Plan Simple with Mia Moran

By Mia MoranBusiness Entrepreneurship Health & Fitness Mental Health Education Self-Improvement

Plan Simple with Mia Moran episodes

May 15, 2019 Plant-based Energy with Marie Claire
It’s about seducing. It’s not about forcing. You can’t force anyone to eat healthily but, you can seduce people and you can because you are the walking example of what it can do to you. – Marie Claire
On this episode of the Plan Simple Meals Podcast, I’m really excited to talk with Marie Claire, an energy coach for experts, author, speaker, and certified raw food coach about raw food and reigniting our energy.
We talk about three main problems that lead to disease: toxicity, undernourishment through overeating, and trauma. Marie Claire believes that every problem holds a solution, so by finding the main problem in disease, we can find a solution. When you are toxic, you need to detox. When you dehydrated, you need to hydrate. When you have experienced trauma, you have to process the trauma.
When you start eating a plant-based diet, you cut out a lot of toxins and additives that are made to get you hooked on foods. You start infusing your body with intact vitamin, minerals, and enzymes. It’s incredibly effective in a short time. Maybe going plant-based or eating healthy every day feels impossible. Marie Claire’s clients often say that too … but change is possible. We dive into that.
We also talk about:
The challenges of eating out and ingredients to watch out for
How to eat healthy when with family or friends
Boosting your immune system before travel and other travel tips
Digestive enzymes to optimize digestion
How it is easier to stay miserable than to change and how to deal with the mindset
BIO
Marie Claire, an energy coach for experts, authors, and speakers. She’s a certified raw food coach who started her own business after 50. (You wouldn’t know to look at her that she’s 61.) After getting diagnosed with 6 different diseases, being paralyzed and in pain, she was treated and sent home, still feeling terrible, and told to take an antidepressant. That’s when she discovered raw food. After 10 days of going raw, she was surprised to notice she had no pain. Three months later, the diagnosis of fibromyalgia and chronic fatigue syndrome were wiped away. She felt like she was given a fresh start and began her business Ravishing Raw. She later rebranded as Energy for Experts and helps busy professionals and women entrepreneurs make changes that lead to increased energy and health.
LINKS
Energyforexperts.com
http://ravishingraw.com/wordpress/
Doable Changes from this episode:
START THE DAY WITH A GREEN SMOOTHIE. For seven days, replace your first-morning coffee with a green smoothie. You may be resistant, but commit to it and notice how it feels.
SET UP SYSTEMS. Your system could be to make a batch of green smoothies for the week or to set up four days worth of salad on Sunday. The system saves you time (it’s quicker to batch prep than to prep each day). It takes away the excuse, “I don’t have time” when it comes to making breakfast or lunch. And it means you don’t have to decide each and every time to make a healthy choice. You set yourself up for success.
BRING A HEALTHY TREAT. If you are going to a party or dinner, bring something that you know you can eat and enjoy … a fabulous salad with homemade dressing, a raw dessert, beet tip with cucumbers … check out the Plan Simple Meals recipes for ideas. Bring enough to share and get over the mindset that you are “different” by eating the way that makes you feel fabulous.
58 min
April 22, 2019Planning with Purpose
“I want you to dream big because dreams make plans different than your average to-do list (and you are not average!)” - Mia
There was a long time where I really loved the idea “live today like there is no tomorrow.” I wasn’t a planner and I wanted to be more “fun.” But, the truth is I never did anything that daring or even extremely fun.

In my 20s and early 30s, I ate bad food and racked up some debt. I never paced myself. It was my last day, so why not?

When I turned 40, I started to consider this idea in more depth. I had changed my food in my 30s, and I wanted to see how I could apply that mindset to my work and money in my 40s.

I have the privilege of having a grandmother who is 101, and who I can still chat on the phone with and have great talks with. As she was approaching 100, I wondered, “How would I live differently if I knew I had that much time? What would I do differently today if I knew I wasn’t even halfway through my life? Why would I live today like my last day, if I could live today in a way that got me to 100?!”

Trying to imagine what your life will be like at 100, may not be useful (or easy to imagine), but looking ahead 10 years is doable and important. It sets you up to plan your todays in ways that make sense now and move you toward the life you want.

This is what I had done when I changed my food... just not on purpose.

