Boost Productivity and Reduce Stress with A Few Good Habits

Willpower is not going to cut it. I actually have a chapter in the book called willpower won't keep you from eating the thin mints. It's like the idea that we just, we can't rely on willpower and motivation. And a lot of us, this is kind of how we were raised up. Like, if you want it bad enough, you'll make it happen. You'll commit, you'll have the motivation. But, you know, it's like New Year's resolutions. That's, you know, kind of where the chapter came from is like, by the time Girl Scout cookie season rolls around about February or March, we've lost our New Year's resolutions. We just can't stick to those habits because our motiv has waned. So if the only thing that you're relying on is willpower and grit and motivation, you're really setting yourself up to fail. And we need something else. And honestly, more than anything, a simple plan is the number one thing that's going to see you through. And again, it's something. There's a lot of research behind where they've looked at this. And you are three times more likely to stick to your goals if you have a simple plan versus just relying on motivation.

Hey. Hey. Welcome to the show. This is your host, Amber McHugh, and we have another incredible conversation coming up today. Have you ever felt like a lot of the productivity, the habit, the high performance strategies that are out there are dated, like, they're rooted in a different time, in a different era where we were focused on hustle and push and getting the most possible done all day, every day, work it, like, keep it going. I sometimes feel like the productivity and the habit strategies that are out there are a little bit for a generation at a time that I do not want to live, like, anymore. And this is why I am so excited for this conversation with Julie Lowe today. She has a new book out called A Few Good Habits. The premise of this book is many high achievers burn out because their personal and professional lives are out of alignment. But we don't have to sacrifice the quality of our work in order to have a fulfilling personal life and take care of your mental and physical health. All we need are a few good habits. And in this episode, she's going to share with us the top two habits that we can put in place right now. If you're like, okay, where should I start? Some low hanging fruit? The things that are going to have the most impact. We've got you. We've got you. I didn't ask her all of the habits that are in the book. We are going to have to read it. I would have went on and on with this interview because she's sharing the research and the science and specific strategies that you can start to implement. And I pulled through some examples from my life that I've got going on as well. And this is just going to be such a powerful conversation with Julie, who's an author, a speaker, a certified high performance coach who uses neuroscience back practices. She teaches ambitious professionals how to prioritize mindset, health and relationships without sacrificing quality. Her expertise has been featured on Good Morning America, Washington, the nationally syndicated TV show the List, Huffington Post, and Yahoo Life, to name a few. And like we said, first book, A Few Good Habits has debuted.

So.

So check it out. But first listen to this episode because we're going to get you the things you need to do first. Then we're going to be reading the rest together. Let's do it. Julie, welcome to the show. Thanks for being here.

Oh, thanks so much for having me. I'm excited.

Oh my gosh, absolutely. So am I. I am also so dang excited about your new book that you've got out. Congratulations.

Thank you. So excited.

Oh, tell us all about it.

Yeah, so called A Few Good Habits. My first book and it's definitely been a bit of a passion project. I'm such a book nerd. Always been a huge reader and always kind of wanted to write a book. But this is near and dear to my heart because it really kind of combines everything I've learned over the past few years about how to reduce stress and live in a way where you can be an ambitious person and go after your dreams and your big goals without burning yourself out. Which is what I was doing before I learned all of this.

Oh, I love this. And the name of the book, A Few Good Habits. Yeah, so dang good. I love this and even that name A Few Good Habits. Like, oh, this doesn't sound overwhelming. It doesn't sound like I have to do some big makeover of my whole life. Tell me about is there something to that name? Like how did you get there?

