Stephing Up

Spring starts this week, which means the annual panic is about to begin. And I've had a run of questions lately about my gym routine. What I eat, how I train, how I actually stay consistent.

 

That episode is coming next Monday. This week you're getting the part that makes it make sense.

 

Because it's so easy to look at someone now and assume they've always been this way. Naturally disciplined. A morning person. Someone who genuinely enjoys a vegetable. I was none of those things.

 

There was a period where the only liquids I drank were Coke or beer. Maccas for breakfast, pub lunch every single day, and I put on 25 kilos in twelve months.

 

By the end of this you'll understand why every health kick you've ever started fell over around week three, and why it had nothing to do with discipline.

 

This is for you if:

• You've started again on a Monday more times than you can count

• You've hit a goal weight before and somehow felt worse, not better

• You're waiting to feel motivated enough to begin

• You've decided everyone else was just born with more willpower than you

 

In this episode I get into:

• How I gained 25kg in a year, what my life actually looked like, and the moment that stopped me

• Losing all of it, and the habits I quietly swapped it for on the way down

• Getting the abs, hitting the goal weight, and being more miserable than I'd ever been

• The breaking point where I worked out none of it was worth it

• What it actually took to make this a lifestyle instead of a punishment I kept restarting

 

Next Monday: Part 2, the actual routine. What I do now, what I eat, and how it stays consistent.

 

Support: this episode discusses disordered eating. If you or someone you love needs support, Butterfly Foundation is at butterfly.org.au or 1800 33 4673, and Lifeline is 13 11 14.

 

The Steph Pase 2027 Planner Collection is live now. Blush, Blush + Black, Berry and Blue, across Signature, Daily, Business, Teacher and Pocket. Shop it at https://www.stephpaseplanners.com.au

 

If this one hits, there's a lot more of this story in my book, Mastering My Messy Life. The parts I wasn't ready to say out loud on a podcast in 2023 are in there.

• Penguin Books Australia: https://www.penguin.com.au/books/mastering-my-messy-life-9781761349256

• Paperback on Amazon: https://amzn.to/4uL4X26

• Audiobook: https://amzn.to/3NTTQn5

 

Follow Stephing Up

I'm Steph Pase, your (somewhat) organised bestie in your ears. This podcast is about growth that's messy, building a life that actually fits you, and what happens when life doesn't go to plan. We'll talk mental health, motherhood, business, ADHD and how to stop being such an asshole to yourself.

New episodes drop every Monday morning. So set your reminder. Pop in your headphones. Because we're Stephing Up together.

If today's episode helped, leaving a review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify is honestly the best thing you can do to help us reach more women.

 

Let's Hang:

• Stephing Up on Instagram: @stephing.up

• Steph Pase on Instagram: @stephpase_

• Steph Pase on YouTube: @stephpase

• Shop Planners + Organisation: Steph Pase Planners

• Shop Steph's book "Mastering my Messy Life": Penguin Books Australia

• Steph's Amazon Storefront: https://www.amazon.com.au/shop/justanothermummyblog/list/17TTU785IMM53

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

If you’ve made it here, you’ve probably tried about 14 planners before this, and you’re wondering if this is the year one will actually stick. Funnily enough, as the owner of a planner brand, I can relate. I spent a lifetime failing at planning. And that’s why I finally designed to create one that worked with my brain, not against it.

This is for you if:

• You've got a beautiful planner in a drawer with eleven months of blank pages behind a very good January
• You keep waiting for a Monday, or a first-of-the-month, or a new year to start
• You've decided you're just not a planner person, and you'd quite like to be wrong about that

In this episode I break down:

• Why you actually stopped using your planner: it isn't forgetting, it's avoidance, and where the shame comes from
• Be messy in it: why being scared to write in your planner defeats the entire point
• Don't wait until Monday: starting mid-week, using blank days as brain dumps, and using motivation the moment it shows up
• Habit stacking for planning: attaching your planner to breakfast, the school run, or anything you already do daily
• Two daily check-ins: two minutes morning and night, and why a closed planner is an invisible planner
• Top three and quick three: how to halve your to-do list, plus the time log that stops you underestimating tasks
• A type A brain in a type B body: the mismatch that made twenty years of planners fail

 

…

The Steph Pase 2027 Planner Collection goes live this week! Presale orders open at 7pm AEST, Friday 28 August. Join the waitlist now for a 30 min head start on launch night: https://www.stephpaseplanners.com.au/collections/planners

…

Follow Stephing Up

I’m Steph Pase, your (somewhat) organised bestie in your ears. This podcast is about growth that’s messy, building a life that actually fits you, and what happens when life doesn’t go to plan. We’ll talk mental health, motherhood, business, ADHD and how to stop being such an asshole to yourself.

