Cultivating Successful Habits For Life and Business

Are you addicted to journals? You guys, I think I'm addicted to journals. Journals, notebooks, daily gratitude calendars. I love these things because I've realized the older I get and the busier I become in business, the more I need something to take me back to ground zero every day. To ground me in who I am, why I'm here and what I am doing. Because I'm telling you, those crazy voices in your head, they will get to you after a while. So when I first found this journal, which was first introduced to me through the Boutique Summit and the speaker gifts that we were able to give this year, and then also to some gifts to our team at the Boutique Hub, I first met Habit Nest and I was given the Gratitude Sidekick journal. And it's amazing. So we thought we have to have Habit Nest on the podcast, not just to talk about the journals, but what it takes to be a busy business owner and have successful habits for your life, for your business, for your health, for your family. And also how to sell journals and why journals are a great addition to sell in store or online or through live sales. So today you're going to get to meet Lindsay McDermott, who is from Habit Nest. Not only is Lindsay from Habit Nest, she also is a mom of six kids. So if anyone knows her stuff about living through chaos, it's her. I guarantee it. So today, get ready for an open and honest and behind the scenes interview of what it takes to be successful on a daily basis with habits and journaling, practicing gratitude, and also how to survive chaos with six kids. I know you're going to love this. Meet Lindsay McDermott from Habit Nest. Let's talk about your business strategy and the juicy details of what actually works from mainstream fashion to fashion on Main street and the entire ecosystem behind it. How do we scale your company and do it with the balance and the happiness that we all seek? Let's hear from those insiders, experts and strategists that actually make it happen. I'm your host, Ashley Alderson from the Boutique Hub and I can't wait to chat. Hey, guys. Welcome back to the podcast. I am pumped for this conversation today. Lindsay Lindsey McDermott from the Habit Nest and Gratitude Journals. Oh my gosh. We are going to talk about so many good things today. Thanks for being on the show.

Thank you for having me.

So, a little bit of backstory. We recently had a team retreat. Our leadership team had a retreat and we ordered some journals. Actually, these were at the Boutique Summit. The Boutique Summit was the first part of it as speaker gifts. That's what it was. And then you sent us more for our team. And so we handed these out at our leadership team meeting a couple of weeks ago. But being a part of the Boutique summit, we got to meet you and learn more about Habit Nest. And now, like, these are so great. I'm so excited to talk about journals today and habits today. And I feel like this has become. I don't want to call it a fad, but I feel like more and more people are just becoming aware of how important the daily practice is. And just as people become maybe more mindful, I'm curious just your thoughts on just this growing trend and just understanding of importance in journaling and habits and how this company plays such an important part of that.

Yeah, absolutely. It's such a great question. So over the pandemic, I think that's the biggest catalyst here. I mean, really, as we're getting older and as there's more, like, inputs in our lives that our parents and grandparents didn't have to deal with, we have to, like, really hone in these things that. That are second nature. But we also have all of these other things going on. And then with everybody, like, going to work from home and then having to deal with the chaos of maybe kids working, doing their schoolwork and stuff really, really became essential to a lot of people. We saw this shift, like, everybody was like, I'm in my pajamas all the time. And then after like, a month or so, people were like, this is not okay. I'm not good. My brain's not good. My body's not good. My entire life is chaos. And so that's when we really saw a really great shift with our journals being helpful to folks.

Yeah, that. That is such a good. No, that's such a good point. Like, I guess I never had just equated it to the pandemic, but I think that is such a good jumping off point where a lot of people did realize, oh, my gosh, I have to get back in char of my daily routine and my mental health. And I think post pandemic, we're all, you know, maybe everyone has had mental, like, just, like, struggled with different issues with mental health for a while, but now we're all like, okay, talking about it in a whole new light. And I think it's so great that we have tools like this that can help us manage on a daily basis. So take me back. I want to talk more about, like, just, like, what we can do in tangible ways on a daily basis to journal and just Focus on gratitude and daily habits. But before we do, take me back to the beginning of Habit Nest, how this company started and how you got involved with this company.