Yeah, really the whole point and purpose of the book was looking at the advice I was seeing out there because I was reading all this stuff about habits and high performance and also about stress reduction and how to really have good routines. And either everything was kind of conflicting or the big theme was it was so overwhelming. It was these like 20 step morning routines where you have to have two hours to do them. Or, you know, I was listening to this burnout class and the woman was like, well, the solution is you just sleep until your body's ready to wake up. And I thought, oh, what? You know, if I roll into School at 10am like with a latte and like, sorry, we just don't do alarms in our house. Like, we sleep till we're ready to get up. You know, you definitely have to be an entrepreneur and you definitely couldn't have kids for that to work. Yeah, it just, it's a lot of it's such nonsense. And then we beat ourselves up when we can't do it because we think like, well, they're doing it and it's working, I should be able to do it. And I thought, you know what, it doesn't have to be that hard. And so much of this is honestly common sense, the things that really make a difference. But it took me literally a couple of years reading all these books, going through all these coaching certifications to figure this out. I'm like, it shouldn't take thousands of dollars and years and training to figure out like, okay, how do I be a productive, ambitious person and not burn myself out, wreck my relationships, wreck my health because I'm burning the candle at both ends. So I really kind of sat down and was like, okay, what has worked, what hasn't? And boiled it down to just four good habits that are so simple, but they're so important and they have that trickle down effect where if you just focus on these, you get like more bang for your buck and it has this huge impact on your life.

This is so good and it's so true. I, I, I'm just running through so many people that I have talked to, said of the books about productivity, about habits, so many of them are not designed for the life that we are living. And it's so interesting because I've been reflecting a lot lately on how much sleep I am getting right now. And my daughters, my two youngest daughters are 12 and a half and nine and a half and I'm like, oh my gosh, they are, I did not sleep for years. And the toll that took on me and my body and it was impossible. Like, I go to bed, okay, can't sleep, Someone wakes up, you're taking care of things. I mean, every now and then they'll have a bad dream, they're coming into the room in the middle of the night and like, oh my gosh. And when that happens, I immediately am thinking back to all those years of no Sleep and juggling so much. And so I am so, so excited about this book and that you are bringing this voice and this perspective and filtering through, like, okay, here are the things that are going to get you the bang for your buck.

So if we're.

All right, all right, we're on, like, we're feeling this. Yes. A few good habits. Where do we start?

Yeah, I say if you have to start, you know, with this one thing, because I don't want you to try to, like, overhaul your whole life at once. Honestly, exercise is the number one habit that you can implement. And it's the one thing that kept coming up again and again and again in research. And I love it for two reasons. Number one, we know, like, common sense. Yes, we should get regular exercise. It's good for your health. It's good for your heart. Like, we know that. But I think the thing that really made it click for me and made it a priority was when I looked at how exercise helps stress and it also helps your brain. You know, it really enhances your learning. It makes you sharper, more focused, more productive, and it really is the number one thing you can do to reduce stress. And so when I was looking at these habits, all of them help reduce stress because, you know, stress is at epidemic levels. I'm somebody that's dealt with anxiety my entire life. I've just been anxious. I was a worry work kid, you know, so I've always kind of dealt with that. But, you know, globally, there was a research study that came out just about a month ago that said 83% of all workers were burnt out, had symptoms of burnout. In the past year.

Yes, I have been tracking and reading this burnout research. It is off the charts.

It is. And it just gets worse and worse. It's worse this year than it was last year. So I think, you know, like a lot of people, I kind of hit a breaking point during the pandemic. But unfortunately, we're still kind of like, digging our way out of it. And most people have not really gotten out of that stress cycle. And I think we really need practical, simple ways to tackle the stress and get things under control. For me, when I would look at exercise, it was easy for me to say, yeah, I know it's important to my health, but I'll do it later. And I would not prioritize it. But I really started looking at the benefits for stress reduction. How much better I felt, how much sharper I felt. Yeah, I had a lot of brain fog with my stress and anxiety and that would drive me crazy. Like that was unacceptable to me to not feel like really sharp. And when you really look at the research, it really can help reduce the stress because you're burning off that excess cortisol, adrenaline, you know, all those stress hormones that spike when we're chronically stressed. And it really does enhance productivity and creativity because you're helping regulate your brain. Kind of get your brain back online, you could say, because it's like our amygdala, our fear center of our brain, hijacks our higher functioning whenever we're really stressed. So yeah, exercise, number one habit you can start with.