This is why I always do an exercise with clients where we paint the picture of what life looks like in 10 years – before planning for meals this week, creating a 21-day checklist, or utilizing any of our many tools.

It is this specific practice that helped me lose 85 pounds 9 years ago, gave me the courage to write my book and go on the road for a year with 3 kids, and has me hydrating as I write this post.

Let’s paint a picture of your life in 10 years.

I want you to dream big because dreams make plans different than your average to-do list (and you are not average!)

At the end of this exercise, you’ll have a vision of the life you want, the one that sets you up to plan today that you love. When you plan days with this exercise as your foundation, you get more done, spend more quality time with those you love, eat well (and healthy), and just take better care of yourself.

You can do this … even if you have a busy weekend planned, even if your kids are on break next week. This is all about big dreams and doable chunks.

Step 1: Mark your Calendar

We crave space to think and dream and then we wonder why we cannot find it.

Block off 15 minutes on your calendar with “space” or “dream” for the next 5 days, or you can block off an afternoon to do this all at once.

This will be your time to answer the 10-year vision questions.

Literally block off the time on your calendar, because it’s so easy to think you’ll find 15 minutes when the day comes … end then you’re rolling into bed, exhausted, without having done it. Make space for what matters (here, time to dream) and hold that time for yourself.

Experiment with what feels great. You could:

wake up 15 minutes earlier

set a time for 15 minutes before you start your work day

sit for 15 extra minutes at lunch

write while your kids draw

spend the afternoon at your favorite coffee shop

Feeling at all guilty about taking some time for yourself? I did and then I realized the importance, not only for me but for my kids. Free time, thinking time is the biggest thing missing from all our calendars. Making
36 min
April 10, 2019 Clean Beauty with Becky Kuhlman
Women need to ... know that they’re beautiful without all of that makeup. – Becky Kuhlman
On this episode of the Plan Simple Meals Podcast, I’m really excited to talk with Becky Kuhlman, a Beautycounter consultant, about safe skincare and beauty products. From what not to use to safe sunscreen, we talk about keeping yourself safe and healthy. It’s not just what you put in your body, but what you put on it.
Becky started with sunscreen. When she was living in India with her kids, she recognized the need for sunscreen but knew even then that most sunscreens weren’t safe. In this pre-Beautycounter world, she used a product called Blue Lizard to protect herself and her kids from the sun – and the ingredients in sunscreen.
She talks about the Never List she got from Beautycounter and how it changed what she buys. (We’ve linked the list up below for you.) She mentions specific ingredients you should watch out for and what they can do to our bodies.
We talk about:
Using mineral based sunscreens, which are safer for you and the environment
Starting with the things that you leave on your skin like lotions and sunscreen
Using coconut oil and olive oil in your skin care regimen
The importance of reading ingredients and recognizing the number of chemicals in US products—it’s not enough to rely on labels like “natural”
The challenge and necessity of cleaning up you deodorant
Embracing our wrinkles and natural beauty
Her work with Beautycounter, doing something with a purpose, and weaving work throughout your day
BIO
Becky Kuhlman is a Beautycounter consultant and mom to two teenage girls. She’s passionate about educating people and advocating for cleaner products.
LINKS
www.beautycounter.com/beckykuhlman
Specific Products or Posts Referenced
Never List
Type:A Deodorant
Cleansing balm
Sunscreen
Dew skin
Overnight resurfacing peel
Doable Changes from this episode:
CHECK OUT THE NEVER LIST. Grab a copy of the Never List (linked above). Then start checking the labels of products you already have. Set aside those with ingredients on the Never List. Read the label of every product you buy. You can start making changes to what you buy or simply start by getting aware how many dangerous chemicals you are putting on your skin.
MAKE A PLAN TO CLEAN UP YOUR PRODUCTS. Start with the things that stay on your skin and go from there. Put dates in your calendar, giving yourself time to purge and get what you need. Remember, it does not all have to be expensive. For a simple swap out that doesn’t involve buying new products, try using olive or coconut oil on your skin. Becky even talks about mixing in some sugar and possibly flower extracts to make a simple body scrub.
TAKE YOUR SHOES OFF. There are a lot of ways we are exposed to toxins. Try taking your shoes off when you come in the door to reduce what you track into and through your house.
1 hr 1 min
April 10, 2019Clean Beauty with Becky Kuhlman
Women need to ... know that they’re beautiful without all of that makeup. – Becky Kuhlman
On this episode of the Plan Simple Meals Podcast, I’m really excited to talk with Becky Kuhlman, a Beautycounter consultant, about safe skincare and beauty products. From what not to use to safe sunscreen, we talk about keeping yourself safe and healthy. It’s not just what you put in your body, but what you put on it.
Becky started with sunscreen. When she was living in India with her kids, she recognized the need for sunscreen but knew even then that most sunscreens weren’t safe. In this pre-Beautycounter world, she used a product called Blue Lizard to protect herself and her kids from the sun – and the ingredients in sunscreen.
She talks about the Never List she got from Beautycounter and how it changed what she buys. (We’ve linked the list up below for you.) She mentions specific ingredients you should watch out for and what they can do to our bodies.
We talk about:
Using mineral based sunscreens, which are safer for you and the environment
Starting with the things that you leave on your skin like lotions and sunscreen
Using coconut oil and olive oil in your skin care regimen
The importance of reading ingredients and recognizing the number of chemicals in US products—it’s not enough to rely on labels like “natural”
The challenge and necessity of cleaning up you deodorant
Embracing our wrinkles and natural beauty
Her work with Beautycounter, doing something with a purpose, and weaving work throughout your day
BIO
Becky Kuhlman is a Beautycounter consultant and mom to two teenage girls. She’s passionate about educating people and advocating for cleaner products.
LINKS
www.beautycounter.com/beckykuhlman
Specific Products or Posts Referenced
Never List
Type:A Deodorant
Cleansing balm
Sunscreen
Dew skin
Overnight resurfacing peel
Doable Changes from this episode:
CHECK OUT THE NEVER LIST. Grab a copy of the Never List (linked above). Then start checking the labels of products you already have. Set aside those with ingredients on the Never List. Read the label of every product you buy. You can start making changes to what you buy or simply start by getting aware how many dangerous chemicals you are putting on your skin.
MAKE A PLAN TO CLEAN UP YOUR PRODUCTS. Start with the things that stay on your skin and go from there. Put dates in your calendar, giving yourself time to purge and get what you need. Remember, it does not all have to be expensive. For a simple swap out that doesn’t involve buying new products, try using olive or coconut oil on your skin. Becky even talks about mixing in some sugar and possibly flower extracts to make a simple body scrub.
TAKE YOUR SHOES OFF. There are a lot of ways we are exposed to toxins. Try taking your shoes off when you come in the door to reduce what you track into and through your house.
1 hr 1 min
April 05, 2019 Get along with your body with Nina Manolson
We have to get into what it means to have an authentic, caring, respectful, responsive relationship with our body – instead of managing her all the time. – Nina Manolson
On this episode of the Plan Simple Meals Podcast, I’m really excited to talk again with Nina Manolson, health and wellness coach who works with women around body image and their relationship with their bodies. She has so much to say about what we eat and why and how we feel about ourselves.