New episodes drop every Monday morning.
So set your reminder. Pop in your headphones. Because we’re Stephing Up together.

If today's episode helped, leaving a review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify is honestly the best thing you can do to help us reach more women. 

…

Let’s Hang:

Stephing Up on Instagram: @stephing.up        

Steph Pase on Instagram:  @stephpase_         

Steph Pase on Youtube:  @stephpase.                

Shop Planners + Organisation: Steph Pase Planners    

Shop Steph’s book “Mastering my Messy Life”:    Penguin Books Australia 

Steph’s Amazon Storefront: https://www.amazon.com.au/shop/justanothermummyblog/list/17TTU785IMM53 

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

What if getting organised has less to do with discipline and more to do with making fewer decisions? If your brain feels like it has 47 tabs open at all times, you keep running out of toilet paper, and you’re still doing everything manually, this episode is for you.

Steph breaks down the systems and shortcuts she uses to make life run more smoothly. Because the goal isn't to become more productive. It's to free up your brain from all those tiny things you constantly have to remember.

In this episode:

• How to automate household essentials and subscriptions
• Setting up automatic bank transfers and savings accounts
• Creating a stash of cards, gifts and wrapping supplies for last-minute occasions
• Using iPhone Shortcuts to automate everyday tasks
• Smart lights and automating family bedtime routines
• Scheduling your robot vacuum
• Creating pre-set grocery lists in Woolworths and Coles
• Saving money with Everyday Rewards and ShopBack
• How Steph uses AI to reduce her mental load
• Why systems, not discipline, are the secret to feeling more organised

…

Follow Stephing Up

I’m Steph Pase, your (somewhat) organised bestie in your ears. This podcast is about growth that’s messy, building a life that actually fits you, and what happens when life doesn’t go to plan. We’ll talk mental health, motherhood, business, ADHD and how to stop being such an asshole to yourself.

New episodes drop every Monday morning.
So set your reminder. Pop in your headphones. Because we’re Stephing Up together.

If today's episode helped, leaving a review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify is honestly the best thing you can do to help us reach more women. 

…

Let’s Hang:

Stephing Up on Instagram: @stephing.up        

Steph Pase on Instagram:  @stephpase_         

Steph Pase on Youtube:  @stephpase.                

Shop Planners + Organisation: Steph Pase Planners    

Shop Steph’s book “Mastering my Messy Life”:    Penguin Books Australia 

Steph’s Amazon Storefront: https://www.amazon.com.au/shop/justanothermummyblog/list/17TTU785IMM53 

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week we're diving into one of the biggest things that can hold us back from becoming the person we want to be... our own self-talk. I've picked out some of my favourite moments from past episodes. Whether it's unrealistic expectations, fear of failure, or simply getting stuck in the same negative thought patterns, sometimes the voice that's sabotaging us the most is the one inside our own head.

In this episode I share:

Are you an asshole to yourself? A reality check. Have you ever stopped to think about whether you're actually being way too hard on yourself?

Let’s get over your fear of failing together: How unrealistic expectations and negative self-talk can quietly creep into our everyday lives.

Can your thoughts really change your life: Exploring the connection between our thoughts, our habits and the stories we tell ourselves every single day.

…

Follow Stephing Up

I’m Steph Pase, your (somewhat) organised bestie in your ears. This podcast is about growth that’s messy, building a life that actually fits you, and what happens when life doesn’t go to plan. We’ll talk mental health, motherhood, business, ADHD and how to stop being such an asshole to yourself.

New episodes drop every Monday morning.
So set your reminder. Pop in your headphones. Because we’re Stephing Up together.

If today's episode helped, leaving a review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify is honestly the best thing you can do to help us reach more women. 

…

Let’s Hang:

Stephing Up on Instagram: @stephing.up        

Steph Pase on Instagram:  @stephpase_         

Steph Pase on Youtube:  @stephpase.                

Shop Planners + Organisation: Steph Pase Planners    

Shop Steph’s book “Mastering my Messy Life”:    Penguin Books Australia 

Steph’s Amazon shop: https://www.amazon.com.au/shop/justanothermummyblog/list/17TTU785IMM53 

 

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Decluttering sounds simple—until you’re standing in front of a bursting wardrobe or a drawer you can’t open without something falling out. Then the overwhelm hits, it all feels too hard, and you just… give up. The biggest mistake people make is trying to declutter everything at once, without a system or clear decision-making rules.

In this best-of episode I’m revisiting three of your favourite Stephing Up episodes, packed with simple decluttering strategies you can start using straight away. 