This is so good. It's interesting. I'm sitting here reflecting because again, you know, with having little kids and having life come up and I personally, those listening know that I suffer from chronic migraines and there was a big season. I'm like, man, I want to get movement in. But it, it was painful, it was hard and you know, so I really struggled. And I started two years ago to just do the littlest bit of. I don't even call exercise, I call it movement because just let me get, let me move a little. We're going to start there. And then I started slow running. Have you heard of this?

No, I don't think I have.

Like it's a whole thing. And the person that kept coming up in my research, his first name was Jeff, I can't remember his second name, but slow running. And he's got like an I don't know, a very maybe early 1980s playlist soundtrack, not copyright. So it's all like original music with the dj. And he. But he was in my ears and he's got a routine that if you're doing 2 minute run, 1 minute walk or 3 minute run, 1 minute walk and then alternate as you build up. But he's in your ear. I was doing the two minute to start and he said if you can't breathe right now, you're going to too fast. Oh, thank you, Jeff. But I had to start so and fast forward two years. Like I am working out so consistently right now and I just told a friend like I can't go back. Like I my self care game and I've always had pretty strong self care but my movement was not consistent. And it's a game changer, it really is.

And again, it's one of those things you hear and it's common sense but it's just not always common practice. And I agree with calling it movement because a lot of times I'll Say exercise and people are like, ew, yeah, I don't really like that. I don't want to spend. And the thing is, it doesn't have to be complicated and it doesn't have to take forever.

Yeah.

Because a big excuse we'll use is like, well, I don't have the time and we are truly busy and it's hard to fit it in. But the good news is literally if you do two minutes of intense exercise a day, that alone, there's research behind this, it can have a huge impact on your overall health and your longevity. So not just a little bit, like it could add years to your life and it's reducing your stress. Call them exercise snacks. They're little bite sized bits of exercise just short, like five minutes or less. And I think if we can't get two minutes in, like, we really need to take a look at our priorities. If we can't do two minutes, but it doesn't have to take a lot, it's going to reduce the stress and you're going to have that higher impact on your health too. And then you can build up like you said, you started slow and then it kind of built on itself. It all adds up. Like we, we just can't take for granted that like compounding impact that it has, the compounding effect it has. And the other thing I'll say about movement is we also have to remember that we need to have regular movement during the day because then the trap that some people fall into is they'll go like, well, yeah, but I work out every morning, 20, 30 minutes, like, awesome. Do you then sit at your desk for like 12 hours and not really get up? And they're like, yeah. There's research that says you're almost, I don't want to say negating the effect of that workout, but it's not doing you as good if then you just sit the rest of the day day. That regular movement throughout the day, it can be literally. This doesn't have to be intense. It could be getting up, you know, walking down the hall, getting a drink of water, like letting the dog out, whatever. It can be just little. But we need that regular movement where we get up off our butts and out of our chairs. Because you know, for us with desk jobs it's so easy. Like you get into flow and you just realize like, oh shoot, like three hours have passed and I've not got my chair. So that's important to you to mix in.

So good. I was laughing because you're like just those Snacks. I was going so slow to start. My husband, like, should we just walk? It was like, no, you can walk, but I'm gonna stick to my regimen. And he would walk next to me.

It was low.

He's. He's six one, so he's got, you know, some legs. But the other thing, just this last weekend, another layering in story and mindset around this. The kids were gone, and I was like, all right, I'm gonna. I'm gonna do my workout. It was Saturday. Usually I work out with people, which keeps me motivated and helpful. I'm like, all right, this one's on my own. You know, I've got that whole to do list in there. I could just go do that. No, the to do list will still be there. Spend an hour. You're gonna be good. And. But there is a lot of mindset and, like, self coaching that goes in to shifting these habits and making them stick.

Yeah, yeah. To do lists are like laundry. Like, it never ends there. You're never gonna get done with it. There's always gonna be something there. True.

They just keep refilling.

Yeah, it keeps coming. So I think it does help to remember, like, the to do list really can wait. You can take that time because you're never gonna have everything done. Yeah, I just don't. I don't think it's possible, honestly.