We talk about rules about eating and how they end up backfiring because we react to the restriction. Nina says we need to start with naming our body dissatisfaction. And then we need to name the body management things we do (paleo, keto, raw food, Weight Watchers, …). This isn’t self-care.
So what do we need to do? “We really have to bring to the table more of deep listening. What does my body want and need? And sometimes to get to that deep listening, it takes some healing, it takes some work because many women, somewhere along the line, got divorced from their body.” Are you divorced from you body? Do you need to reconnect and build that relationship? That’s what we get deeper into.
We talk about:
The many things that make us feel separated from our own bodies—birth, nursing, medical crisis, trauma
Embracing the complexity, intricacy of who we are and honoring our aging and our changing body
There’s nothing wrong with saying that sometimes food is what I need for some emotional solace, but we need other tools beyond that
The importance of listening to what’s right for your body
Learning to shift that so that self-care actually doesn’t feel like another chore?
How the process of working with your relationship with your food and with your body opens a door to so much more
BIO
Nina Manolson is a certified holistic health coach, a board certified health & wellness coach, a certified Psychology of Eating Coach and Teacher, and an author. She is passionate about helping women end their food and body struggles and begin healthy, vibrant living that becomes a habit and easily fits into their busy lives.
LINKS
http://ninamanolson.com/body-peace 
 http://eatonpurpose.ninamanolson.com
Eating on Purpose with Nina Manolson
Doable Changes from this episode:
NAME BODY MANAGEMENT. Just getting aware of the body management thoughts and things you do is an amazing start. Just start noticing and calling out things like “I’ll start on Monday” or talking about your latest diet or “I’m cutting out carbs” or whatever it is. Say, “I see you body management.”
HELLO TECHNIQUE. Nina suggests that hand on the heart and hello goes miles towards starting the relationship with your body. She also talks about saying hello to food to get into a relationship with food. And then Hello pleasure. Use her Hello Technique to start to connect to your body and your food instead of just having rules about what you do and don’t eat.
ASK WHAT DO I NEED? Ask your body what it really needs? Nina notes that this is a tricky question and that learning to really hear what would make you feel most at ease, most at home in you body or nourish you the most is a process. But start by asking the question and seeing who shows up at the table, what answers you get.
59 min
April 05, 2019Get along with your body with Nina Manolson
We have to get into what it means to have an authentic, caring, respectful, responsive relationship with our body – instead of managing her all the time. – Nina Manolson
On this episode of the Plan Simple Meals Podcast, I’m really excited to talk again with Nina Manolson, health and wellness coach who works with women around body image and their relationship with their bodies. She has so much to say about what we eat and why and how we feel about ourselves.
We talk about rules about eating and how they end up backfiring because we react to the restriction. Nina says we need to start with naming our body dissatisfaction. And then we need to name the body management things we do (paleo, keto, raw food, Weight Watchers, …). This isn’t self-care.
So what do we need to do? “We really have to bring to the table more of deep listening. What does my body want and need? And sometimes to get to that deep listening, it takes some healing, it takes some work because many women, somewhere along the line, got divorced from their body.” Are you divorced from you body? Do you need to reconnect and build that relationship? That’s what we get deeper into.
We talk about:
The many things that make us feel separated from our own bodies—birth, nursing, medical crisis, trauma
Embracing the complexity, intricacy of who we are and honoring our aging and our changing body
There’s nothing wrong with saying that sometimes food is what I need for some emotional solace, but we need other tools beyond that
The importance of listening to what’s right for your body
Learning to shift that so that self-care actually doesn’t feel like another chore?
How the process of working with your relationship with your food and with your body opens a door to so much more
BIO
Nina Manolson is a certified holistic health coach, a board certified health & wellness coach, a certified Psychology of Eating Coach and Teacher, and an author. She is passionate about helping women end their food and body struggles and begin healthy, vibrant living that becomes a habit and easily fits into their busy lives.
LINKS
http://ninamanolson.com/body-peace 
 http://eatonpurpose.ninamanolson.com
Eating on Purpose with Nina Manolson
Doable Changes from this episode:
NAME BODY MANAGEMENT. Just getting aware of the body management thoughts and things you do is an amazing start. Just start noticing and calling out things like “I’ll start on Monday” or talking about your latest diet or “I’m cutting out carbs” or whatever it is. Say, “I see you body management.”
HELLO TECHNIQUE. Nina suggests that hand on the heart and hello goes miles towards starting the relationship with your body. She also talks about saying hello to food to get into a relationship with food. And then Hello pleasure. Use her Hello Technique to start to connect to your body and your food instead of just having rules about what you do and don’t eat.
ASK WHAT DO I NEED? Ask your body what it really needs? Nina notes that this is a tricky question and that learning to really hear what would make you feel most at ease, most at home in you body or nourish you the most is a process. But start by asking the question and seeing who shows up at the table, what answers you get.
59 min
March 29, 2019The Brave Art of Motherhood with Rachel Martin
The more real we are with each other, the more freedom we have.
– Rachel Martin
On this episode of the Plan Simple Meals Podcast, I’m really excited to talk with Rachel Martin, author of The Brave Art of Motherhood, creator of Finding Joy, and mom to seven kids. This is a must listen, so make sure to hit play above, or where ever you listen to podcasts! With 23 years of motherhood under her belt, she is still in still in the thick of it with her youngest being 7.