In this episode I share:

• 3 steps from Chaos to Clarity
• Why decluttering can feel so hard, and how to let go of your belongings.
• Practical tips to maintain your organised home… and stay sane!

Your Decluttering Guide

Download your free decluttering workbook + 30-day Declutter Challenge here:  https://www.stephpaseplanners.com.au/pages/30-day-declutter-challenge 

…

Follow Stephing Up

I’m Steph Pase, your (somewhat) organised bestie in your ears. This podcast is about growth that’s messy, building a life that actually fits you, and what happens when life doesn’t go to plan. We’ll talk mental health, motherhood, business, ADHD and how to stop being such an asshole to yourself.

New episodes drop every Monday morning.
So set your reminder. Pop in your headphones. Because we’re Stephing Up together.

If today's episode helped, leaving a review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify is honestly the best thing you can do to help us reach more women. 

…

Let’s Hang:

Stephing Up on Instagram: @stephing.up        

Steph Pase on Instagram:  @stephpase_         

Steph Pase on Youtube:  @stephpase.                

Shop Planners + Organisation: Steph Pase Planners    

Shop Steph’s book “Mastering my Messy Life”:    Penguin Books Australia 

Shop Steph’s Amazon shop

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

I hate housework. I'm an absolute mess by nature, and I have been my entire life. The only reason my house functions is that somewhere along the way I stopped trying to fix myself and started building the house around the person I actually am.

Because everyone thinks organised people are disciplined. I'm not organised because I'm disciplined. I'm organised because I know exactly how useless I am at the tired end of the day... and I plan for her.

These are my actual top five home organisation hacks after ten years of being the organisation girl online. Every tip is Kmart-level cheap, fast to set up, and has survived two kids and an ADHD brain.

This episode is for you if:

• You're convinced you just need "more discipline" and then your house will finally stay tidy
• The floordrobe, the paper pile and the mystery fridge leftovers are all personally attacking you
• You want systems that survive kids, work and an ADHD brain... not a Pinterest pantry

In this episode I break down:

• The wear-again hook: end the floordrobe with a two-second home for worn-but-not-dirty clothes
• Family documents organisation: the viral suspension file box (passports, birth certificates, insurance... one findable spot)
• Kids artwork storage: one file per year per kid + the guilt-free artwork cull
• The catch-all basket system: one per person + our BBB rule (bedrooms, bathrooms, basket)
• Caddies for everything: morning, night, tan, makeup + the kids' hair caddy going 8 years strong
• The ‘Use Me First’ fridge shelf: the food waste hack worth ~$1,500 a year
• The 3 Doable Home rules: decide once · one motion · in sight or it doesn't exist

…

Follow Stephing Up

I’m Steph Pase, your (somewhat) organised bestie in your ears. This podcast is about growth that’s messy, building a life that actually fits you, and what happens when life doesn’t go to plan. We’ll talk mental health, motherhood, business, ADHD and how to stop being such an asshole to yourself.

New episodes drop every Monday morning.
So set your reminder. Pop in your headphones. Because we’re Stephing Up together.

If today's episode helped, leaving a review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify is honestly the best thing you can do to help us reach more women. 

…

Let’s Hang:

Submit your Hot Mess Hotline question here: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSeUnWTcPntVMCQrdu2wSFqFHEnQkggznr_23Ux9zDBNvlh78g/viewform?usp=publish-editor 

Stephing Up on Instagram: @stephing.up        

Steph Pase on Instagram:  @stephpase_         

Steph Pase on Youtube:  @stephpase.                

Shop Planners + Organisation: Steph Pase Planners    

Shop Steph’s book “Mastering my Messy Life”:    Penguin Books Australia 

Steph’s Amazon Storefront: https://www.amazon.com.au/shop/justanothermummyblog/list/17TTU785IMM53 

 

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The mid-year reset for messy minds: a doable life audit, goals check-in + my 3-day reset plan. Potato day included.

It's July. I don't know how that happened either, and I'd like to lodge a formal complaint. I've been doing this reset for years, and the messy-minds version is deliberately simple. Because if you're anything like me (ADHD, seventeen tabs open in my brain, big plans in January), you've probably tried one of those intense mid-year overhauls before. You do step one and then you bail. This one is different. You can do the whole thing listening to the podcast in the car. 