No, it's like auto refill, the. Okay, so what else? What if there's. Okay. Like, I've got. I've got exercise down right now. I've got to coach myself to keep it going. And so for someone who's got exercise down right now, this is further motivation to keep it. What would be the next thing? We focus on sleep.

And, you know, you kind of mentioned that earlier. That's the other thing. And that is a tricky one, because when the kids are younger, my boys are five years apart, we say all the time. Like, one of them the other day was like, I didn't sleep well. And I'm like, I didn't sleep for 10 years. Right. They were terrible sleeper, and they were five years apart. So, yeah, we kind of throw that back all the time. So it's one of those things that can be hard if you have health issues. If you have a young child, like, it can be really hard. And I think a lot of us aren't doing everything we can to have good routines around our sleep. You know, there's the whole thing revenge bedtime, where especially moms, like, we stay up a little too late because it's like, nobody's touching me, nobody needs me. Like, have my real time. It is right? And we, and then we're like, oh crap, it's like midnight. And you know, I got to get up at 6 to get the kids off to school. So there's so much out of our control, I think sometimes when it comes to sleep. And like, are you really actually doing everything you can to prioritize your sleep? Because there's, it's a rare person, very, very rare person that doesn't need at least seven or eight hours of sleep. Fifty years of research on this one. Like, we just have to accept it at this point that we really do need that much sleep. We're not that unicorn that, that can function on four hours and not just function, but thrive. Like, nobody wants to just be dragging their self through each day. So really prioritizing that. And I kind of think of it like, you know, our kids have bedtime routines. We need them too. I don't think we outgrow it. So, you know, are you doing the basic things to make sure that you're winding down and setting yourself up to, to get that sleep and doing the basic math how you know what time you need to get into bed?

Yeah, I love this. This summer I, there was a, I didn't plan this, but there was about a 10 day window that I had and I was very lucky. I had less going on. The kids were not with me at this time, so. And my husband wasn't with me, so I didn't have to worry about anyone else. I love hanging out with them. I love going on vacations with them. But I was like, oh, I worry about, you know, you're just thinking about other people a lot when you're in community. And I happened to be by myself for this time. I went to bed at 8:30 every day. Yeah, sun's gone. We were, I don't know why the sun was setting so early.

We're playing. Yeah, exactly. I'm like, oh man. Okay.

And then I was like, that was so nourishing for me. And before my husband would say, go to bed early, we got to go to bed early. Can we go to bed earlier? And he was waking up at like 4 or 5. I'm like, you go to bed early? Yeah, I'm not waking up that early. Like this is not. And I'm still like, okay, now back in routine. I'm a 9:30, 10pm but that's getting me a solid eight hours. And Julie, to your point, I'm not waking up with an alarm. I'm usually waking up 30 minutes before my alarm now.

Yeah, because your body got what it needed.

Right.

So everybody's gonna be a little different. But 17 hours is pretty standard, you know, and we just have these habits, like you said, of, of not feeling like we need it and then staying up late or you know, like having a drink every night. Like a glass of wine or something.

Yeah.

And unfortunately it's a depressant nervous system depressant. So it might help you fall asleep faster, but it will actually make you be less restful. It can keep your heart rate up and your recovery is less. And so that was another thing. That was a hard, you know, kind of pill to swallow for me. But I was like whenever I started looking, especially at my sleep tracker and I could see it so clearly of like, oh, even if it's one drink for me, it may be different for other people. Even if I have just one glass of wine or something. It was really impacting my sleep and it was just not worth it to me. It was really just a habit, a wind down thing at that point anyways. So I was like, yeah, it's not worth it to me. So just these little adjustments that we can make to our routine can make a big difference. And then you feel it. Like you said, you just feel so much better and your brain is so much sharper and you have so much energy to get things done when you get that sleep.