We started out talking about her book. Why brave? Rachel said she loves the word and, without realizing it, had been writing on her website about being a brave mother. The art part relates to sip and paint classes where everyone is aiming for the same image. In the end, everybody’s painting looks different but, nobody’s is perfect. Motherhood is like that. “We’re all trying our best being brave and we’re all living this motherhood story.”

Rachel points out that when we focus on the internal dialogue of, “Why am I not doing it as well as they are?,” we miss the real beauty of what we do. At the same time we are looking at others, we want to hide. When we do let people know what is really going on behind the scenes out of shame, we deny ourselves friendship, responsibility, and doing different things. So, part of my quest as a writer and as a friend to moms is to be like the realer we are with each other, the more freedom we have.

We talk about:

The difference between pulling it together to do what you need to do and hiding your real experience from everyone including your friends. It helps all of us when we can say, “I’m struggling.” What happens when we finally show what’s really going on (Rachel’s experience was an offer of help, instead of the shaming she feared)

How our experience and attitudes affect our kids, including their relationship to money

That it’s good to interact and play with our kids but, it’s not a necessity all day long.

How easy it is to lose yourself without even realizing it and the benefits of letting your kids see you cultivating yourself

That it’s okay to not know what you want to do and just try things (they way we encourage our kids to do)

Setting dates for accountability, having an accountability person, and celebrating microgoals

Recognize the power and bravery that take to stand up and do it again and again.

About Rachel

Rachel believes in the power of the human spirit to overcome, to thrive and to find deep joy and because of that she pours out her heart via these platforms: she is the writer behind the site FindingJoy.net and author of The Brave Art of Motherhood. Her articles have been translated into over 25 languages, her site reaches millions of visitors per month and she has a robust, engaged Facebook community.

Her content has been featured in The Huffington Post, iVillage, The Today Show, Star Tribune, PopSugar, Motherly, Parents, What to Expect, NBC Parents, Dr. Greene, and many more. She speaks worldwide encouraging moms and entrepreneurs to live each day with purpose and drive. Beyond that, she’s a single mom to seven, and calls Nashville, Tennessee, her home.

LINKS

The Brave Art of Motherhood

Rachel’s website
59 min
March 29, 2019The Brave Art of Motherhood with Rachel Martin
The more real we are with each other, the more freedom we have.
– Rachel Martin
On this episode of the Plan Simple Meals Podcast, I’m really excited to talk with Rachel Martin, author of The Brave Art of Motherhood, creator of Finding Joy, and mom to seven kids. This is a must listen, so make sure to hit play above, or where ever you listen to podcasts! With 23 years of motherhood under her belt, she is still in still in the thick of it with her youngest being 7.
We started out talking about her book. Why brave? Rachel said she loves the word and, without realizing it, had been writing on her website about being a brave mother. The art part relates to sip and paint classes where everyone is aiming for the same image. In the end, everybody’s painting looks different but, nobody’s is perfect. Motherhood is like that. “We’re all trying our best being brave and we’re all living this motherhood story.”
Rachel points out that when we focus on the internal dialogue of, “Why am I not doing it as well as they are?,” we miss the real beauty of what we do. At the same time we are looking at others, we want to hide. When we do let people know what is really going on behind the scenes out of shame, we deny ourselves friendship, responsibility, and doing different things. So, part of my quest as a writer and as a friend to moms is to be like the realer we are with each other, the more freedom we have.
We talk about:
The difference between pulling it together to do what you need to do and hiding your real experience from everyone including your friends. It helps all of us when we can say, “I’m struggling.” What happens when we finally show what’s really going on (Rachel’s experience was an offer of help, instead of the shaming she feared)
How our experience and attitudes affect our kids, including their relationship to money
That it’s good to interact and play with our kids but, it’s not a necessity all day long.
How easy it is to lose yourself without even realizing it and the benefits of letting your kids see you cultivating yourself
That it’s okay to not know what you want to do and just try things (they way we encourage our kids to do)
Setting dates for accountability, having an accountability person, and celebrating microgoals
Recognize the power and bravery that take to stand up and do it again and again.
About Rachel
Rachel believes in the power of the human spirit to overcome, to thrive and to find deep joy and because of that she pours out her heart via these platforms: she is the writer behind the site FindingJoy.net and author of The Brave Art of Motherhood. Her articles have been translated into over 25 languages, her site reaches millions of visitors per month and she has a robust, engaged Facebook community.
Her content has been featured in The Huffington Post, iVillage, The Today Show, Star Tribune, PopSugar, Motherly, Parents, What to Expect, NBC Parents, Dr. Greene, and many more. She speaks worldwide encouraging moms and entrepreneurs to live each day with purpose and drive. Beyond that, she’s a single mom to seven, and calls Nashville, Tennessee, her home.
LINKS
The Brave Art of Motherhood
Rachel’s website https://findingjoy.net/
Rachel’s Facebook page Finding Joy Blog
KonMari Method with Lilia Flores
Doable Changes from this episode:
CELEBRATE MICROGOALS. Set goals with dates and get an accountability partner to help you stay the course. But instead of just focusing on the big goal, take time to celebrate microgoals … little things that you do each day or steps toward your larger goal. Too often we focus on where we have not gotten, instead of all the amazing little things we have done.
BE IN THE MOMENT. We are so often focused on something other than now — the next thing we need to do or trying to get ahead or getting out of an uncomfortable moment. Practice being in the moment. Sit with the uncomfortable feeling. Just enjoy something without taking a picture. Set a timer and just be where you are.
DO ONE THING THAT MAKES YOU HAPPY. Rachel shared an Eleanor Roosevelt quote we both love, “Do something every day that scares you.” Her son pointed out to her that one of her own sayings was to do something every day that makes you happy. Grab your journal and set a timer. Just make a list of things that make you happy. Choose one thing you can you do today that makes you happy—and do it.
59 min
March 22, 2019Meet Brandi Bonica
Planning becomes a kind of self-care.
– Brandi Bonica

