Earlier this week, I made a mistake in an email to a client. Her response, "Oh good, you're human, too." I laughed and responded, "I'm too human," thinking of all the little blunders I had made over the week. Tuesday night I slept for 3 hours because I was too wound up after Refinery29 wrote about me redefining the workplace for mothers. All my bad habits came back, including obsessively checking social media and eating way too many treats. Yes, I screw up all the time—

The research about the benefits of meditation is overwhelmingly positive. However, how often have I found myself two-minutes in, realizing that I am going through my to-do list, not zenning out. Try out binaural beats. Using headphones, you play a slightly different frequency between the left and right ear, which helps the brain to hear a third frequency. Somehow this induces the brain to enter into meditation-like states. I'll be honest—I don't fully get the science.

I'll be honest. There are times when Joe makes a move when I'm just like, 'Oh no.' I'm tired. I've been serving other's needs all day between work and my kids. I just want to have some me-time. And, that's the issue. I'm thinking about it all wrong. What if him making a move isn't about another person wanting something from me? What if I frame it as the opposite? He's giving me the ultimate me-time. He's trying to give me a few minutes of someone taking care of me. Jus

Most mornings I try to meditate. Yes, it's good to clear my mind, but the most significant benefit for me is just taking the few minutes to check-in on how I'm doing. Is my mind racing? Check. Do I feel panicked? Often. Chill? Rare. This daily check-in then helps me adjust my day. Do I need to be a little bit kinder to myself? Do a mini digital detox? Do something to clear my head like journal for 5-minutes? So tomorrow, before you jump out of bed take 1 minute, close

So often I hear moms saying that they don't have time for self-care. On average, a working mom has 17 minutes to herself each day, so how do you make it work? Well, now you can get a masseuse to come to your house post-kid-bedtime with services like Zeel, They bring the table and all the supplies. You don't have to get fully dressed afterward. Win. Win. So, if your honey is still looking for a last-minute gift for you, just forward this email. Hint, hint. Because, as alw

My bedside table drawer was unruly. At 4 AM, I needed a pair of headphones to listen to a back-to-sleep meditation. Couldn't find them anywhere, even though there were three pairs in the drawer. The next morning, I decided to take a different approach. What if I turned the drawer into a shrine for sleep? I kept only my necessities: an eye mask, a drinking glass, headphones, some lotion, some lavender, my journal, and some pre-sleep supplements. I even mounted an in-dra

This week I had a lovely evening catching up with a friend. The best part? We did it without sitters or even having to brave the snowy DC weather. We had a 'hangout date.' She drank bubbly. I drank tea (since it was still dry January). And, we caught up on life all through the magic of video conference. This week, step away from your work email and invite a friend you've been meaning to catch up with, better yet, a friend from out of town, on a virtual date. Make hangi

One of my worst habits is trying to multi-task while hanging with my kids. Yes, I get a lot done, but I can feel their desire for 100% of my attention. The more I do it, the more they act out. The cool thing is that as my kids are now 3 and 5, playing with them is pretty fun. Last weekend, we built a 3D turtle out of Magna Tiles. It was pretty epic. So today, embrace your inner child. Find something that both you and your kids would find fun—drawing, doing puzzles, ma

Let's be honest—being a working mom is stressful. We need as many tools as possible to...Chill. The. Hell. Out. Today's hack: create a zen photo album. Chose pics that put a smile on your face, bring up happy feelings, and calm you down. For some people, these are photos of their kids. Bless you. For me, it's photos of my organized cabinets. These pics give me a sense of control and calm in my crazy world. No judgment, please. What's your zen? #stress #selfcare

Gretchen Rubin introduced a fab idea on her podcast this week: Me-time Tuesday. One day a week, you designate a night for you—no childcare, no work, no responsibilities. I live by my calendar, so having scheduled 'me-time' means it actually happens. What would you do? My list is endless: gymnastics class, massages, drinks with girlfriends or wandering around a new neighborhood. Some ideas on how to make this happen: pick different days from your partner or switch-off e

Recently I've noticed myself slipping into a bad habit—not owning my awesomeness. Congrats on getting to the 2nd round of the Echoing Green fellowship. Yeah, but 400 other people are still in the running. Love that sweater. It's just Zara. You seem to be killing it with your business. But, I still need to do [enter a huge list of to-dos] This. Needs. To. Stop. Today's challenge: Say a simple "Thank you" and then shut up. No explanations or disclaimers. Then let it sink in.