It's so true. And on that note. Oh, I'm loving the banter. If you are listening to this, like doing a little self assessment as we go before you get the hands on the full book. But I can't drink anymore. And part of it was because migraines I was tying like okay. The histamines in wine were immediately within 20 minutes I would be in migraine land. And now I might have my mother in law makes a special drink for the holidays that I will have once a year if I'm with her. And then otherwise maybe a birthday tequila.

Yeah.

But with no sugar. Because start like so listening because I would get a headache migraines or the anxiety would just like my. I could feel the heart rate going. So hearing you say, I'm like yup, yup, yup.

Yeah. And just knowing yourself because you know that's the thing, like you have to make your own choices but just knowing your own self and being aware and paying attention. Because I didn't really pay too much attention to it before. I kind of saw the science on it because I thought, well, it's one drink. Like, does it really matter? Like, is it really gonna make that much of a difference? For me it did. And especially looking at my. There's something called an HRV score, a heart rate variance score. And it's really. If you have a sleep tracker, like an aura ring, it'll tell you that, and it's telling you how well you're recovering, how restorative is that sleep? And when I could look at that and go, okay, I got the hours, but I wasn't really recovering as well as I could have again, it just wasn't worth it to me. I feel like we have to have these things that just chip away at all this built up stress that we have, because most of us have been operating in chronic stress for years. And it just adds up sort of like sleep debt. I call it stress debt. Wow.

Yeah.

Like every day we have, it may be little stressors, but we have things on a regular basis that add up and up. Body keeps the score, the body holds on to that stress. And so you have to have that good baseline of exercise, sleep, things like that, and something that you're doing every day to chip away at that stress debt. You know, I think sleep and exercise are the top two. And then there's more you can do to build on that, but you at least need that for that baseline if you want to even be like a fully functioning human. I think, you know, to chip away that stress to, to really function.

I completely agree. Those stress levels and thinking about the burnout that we have faced and is rampant. Okay, we're gonna sleep, we're gonna get our movement in. Everybody let, you gotta let Julie and I know. We're gonna link up all Julie's contact info and I want you to tag us in as you start to implement these and start to build some new routines about these two. But as we think about reducing the stress, we're building habits around it to chip away at that and also sustain and keeping like. I'm like, okay, yeah, this is good motivation. This is a good reminder to keep those things going and that having an affirmation like this helps me lock in like the next day. Actually, one of the people I was training with, he's like, one more minute, you can do one more minute, you can do one more workout, you can do one more. And. And I like going a little slower because I want to come back back for another workout. I want to be back for another client call. Like, I just want to keep it, like, keep coming back but how do we sustain like willpower alone, Willpower through. How do we kind of sustain these habits so stress we don't have to have the constant recovery.

Yeah, for sure. Willpower is not going to cut it. I actually have a chapter in the book called willpower won't keep you from eating the thin mints. It's like the idea that we just, we can't rely on willpower and motivation. And a lot of us, this is kind of how we were raised up. Like, if you want it bad enough, you'll make it happen, you'll commit, you'll have the motivation. But you know, it's like New Year's resolutions. That's, you know, kind of where the chapter came from is like by the time Girl Scout cookie season rolls around about February or March, we've lost our New Year's resolutions. We just can't stick to those habits because our motivation has waned. So if the only thing that you're relying on is, is willpower and grit and motivation, you're really setting yourself up to fail. And we need something else. And honestly, more than anything, a simple plan is the number one thing that's going to see you through. And again, it's something there's a lot of research behind where they've looked at this. And you are three times more likely to stick to your goals if you have a simple plan versus just relying on motivation. They've been able to break it down in studies three times. And it doesn't have to be complicated. It's literally like if you're talking about working, working out, I'm going to work out for 20 minutes on, you know, Monday, Wednesday, Friday in my home gym. That's it. It doesn't have to be some complex like three page document or something where you figured all this out, when and where. What are you going to do? How long are you going to do it? That alone makes you three times more likely to actually stick with it. And then I think the other thing is having like a plan for failure or a plan for setbacks because life is going to happen. Like it's just reality. Like the holidays are going to roll around here, you know, we're going to get busy, there's going to be parties and things, kids going to get sick. Something's going to happen. So I think we just also have to plan in advance and kind of just know our lives well enough to go. Like, these are the things that tend to trip me up. It's when a kid gets sick, it's when I'M in a busy season at work, like whatever it is and have a really simple plan of like, okay, if this happens, if this roadblock comes up, then this is what I'm going to do. And then if you have that plan instead of just going like, well screw it, I'm just not going to work out anymore because it's raining and I can't run, then you're like, okay, I know what to do. If it's raining, then I, you know, hit the gym instead or you know, if my, my knees feeling bad today and I can't run, then I'm going to do yoga instead. So at least I get something done. But just that simple plan. So it's not just a screw it, I'm not doing anything. What can you do that's something to still meet your goal?