On this episode of the Plan Simple Meals Podcast, I’m really excited to talk with Brandi Bonica about her experience with the FLOW Planner and FLOW 365. A lot of the people in FLOW 365 are entrepreneurs of one sort or another, but Brandi is a nurse, saving people throughout the day. I love seeing how the FLOW process resonated with her and had all kinds of ripples in her life.

Brandi’s FLOW Situation

I have two little girls. One is just turning six and and four and a half. My main job, other than mothering, is being a critical care nurse. I work part time at a hospital, which is wonderful because I can save my career but also be home to raise my children. But, finding balance in that is hard as well so that’s why I leaned towards Mia’s FLOW 365.

Key Tool: Putting Your Planning Together

While Brandi has always been a planner, she had ideas in lots of places, and it was hard for her to see the big picture. FLOW 365 helped her because it looks at the whole day, the whole month, the whole 90 days in one book. It allowed her to refocus her goals, thoughts, and tasks. She says, “I was a little skeptical about leaving my old planner behind but now I look back and now this is my new bible.”

And it wasn’t just the plan, it was the journaling in the same space too, “It forced me to ask those questions or to refocus my attention on things that are important to me, but I’ve never been one to journal in the past so that was really great to have that all in one place.”

Key Tool: Finding Your Rhythm

“I was really able to look at my home-life balance and really make it predictable, make it automatic, so I didn’t have to reinvent the wheel every week…. I could spend my energy doing other things instead of constantly thinking about meal planning or shopping or planning for the kids.”

FLOW Changes

Food: I participated in a couple of weeks of making some freezer meals and putting them away so I would have a lighter load during dinner times or meal times. It started during the holidays, but I continue to use that little tool throughout the rest of the months, just based upon what my life was going to look like. If I know I have a really crazy couple of weeks coming up where I’m traveling or my husband is traveling or just late nights, I can pull one of those out at anytime. So I have made it kind of part of my weekly process is to look at a new recipe or reinvent an old one but to put one freezer meal away a week.

Lifestyle: Instead of trying to do all the things during the holidays, Brandi chose to be purposefully present, purposefully planning things that are important to us and just letting go of things that aren’t.

OM: Planning becomes a kind of self-care.

Work: Shifting to focusing more on work and tasks and how to time-block those things so they aren’t interfering with my home and personal life.