Yes, one of my favorite stories. So Habit Nest was founded by three dudes. They were all friends. One of the main catalysts for this was Mikey, and he goes by Mikey. Don't call him Mike. It sounds ridiculous. Mikey was, like, grew up the youngest kid, and his parents love him dearly, but to his admission, they didn't help him establish really good habits. He just kind of got to get away with a bunch of stuff. So by the time he reached college, he realized he had just a really poor foundation of how to be an adult and how to be happy in his own body and his own brain. And so he and a friend of his took his whole bedroom wall and turned it into a habit tracker. And they came up with different habits to track and keep each other accountable. And as they were going along, Mikey got a hold of these friends, and he was like, you guys, this could be something. Initially, we were going to. They wanted to do an app. They didn't realize how expensive an app was. So the journals were born. So every day in all of our journals is, like, content where you learn a little tidbit takes, like, three minutes to read. And then there's, like, guided journaling to solidify that habit. So that's what he, like, honed through. And it. He lost. He lost, like, a crazy amount of weight. Like, just really turned himself into a habit machine. And. Yeah. So we were founded in 2016, officially came out with our first journal, which was the morning sidekick. This is my son's copy, and he put our sticker on the front. But our morning psychic journal was our first one. I started here in 2019, so I was a foster mom, and I was also a manager of a health clinic, a medical clinic and a CMA there. And I just felt like I wasn't really showing up like I wanted to in my parenting life as well as my work life. And I was kind of rolling out of bed feeling gross, showing up with a poor attitude. And like, I. I struggle with depression, anxiety already, so this is just all compounding. So I found habitness. I found the morning psychic journal and started it. And it was immediately life changing. Immediately just having this. It's just this guidebook. Like, it's like this personal coach in your pocket. And then a couple weeks later, Mikey had asked on the Facebook group if anyone wanted to ghost write emails for them. And I used to be a professional Blogger. And so. And I kind of missed that. So I was like, I'll do it. And then like a couple months later, they're like, lindsey, no, you. You need to come over here. So I left this job that I thought I would never in a million years leave and took a leap of faith, joined Habit Nest full time. And I've not looked back since.

That is such a good story, Lindsay. I love that. And really, when you think about Habit Nest as a company growing a company, like, there is no better person to have on your team than someone that, like, eats, sleeps, and breathes your product. And because you lived it first, like, that's so powerful. So talk me through. You have the morning sidekick journal, I have the gratitude sidekick journal. And just like, you know, backstory, obviously you guys wholesale these in boutiques, can sell these and also use them for themselves. But talk me through, and I can even show you if you guys are listening to audio. Great. We also have this on YouTube so you can actually see, like, visuals of what we're showing. But talk me through some of the, like, the content in these. In these daily habit journals and what are, like, some of the most important pieces of this? Like, if you were going to hold yourself to a couple of questions every single morning to get started, what would they be?

Yeah, absolutely. So, like, it starts out with a really in depth introduction. We ask you about your why. Because you have to know why you're doing something or you're not going to do it. Talk about challenges, including being a parent, and then give you some ideas on, like. So this is the morning routine in particular, but there's a similar, similar formula in all of our journals. There's 14 different types that we have for basic different habits and as well as a fitness suite. So. And then in our habit journals, you get this content that I was talking about before. And yeah, just simple questions, not so much that you're going to get overwhelmed. Like in the morning journal here, we have magical moments. I experienced your morning routine for tomorrow, and then the next day, you fill out this bottom part and you say, you know, I'm going to check in with what I promised myself I would do up here, and I'm going to do my routine. And then like in the gratitude journal that you have, you can, yeah, you can peek at it a couple times a day, fill it out in the morning what you can, and then in the evening, reflect on your day. And all of those tracking questions that are in there, they shift throughout the book because we don't want folks to get bored. And there's little challenges, there's affirmations. The one thing I love about the gratitude journal, it's kind of my baby. I got to play a really big role in creating that one. But, um, yeah. Is because life is ever moving. Like, even if you finish that journal and you start it over again, and I've done this too, it is a different book because your life is never the same. So an affirmation might really resonate with you where it didn't the last time or whatever. So, yeah, it's really great. We have, we have one for sleep, we have one for budgeting. We have just all kinds of stuff. And we're really into like behavioral science. So there's all kinds of like cognitive behavioral therapy we've used with the tracking. And we like to talk about the science behind why you do things.