You know, I love hearing that research around the plans. I research the research around the plans also. And I agree it doesn't to be complicated when we're working on business strategy, goals and plans in our life either. And this is so cool that the there's research supporting three times more likely to hit your goals if you have a plan.

Yeah, I mean one study actually said the scientists literally said motivation had zero impact on whether or not you succeeded. Zero. They had a control group where they just told them to track their exercise. They had a group where they used motivation, like told them how it was good for them and all the benefits and they motivated them. And then they had a group where they used motivation and a plan. The control group and the motivation group performed exactly the same.

Oh my gosh.

The motivation didn't increase their odds of working out at all.

And how do we define motivation? Is that like I want to do it, I really want to do it. Like a deep desire? Like, yeah, that's the other thing.

I mean motivation, it can, it can be on a continuum, right?

Like yeah.

Versus like I've got to make this happen. The thing that I kept coming back to though is that even when I had a quote, quote unquote like big, why? Where I was like, okay, this is really important to me and I felt like really locked in. It doesn't seem to maintain over the long term because it can be this big nebulous idea, this, like that sounds really nice, like I'm doing it for the kids or like whatever, where you feel like that should be motivating. But in the day to day moments when we're tired and we're stressed, like it can be really hard to tap into that and so that's why I think when it comes back to having that plan and setting that standard, it just makes it so much more real, so much more concrete instead of this nice to have big nebulous idea, even if it feels good. This the why never quite saw me through. And I think it's because the why is basically motivation. It may be like capital W motivation, like a big Y instead of a little motivation, but when you, you're in it. Yeah, it just doesn't, it doesn't stick always.

It doesn't. And you know, as you were talking about that the just like anytime you have a goal or a vision or you've got a why, there are a lot of different ways that you could get there. And in the moment I, I'm totally thinking, like, I've used my why to change in the moment approach. Like, oh, I don't feel good. It's okay. It's important for my kids to see me rest also. Like, and this is true too, but sometimes they're not feeling good. It's like, no, you can still work out. It's not like, yeah, so. And there's a bit of excuse making in there, but you can also like shift the way that you get to the why or what supports the why, which is why I think if you've got a plan, like, no, this is what I'm doing. And yes, you can change the plan, but once you have defined it, it's like, no, that's what you're doing. And it's harder to come up with excuses like, well, I could change. Like, yeah, you can, but you still need to work out. So do like, it's harder to argue with the.

And I think if you have set a standard around it and you know, they'll often call this a floor and a ceiling where you have a minimum that you're going to do. Minimums can be really helpful to establish a habit. A maximum, a ceiling can be really helpful to cut back on things that are quote unquote, bad habits that you're trying to do less of. So for example, if you're like, okay, let's say, let's say you are sick, you know, and you really do need to rest. You're like, okay, well, but I have a minimum of a floor of like, I'm going to at least work out this many times this week, so maybe it's not today, but I'm going to make sure it happens another day. Or, you know, I'm not feeling my best, so I'm not going to do that really hardcore, like you know, 60 Minute Workout or something. But I am going to do like gentle yoga or something just so I'm getting up and moving during the day. So have that minimum of like, even if it's, you know, jumping jacks for a minute or like whatever it is, like have that minimum. That is a standard for you. And then like I said for quote unquote, bad habits where you're like, okay, I am on social media way too much. I'm glued to my phone. I really need to be on it less. Well, what's your maximum? Don't just make it like, oh, I need to use it less because then how are you going to measure that? Like you're not going to really know if you're being better about it. So be like, okay, maximum. I'm not on it any more than 30 minutes a day. That's your ceiling, right? So I think having these kind of like guidelines and guardrails can be really helpful because other times it's like, it's a one to have and it's just so nebulous. Like, I'm gonna work out more, I'm gonna eat better. Well, what does that look like? Like, when are you gonna do it? Exactly.