This is for you if:

• It's somehow July and you can't point at what the first six months even were
• Your January goals are sitting in a notes app, quietly judging you
• Every mid-year reset you've tried was so intense you did step one and bailed

In this episode:

• Mid-year review questions: the 7 questions I journal every July (including the one that stings... how much fun did you have?)
• Life audit made easy: 6 areas rated 1 to 5 — no wheel of life, no colouring in
• Start / Stop / Step / Stick With: the habits audit that actually changes something
• Goals check-in: the sunk cost fallacy + why your brain keeps you "safe" from your own goals
• The 3-day reset to book this month: mini reset day, get-shit-done day, potato day
• Routine rebuild: the bookends rule + the high-energy / low-energy versions

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Episode links:

Download your Reset workbook: https://www.stephpaseplanners.com.au/blogs/news/stephing-up-podcast-is-back

Hear the 3-day Reset Itinerary in S2, Ep1, Master Your Mess In 3 Days: https://podcasts.apple.com/au/podcast/im-back-master-your-mess-in-3-days/id1713434054?i=1000755432196

Hear the Routine Review in S2, Ep 6: https://podcasts.apple.com/au/podcast/when-you-dont-even-recognise-yourself-how-i-got-my-spark-back/id1713434054?i=1000762279899 

…

Follow Stephing Up

I’m Steph Pase, your (somewhat) organised bestie in your ears. This podcast is about growth that’s messy, building a life that actually fits you, and what happens when life doesn’t go to plan. We’ll talk mental health, motherhood, business, ADHD and how to stop being such an asshole to yourself.

New episodes drop every Monday morning.
So set your reminder. Pop in your headphones. Because we’re Stephing Up together.

If today's episode helped, leaving a review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify is honestly the best thing you can do to help us reach more women. 

…

Let’s Hang:

Submit your Hot Mess Hotline question here: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSeUnWTcPntVMCQrdu2wSFqFHEnQkggznr_23Ux9zDBNvlh78g/viewform?usp=publish-editor 

Stephing Up on Instagram: @stephing.up        

Steph Pase on Instagram:  @stephpase_         

Steph Pase on Youtube:  @stephpase.                

Shop Planners + Organisation: Steph Pase Planners    

Shop Steph’s book “Mastering my Messy Life”:    Penguin Books Australia 

Steph’s Amazon Storefront: https://www.amazon.com.au/shop/justanothermummyblog/list/17TTU785IMM53 

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Your acne isn't a mystery or a moral failing. It's a stack of small fixable things. Stop asking what's causing it... ask what you changed.

I've struggled with adult acne for a decade. Deep, cystic, painful acne all over my cheeks and jaw. The kind you can't cover, because you can hide the redness but you can't hide the texture. I'd avoid certain lighting. Some mornings I'd go to put my makeup on and it hurt so much I'd just cry.

I've spent thousands trying to fix it. Skin clinics, facials, peels, antibiotics, Roaccutane, expensive skincare, cheap skincare. If someone promised me clear skin, I tried it.

And a few weeks ago I woke up, looked in the mirror, and went: hell no. Not this again. But this time I knew what to look for. And the fix was so simple I couldn't believe it.

This week's episode is everything I wish I'd known years ago. The biggest shift was realising adult acne is almost never one thing... it's a stack of small things pouring gasoline on the fire. So now, instead of asking "what's causing my acne," I ask: "what have I changed?"

This is for you if:

• You've tried everything for your adult acne and it still keeps coming back
• You're sick of "just drink more water" advice
• You want the real, unsexy stuff that actually clears skin

In this episode:

• Adult acne is a stacking problem: ask "what have I changed?" not "what's causing it?"
• Pore-clogging ingredients hiding in your skincare, haircare, and washing powder
• Skin barrier damage: why burning your acne off makes it worse
• Blood sugar and hormonal acne: the breakfast mistake that broke me out
• My simple skincare routine and the one thing to start with today

…

Follow Stephing Up

I’m Steph Pase, your (somewhat) organised bestie in your ears. This podcast is about growth that’s messy, building a life that actually fits you, and what happens when life doesn’t go to plan. We’ll talk mental health, motherhood, business, ADHD and how to stop being such an asshole to yourself.

New episodes drop every Monday morning.
So set your reminder. Pop in your headphones. Because we’re Stephing Up together.

If today's episode helped, leaving a review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify is honestly the best thing you can do to help us reach more women. 

…

Let’s Hang:

Submit your Hot Mess Hotline question here: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSeUnWTcPntVMCQrdu2wSFqFHEnQkggznr_23Ux9zDBNvlh78g/viewform?usp=publish-editor 

Stephing Up on Instagram: @stephing.up        

Steph Pase on Instagram:  @stephpase_         

Steph Pase on Youtube:  @stephpase.                