So yeah, I love that. And I can totally see what you're saying about how like every page is a little bit different. So I'm just going to read a couple of the questions that are in this gratitude journal. Obviously there's like affirmations and like daily. This could be affirmation or daily challenge or just like recommended reading for the day, which I think is great. The questions on this day in particular are what am I grateful for today? As this optional theme is opportunities. Because I think sometimes when you think about like, I'm going to just write down what am I grateful for? And you're going to write mom, my health, my family, like all these things. But I love that you can also theme it which challenges you to think about the nooks and crannies of what you're truly grateful for. There's a lot of those benefits I'm feeling and it's asking do you feel happier, more creative, increase confidence, feel lighter, more energized, or reduced anxiety? Great little check in. What big life event or goal is my happiness attached to? How can I take more responsibility for my own emotions and blame other people or external circumstances less? Oh, it's a powerful question. Mini gratitude action for tomorrow. Send flowers to a family member or friend just because I think these are such good, like little daily habit reminders. Do you find, like, when you think about this being science based, is there a period of time, like, do people have to do this daily for a certain period of time for a habit to really stick? Or what does the science say behind that?

I love your questions. The Habit Sidekicks. So we have two sectors of our company. The habit sidekicks are 66 days and the gratitude. You're talking about the morning. I was talking about sleep. Those are all 66 day journals. It takes about 60 days to establish a habit. We chose 66 because we're extra and. But no, you don't have to do it every single day. Like, I work here and it took me more like 90 days to do the morning psychic journal. But because I took weekends off, I gave myself a lot of grace, which is a hundred percent of what we're about. Like, this is not about being perfect. It's about progressing and doing what helps you in your life. We're not that, like, you know, push through the pain no matter what. Like, no, back off. Your body, your mind is telling you something. So as long as you're doing something, you're fine. And even if you do nothing for a day or two days or you screw up for a whole week, but you feel that pull back to this, this way of existing and you pick up your journal again. That's telling you something about yourself and, and how, how you're functioning. So yeah, it definitely doesn't have to be every day. It's helpful if you can do it every day or at least one part of it every day, but not necessary.

Yeah, I love that. Actually, ironically, Lindsay, I shared this on my Instagram stories this morning. I have to read this because I think it fits right in with what you're saying. So it says, can't do an hour workout, do 30 minutes. Can't do two sets of pull ups, do one set. Can't run a mile, do a half mile. There's always something you can do. Focus on that and build from there. Do what you where you can, when you can. Man, that, yes. And that's really what, like when I think about journaling and gratitude, like, that's really what it's about. Sometimes I think people are averse to planners or journals like this because they feel like, well, if I fail, it's just one more thing I failed at. I didn't do it today. It's just like one more thing to feel guilty about. Talk to me more about the science behind, like really what you focus on, you find more of and just looking like this, training your mind to seek the good and the positive in situations that we might even think are dark to begin with.

Right. And that's, I mean that's huge. That's a lot of what we do with both the fitness and the sidekick journals because. And we tell people and it's in the intro. Like there's, it's what we preach is tiny bites if you can't. Actually, one of our customers actually said this to me when I was struggling. I was like, you guys, I'm struggling with this today. And on our Facebook group, she was like, okay, if you can't get yourself kind of what you're saying, if you can't get yourself to go work out, tie your shoes. And it's about that next actionable step and realizing that you're human, realizing that there's a bunch more going into anything you do, into your entire existence, even if I don't know. So, yeah, the point of this book is not to get overwhelmed by 66 days. It's to take one day at a time. Those small bites, those small steps, not being perfect, having so much love and grace for yourself, that you're just a human who has all these human things going on, but also realizing that as humans, we have a lot of similar behavioral things. And you're special, but you're also not that special. So, like, figuring out how to, like, reconcile those two. Those two things.

When you think about morning routines and habits, like, besides the questions that are prompted in the journal, do you find, like, let's just say your most successful members of your community, are there other daily habits that they have in common? Morning habits, evening habits, daily habits?