Who here has ever felt impostor syndrome? It's the feeling that you don't deserve to be where you are, and even worse, being afraid of being found out. Yep, my hand is definitely raised, but so are 70% of all people's. If you are pushing yourself out of your comfort zone, most likely you'll encounter these feelings. The first step in overcoming impostor syndrome is to catch and name it. There are five types: The perfectionist: Sets extremely high expectations. Even if sh

I am a bit type A, continually looking for ways to make the most of small moments in my day. (Hell, my entire coaching app for Uplift is built on this premise.) My favorite new addition is multi-tasking while I floss and brush my teeth. To get more steps in, I now take care of my pearly whites while walking around my room. The NY Times suggests doing a simple 2-minute toothbrush meditation to ground yourself. The book of awesome even lists "Multitasking while brushing

Every night before bed I write down three things I'm grateful for. Now that it's gotten cold, more often then not, this includes my Bedjet. This device blows hot or cold air into an empty duvet sheet creating an air comforter which controls the heat of your bed. It's nice in the summer to deal with hot nights, but its true magic is in winter. When I get into bed, I turn on the Turbo function and have a toasty bed in under 2-minutes. Then as I go to sleep, it cools off to

Remember when Mary Poppins fooled the Banks’ children into helping them tidy up the playroom over “A Spoonful of Sugar” by making it a game? I know I've successfully tried this with Rowan and Chloe. Today, take that same approach to your chores—add a little bit of fun or self-indulgence. For example, while you wash dishes, you could: - Turn on that podcast or meditation app you’ve been meaning to listen to - Bust out your favorite karaoke tunes (Why saving sing for just th

When I interview top working moms at the heights of their careers, I always ask, 'What do you do when you get overwhelmed?' I was shocked when a handful of them said they didn't. Whats their secret? These women know their canaries, their leading indicators of overwhelm. They focused on prevention. My red flags are bad sleep and clutter around the house. So now, as soon as I see these flags, I know I'm pushing too hard. I head to my calendar to clear commitments, prune my to-

A study of over 900 working parents showed that the amount of time that a mom spent at work did not negatively affect her kids' mental health. What mattered more? How she was spending her time outside of the office. Mothers spending time on themselves, versus housework, positively affected their kids. The idea is that mom spending time on self-care and relaxation meant that they were better able to care for their kids when they weren't working or relaxing. So, go book that ma

Hey. Yep, you. We are hardest on ourselves. This post from Seth Godin is eye-opening. Here are some highlights... The world's worst boss. That would be you. Even if you’re not self-employed, your boss is you. You manage your career, your day, your responses. You manage how you sell your services and your education and the way you talk to yourself. Odds are, you’re doing it poorly. If you had a manager that talked to you the way you talked to you, you’d quit. If you had a bos

I'll be honest. I've been struggling with my nutrition. I can list off the excuses (back pain, gut issues, stress), but in reality, I have just let things slip. I'm a Questioner, so external accountability doesn't help me. I need to internalize to make certain habits stick. So for all you questioners out there, here's a tip: Write your own rules. Below are mine for nutrition: No eating and drinking alcohol at the same time. Stretch things out by decoupling these. No eating o

Today we are joined on our Instagram stories by Leah Wiseman Fink, the Founder of Classes At, which offers local parenting classes in NYC. She also wanted to share this tip for you lovely ladies. I have a very love / hate relationship with exercise. I hate doing it, but I really love how I feel after. Besides that it's so good for my body, it's also a major part of keeping my mental health in check, especially in the winter months. (Hello, daylight savings!) I have been a