We also talk about:

Having more mental space for goals

The power of working with a group of women from different places and walks of life, all looking for more flow

Choosing a word for a 90-day cycle to set an intention or guide you

How tools that get you through a busy period like the holidays can benefit you throughout the year

How saying no, also allows you to say yes

Freezer meals and moving meals forward throughout the...
38 min
March 22, 2019Meet Brandi Bonica
Planning becomes a kind of self-care.
– Brandi Bonica

On this episode of the Plan Simple Meals Podcast, I’m really excited to talk with Brandi Bonica about her experience with the FLOW Planner and FLOW 365. A lot of the people in FLOW 365 are entrepreneurs of one sort or another, but Brandi is a nurse, saving people throughout the day. I love seeing how the FLOW process resonated with her and had all kinds of ripples in her life.

Brandi’s FLOW Situation
I have two little girls. One is just turning six and and four and a half. My main job, other than mothering, is being a critical care nurse. I work part time at a hospital, which is wonderful because I can save my career but also be home to raise my children. But, finding balance in that is hard as well so that’s why I leaned towards Mia’s FLOW 365.

Key Tool: Putting Your Planning Together
While Brandi has always been a planner, she had ideas in lots of places, and it was hard for her to see the big picture. FLOW 365 helped her because it looks at the whole day, the whole month, the whole 90 days in one book. It allowed her to refocus her goals, thoughts, and tasks. She says, “I was a little skeptical about leaving my old planner behind but now I look back and now this is my new bible.”
And it wasn’t just the plan, it was the journaling in the same space too, “It forced me to ask those questions or to refocus my attention on things that are important to me, but I’ve never been one to journal in the past so that was really great to have that all in one place.”

Key Tool: Finding Your Rhythm
“I was really able to look at my home-life balance and really make it predictable, make it automatic, so I didn’t have to reinvent the wheel every week…. I could spend my energy doing other things instead of constantly thinking about meal planning or shopping or planning for the kids.”

FLOW Changes
Food: I participated in a couple of weeks of making some freezer meals and putting them away so I would have a lighter load during dinner times or meal times. It started during the holidays, but I continue to use that little tool throughout the rest of the months, just based upon what my life was going to look like. If I know I have a really crazy couple of weeks coming up where I’m traveling or my husband is traveling or just late nights, I can pull one of those out at anytime. So I have made it kind of part of my weekly process is to look at a new recipe or reinvent an old one but to put one freezer meal away a week.
Lifestyle: Instead of trying to do all the things during the holidays, Brandi chose to be purposefully present, purposefully planning things that are important to us and just letting go of things that aren’t.
OM: Planning becomes a kind of self-care.
Work: Shifting to focusing more on work and tasks and how to time-block those things so they aren’t interfering with my home and personal life.

We also talk about:
Having more mental space for goals
The power of working with a group of women from different places and walks of life, all looking for more flow
Choosing a word for a 90-day cycle to set an intention or guide you
How tools that get you through a busy period like the holidays can benefit you throughout the year
How saying no, also allows you to say yes
Freezer meals and moving meals forward throughout the day

BIO
Brandi Bonica is a critical care nurse and the mom of two young children. She found a community and a new process to bring great ease to her life through the FLOW planner and FLOW 365.

LINKS
Planning for the Holidays with Angela Litzinger
Doable Changes from this episode:
CHOOSE A 90-DAY WORD. Some people choose a word of the year, but here, we like to think in 90-day seasons. Choose a word (or phrase like Brandi’s purposefully present) to guide you throughout the next 90 days. As you are planning or trying to make decisions about what to do or not do, lean into your word as a guide.
MAKE FREEZER MEALS. Set aside a few hours to prep a bunch of freezer meals. The time spent now will serve you later when life feels hectic. You’ll be able to have a healthy meal, even when you are very busy. And you’ll appreciate yourself for taking care of you and your family. The podcast with Angela Litzinger has lots of ideas to get you started.
PRACTICE SAYING NO. Decide how you want to feel and what you really want to do. Say no to everything else. Brandi noted that it was hard, sometimes, but it left room to say yes to things that were really important to her. Practice saying no to things, even if they sound fun or you have friends going, if they don’t serve you and your family.
38 min

About Plan Simple with Mia Moran

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Bestselling author and life coach Mia Moran serves up the Plan Simple Podcast for women who want to ditch overwhelm and wear all their hats with ease. Listen for inspirational interviews, informative…

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