As far as, like, specific routine stuff, I would say that the thing people have in common is trying to tackle something in the morning that makes the rest of the day better or tackling something at night that's going to make tomorrow easier. I think that's the biggest thing. And that one thing could be anything. Like, it could be a load of laundry. It could be meditating. It could be practicing gratitude. It could be exercising, like, for that any individual person, it changes. But just being aware of what is going to set you up for success for even the next hour, really, like, what is something that is going to help me in the future? Yeah, because that's what this is all about.

I think about that when I hear you say it. I think about it almost like a mother asking my kids, did you lay out your clothes for tomorrow, the night before? Because that's just, like, the one thing. Or when you get up in the morning, whether it's the kids or whether it's Eric and I making the bed. Like, making the bed is the first, most important thing we do to, like, signify. Because then you come back at the end of the day and your bed's made like, it looks nice. You've completed a task which is always A win in the morning. You specifically, like you're a mother with six kids, talk to me about parenting and how daily habits and routines and what you've learned in this journey has helped you as a parent as well.

Oh, man. I would say a lot of it has been about just modeling. For instance, my. One of my 12 year old twins and I are training for a Seattle to Portland bike ride. It's a 200 mile bike ride.

That's big.

It's crazy. I did it when I was 12 and 13 and he's doing it with me. But it's modeling this, this behavior of, okay, here is what we do to get to this next step of this. And a friend of mine actually pointed this out. I was saying, oh my gosh, I'm really proud of my son for being able to like, put in these miles for training and having this attitude. And he was like, Lindsay, like, you have modeled that because of the stuff you've established in your own life. Like, I like making my bed, like, setting myself up for success the next day. Like, I've noticed with him in the specific example, like, he'll be like, okay, mom, have we set out our bike clothes? Do we have our water? Do we have this? Like, it's just modeling all of that. And I don't know, I mean, they're all teens. They are most almost teens. So I'm not sure yet, like, what will stick. But I know I'm really confident the more that I show this preparation and this mindfulness of my own life that they'll bring it with them. So I don't have, I. I don't have a solid, solid aside from this specific Viking thing, but I'm seeing like little bits and pieces of it, like where they're figuring out, like, how their own life needs to look and what makes them happy in their existence.

Sometimes I feel like parenting, it's like someone could just take a book and slam me upside the head. Because we learn these things, we hear about modeling. And then until you just said that, I'm like, okay, now I'm like rifling through my own brain. What am I modeling for my kids right now?

Is it good?

Is it bad? Like, is it the right thing? So, I mean, I think that's a really good point that you make. It is all the above, like, how many, how many ways could I not screw them up? But I'm also wondering, you know, as you think about teenagers, right, and you're modeling, being mindful and journaling daily. These are such hard years These are such like ups and downs. I know there's people listening that have teens and preteens. Do you feel like there's a huge benefit for teenagers in getting started journaling to help them get through some of the highs and lows they're facing on their own? Or how would you approach that with a teen or a preteen who's maybe never journaled before and introduce that to them as a way to manage the highs and lows of emotions?

Yeah, I mean, I think it depends on the teen. Like, I personally have journals from kindergarten through now. My especially my boys are like, I'm not writing, I'm not doing anything. But at the same time, because I am checking in with myself, like with these journals and just my own research and self care, I feel like I'm able to verbally check in with them, which serves a good purpose. Also, I know that's not the best answer as I'm trying to sell journals, but I think that's the real answer is. And. But then there's my daughter who like, she expresses herself through drawing. Yeah. You just kind of figure out each kid's. It's not currency, it's just their, their mo. Like their way of existing. And maybe it's journaling, maybe it isn't. Maybe it's like I used to pass notes to my mom, like, because I was really uncomfortable with one on one interaction. I text a lot with my kids because there's not that, like I'm in your face asking you a question and I know some people poo poo that. But I think it's great, like as long as there's also like one on one conversation happening. But you can ask some hard questions on text and give them time to answer or choose not to answer or whatever. So yeah, I think it can take all kinds of forms. It's just about being aware of how the fact that they're going through stuff that doesn't necessarily have anything to do with you not taking anything personal, which I'm trying really hard not to do. That's hard, not perfect.

What other habits and daily routines have you established in your home that have been helpful?