That's so good. That's actually one of my minimums is eat. You have to eat. I have to eat because that's what I get in the chair. And I'm like, I'm going, I'm fine. And then I just start now with my earlier to bed routines in my. I'm like, oh, I'm crumbling. Like in squishing, bending, like a slide.

Out of your chair sometimes. Yeah, exactly.

And even calls the other standard I'm starting to set because I'm in a different time zone. It's very easy for me to work late my time afternoon, late afternoon, Eastern or Central, when the team is still on and going in the us Us. And I've had to like, oh, I can't. I have consistently. Now of course there's the one off. But my routine needs to be that I'm going to wrap up at a reasonable hour my time each day. And I know the team's got it, but you know, you get working and it's fun to collaborate and I've got to wrap it up because it impacts everything it flows through. So it's one part going back to what you said at the beginning, knowing yourself and what are your structures and what are your needs. And I love this floor in the ceiling. Like this will be my minimum. Or I can adjust it to this day. I've got three days this week. Yeah.

And it may not happen today because, yeah, something, you know, life happens and we have to be somewhat flexible and we have to give ourselves a bit of grace. And like you said, if you're sick, like, yeah, you need to rest and don't let yourself, like, slip, slide. Because that's when we can really get off track. It's like we have one legitimate excuse that we fall off of our routine and don't get back up.

Yeah.

That's when we're really in trouble.

Oh my gosh. I am so dang excited. Notice I know you said there were four specific habits and we only got two of them.

Yeah.

This episode. And I'm not even going to ask the other two. Y', all, we are gonna have to go read A Few Good Habits, which is out now. Julie, what else is worth thinking about shifting? Just a few things that are going to have high impact. Is there anything that we have not covered that you want to make sure we are thinking about before we get into the book?

Just one sort of reframe that I love to use is that if you're somebody that thinks of yourself as like an ambitious, like, high performer, somebody that's up to big things in the world and you have found that you're really successful in your career and you're bringing a lot of like, intention and focus there and you're letting your personal life, whether it's your health or your relationships kind of slide. The thing that really was like a gut check for me was, was when, like, I'm actually not congruent. I consider myself this, like, high cheat, a high achiever, high performer. But I was only really a high achiever in my career and not so much in the rest of my life. And we sometimes think it's gotta be an either or, like, well, I'm really busy. It's a busy period, a busy season in my business or whatever. And like, I'm growing and like the other stuff will just have to wait. It can't wait forever. Right? And we're really being incongruent if we're not bringing those same high achieving attitudes and the same intention and focus and purpose us to the rest of our lives as we are to our career. So it's not about picking and choosing. It's really just about kind of like bringing more of the same attitudes that make us so successful in our careers to our personal lives. And that, to me, is the big shift.

Yeah, that's good. Right on over. How are you showing up in those areas that are important but then there are other areas that are important and are you giving them the same tlc?

Yeah. Yeah.

That's good. Julie, thank you for being here. Where do people find you?

So the book is out October 5th on Amazon. It'll be coming later to, you know, like bookstores and things, but for now it's available on Amazon.

Oh my gosh. Go get it.

Yeah. And you can find me at Coach Julie low dot com. The book is there and if you're not quite sold yet on the book, you can read the first chapter for free.

Amazing. Is that over on your website too? Coach Julie Lowe. Okay, coach Julie lowe.com l o w e will link it all up. This has been amazing. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.

Thank you so much. I had so much fun.