Shop Planners + Organisation: Steph Pase Planners    

Shop Steph’s book “Mastering my Messy Life”:    Penguin Books Australia 

Steph’s Amazon Storefront: https://www.amazon.com.au/shop/justanothermummyblog/list/17TTU785IMM53 

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Nobody knows what they’re doing, and that’s the good news. This is the story of how I started a business backwards. I launched Steph Pase Planners from a camp table with postnatal depression and no business plan. 

If you'd told seven-year-old me, the one sewing Pokemon toys out of old bed sheets and selling them on the street, that she'd one day run a stationery brand, she'd have believed you (she had range). If you'd told twenty-five-year-old me, sitting in a one-bedroom unit covered in breast milk with postnatal depression, she'd have laughed in your face.

This is the story of how it actually happened. Not the highlights reel. The real one.

This episode is for you if:

• You've ever had an idea but talked yourself out of it because you "didn't know how"
• You're the multi-passionate one who's been called a jack of all trades like it's an insult
• You're tired of business stories that skip the embarrassing, 3am, crying-over-spilt-ink bits

In this episode I break down:

• Starting a business with no experience: why nobody, not even the founders you look up to, knows what they're doing
• Doing it scared: how you achieve things by doing, not planning
• Postnatal depression and the lounge-room blog that became Steph Pase Planners
• The camp table, 10,000 planners, and 3am shipping labels printed one by one
• ADHD, being a jack of all trades, and why the multi-passionate messes are winning now
• Why the mess Steph spent her life hiding turned out to be the map

…

Episode Links:

Shop Business Planners: https://www.stephpaseplanners.com.au/collections/financial-year-business-planners 

Shop Steph’s book “Mastering my Messy Life”:    Penguin Books Australia 

…

Follow Stephing Up

I’m Steph Pase, your (somewhat) organised bestie in your ears. This podcast is about growth that’s messy, building a life that actually fits you, and what happens when life doesn’t go to plan. We’ll talk mental health, motherhood, business, ADHD and how to stop being such an asshole to yourself.

New episodes drop every Monday morning.
So set your reminder. Pop in your headphones. Because we’re Stephing Up together.

If today's episode helped, leaving a review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify is honestly the best thing you can do to help us reach more women. 

…

Let’s Hang:

Submit your Hot Mess Hotline question here: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSeUnWTcPntVMCQrdu2wSFqFHEnQkggznr_23Ux9zDBNvlh78g/viewform?usp=publish-editor 

Stephing Up on Instagram: @stephing.up        

Steph Pase on Instagram:  @stephpase_         

Steph Pase on Youtube:  @stephpase.                

Shop Planners + Organisation: Steph Pase Planners    

Steph’s Amazon Storefront: https://www.amazon.com.au/shop/justanothermummyblog/list/17TTU785IMM53 

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Do the hard thing first: why you're not lazy, you're avoiding a feeling. The hardest part of any task isn't the middle. It's the start. That's the wall. I’m a chronic task avoider, and in this episode I’m sharing my tried and tested ADHD guide to beating procrastination and the avoidance loop.

This episode is for you if:

• You'll dread one tiny email and somehow clean the whole house to avoid it
• You've called yourself lazy your whole life despite having a full, busy, can't-sit-still life
• You've tried every new planner and schedule and still can't make yourself start

Here's what I break down in this episode:

• Procrastination is emotion management, not time management: why you're avoiding the feeling, not the task
• The avoidance loop: how "being busy" is actually how you dodge the thing that matters
• Open tabs: why unfinished tasks drain your battery all day (the 1920s study)
• Do the hard thing first: how to beat your own excuses to the door
• Three hacks to start: the doable start, name the feeling, and the 2-minute timer

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Episode Links:

Weekly Planner Notepad: https://www.stephpaseplanners.com.au/products/weekly-planner-notepad-undated 

2026 Planners: https://www.stephpaseplanners.com.au/collections/planners

…

Follow Stephing Up

I’m Steph Pase, your (somewhat) organised bestie in your ears. This podcast is about growth that’s messy, building a life that actually fits you, and what happens when life doesn’t go to plan. We’ll talk mental health, motherhood, business, ADHD and how to stop being such an asshole to yourself.

New episodes drop every Monday morning.
So set your reminder. Pop in your headphones. Because we’re Stephing Up together.

…

Let’s Hang:

Submit your Hot Mess Hotline question here: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSeUnWTcPntVMCQrdu2wSFqFHEnQkggznr_23Ux9zDBNvlh78g/viewform?usp=publish-editor 

Stephing Up on Instagram: @stephing.up        

Steph Pase on Instagram:  @stephpase_         

Steph Pase on Youtube:  @stephpase.                

Shop Planners + Organisation: Steph Pase Planners    

Shop Steph’s book “Mastering my Messy Life”:    Penguin Books Australia

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.