute – phone’s ringing, coffee is
spilling and my oyster card wont let me through the barriers (cue 150
aggressive Londoners tutting simultaneously behind me) Give me a break! And if
it’s not the little things it’s juggling the every day deals of family,
friends, work, chores, hobbies, fitness… the list goes on and on and
sometimes it can leave me feeling a tad overwhelmed. Well fear not my lovelies,
there are a few things we can do to make all seem cleaner, calmer and a whole
lot easier!

Say
‘NO’ to invitations

We all
love getting invited to things, it makes us feel happy, wanted, included
– yadda yadda yadda... It’s great! However, after
birthdays, baby showers and Tim from down the roads annual house rave… It can
often leave us feeling drained. You can say no! As
much as you’d love to go to the pub quiz with Lucy from work, if you already
made plans to spend the night alone with a take away and Netflix –
stick to it! What tends to happen (and I am highly guilty of this) is that we
say yes, but we don’t mean it. And then we spend the time in between the ‘yes’
and the actual event worrying about how to bail at the last minute. All that
angst and anxiety could have been spent doing things you actually want to do
instead of stressing over how to get out of something you don’t. So next time,
be upfront. If you’re busy say ‘no thank you, I’m busy that day.’ No one will
cry, the world will not end and you’ll feel no pressure whatsoever *breaths a
sigh of relief*

Focus
on the now

I’ve yarped on
about the benefits of meditation many a time on this blog (take a
peek here and here)
and I still stand by the fact that mindfulness and being present ‘in the
moment’ helps a huge deal with productivity. You may argue that more time
spent ummming and ahhhhing is less time spent
completing your urgent tasks but I can assure you that ten minutes spent
focusing on whats going on in your own head and ignoring outside distractions will
have you feeling calmer and more in control, enabling you to tackle your to do
list like a pro.

Coat
c/o – Boden,
Dress – Marks & Spencer,
Bag c/o – Radley, 

Shoes
c/o – Boden,
Glasses c/o – Superdrug,
Brooch – Chanel

Photography
by – Zoe Griffin

Digital detox

Although
in all honestly this is something I’ve not yet done (being
a blogger means I’m pretty much connected 24/7) It’s something I’ve
read into a whole lot and something I really want to give a try soon. So,
why not join me? One or two days without your phone,
without Facebook or Instagram… no big deal right? Or is
it? I know I’d find it hugely difficult to do, but I also know
it would give my brain the time out it really needs. I often find when I
sit down to write or scribble ideas into my notebook, my best work
comes when my phone is charging at the other end of
the room out of reach. I often get stressed about my social stats, Instagram engagement
and blog traffic so I’m continuously checking and
re-checking all of my social platforms all of the time… it’s so
annoying! So if you’re thinking about doing a digi detox, by all
means do it. I adore what I do, I love creating content for you guys to enjoy
but I’ve got to realise that by me taking a step back and a couple of days
off – NOTHING WILL HAPPEN, no one will get hurt and the world won’t cease to
exist.

Do
the essentials

Life
admin, be it emails, tax returns or laundry, together they rack up
quite the hefty to do list. Now I’m a fully fledged list lover (yay for
alliteration!) This means I tend to spend more time writing the lists that
actually doing the task, annoying I know. I’ve had to be brutal and look at
each to do list I make with a ruthless eye. Yes alphabetising my DVD collection
makes the OCD side of my brain jump for joy however essential… I
think not. So now I look at my initial list and cross off any of the unnecessary (read:
procrastinating jobs) immediately. It gives me a sense of priority and control
and leaves me feeling instantly better seeing a list I can realistically manage
within my set time frame.

So
there you go, a few things you, me, everyone can do in order to be more present in
our everyday lives. Switching off isn’t always easy but it can benefit us in so
many ways! What do you do to switch off? Is it a good book? A bubble bath? Let
me know in the comments below and if you have tackled the digital cleanse, I’d
be eager to hear your thoughts!

Kate x