So 1. So our house is really interesting. We adopted two of our kiddos in 2020 as teenagers, so we've had to really. I've had to shift my, like, I'm in control of everything to okay, this house can just mellow. So we have a really interesting home life where at any given point of any day or night, there's probably somebody awake and I've learned to just let that go. And I've said, as long as you are good and, like, you're doing well in school, like, your relationships are fine. You're not getting sick. Like, you can be in charge of your own existence, right? But because of this, I will wake up to a kitchen that is messy, which drives me crazy. So I have. But I realized that if I don't, like, wipe down counters and reset my living room at night, that anybody who's getting up at night to make top ramen or whatever is just be like, oh, it's a mess. It doesn't matter if I leave this packet right here, but if I have it looking nice, they're more likely to be like, oh, I need to pick this up and throw it away. Or I need to wipe off the milk from my cereal bowl. So just like, little things like that that I don't know, it's still not a perfect. There's still stuff on the counter, but whatever they're having, they're just doing their own thing.

So I'm just thinking about even, like, younger kids. Did you start with kids younger having, like, chore lists or to do lists or like, how did you start when they were like, real little with some of those daily routines besides modeling? Like, was there another task or strategy that you introduced them to?

Yeah, sort of. This is where I'm again, a different kind of parent. So I grew up with very strict chores and specific things I had to do, and I was paid for them, but it was like a job. And then I was managed by my parents. And I, because I have so many kids, I'm like, I don't need to be a manager. I refuse. Like, I don't want to do the power struggles. I don't want to, like, manage you. So my kids from a young age knew and know that if there's something they want to buy, they need to earn it. And so they will approach me to do chores. So I haven't established habits in that way. Like, everybody needs to do the dishes every night kind of thing. But naturally it's come about where they're learning that life skill and they're understanding. Like, they see my husband and I doing like, the dishes every night and clean the counters and doing whatever. So again, a little bit of modeling, a little bit of, like, natural consequence and real life. And we're just like you guys, we mentioned it. Like, you guys know you're going to have to do this when you leave the house, right? And we also, like, are like, okay, go take the garbage out. Like, yeah, we're not going to pay you for every little tiny thing that you do just to put that out there. But, yeah, I don't have any. Like, I don't have the house with the. The kids marching along, doing wonderful chores.

I don't know if any of us do. Oh, my gosh. We're all trying to survive, right? Oh, my gosh. Well, Lindsay, back to the journals. I always love this question. Thinking about people selling a product, right? What do the retailers who sell journals, the most successful ones, what do they have in common? What is it that helps retailers sell through products like this faster and better?

That's a great question. I think a lot of it is support from us. Like, we have a graphic designer on staff who makes just different. Oh, my gosh, I'm losing my train of thought. He makes our words, this stuff. Marketing materials. That's the word. Words are hard. He makes our marketing materials. He can do whatever I ask him to do. He's super talented. If there's any specific thing that a store would need, I can always approach him with it. Just giving them beautiful lifestyle photos and just product photos. I think a lot of it comes from us and our ability to tell people what they're selling. It also is really great once they open it up and they get excited and see what it is, because I think people assume, oh, this is a journal. Like, it's got lines and I'm going to. I don't need this. It's not. It's so much more. And we've sold 500,000 copies of this just direct to consumer. We're like, nowhere else. So we're just getting into this, like, selling retail, like, wholesale. So this is a new thing. I have a team, my graphic designer, one of the co owners, and I are coming up with some, like, retailer packages just to help, like, help the retailers know what to sell. And we're coming up with little videos that have, like, a QR code. So I think it's mostly on us. Like, it's our job to help the boutique owners and retailers understand what the product is. And above and beyond that, like, all they have to do is open it up and maybe even use one. And if anybody orders from us and wants one for themselves, I'll definitely throw it in, like, use it, get stoked about it and, like, it sells itself.

I love that. I would totally echo that because when you think about a journal, like, oh, I'm just going to open something, something up, and it has a bunch of blank pages, but the fact that this is very guided and step by step, this is more like you're walking someone through a guided meditation, which I think is really, really powerful. So, Lindsay, thank you so much. We will link up everything in the show notes today, but I just want to thank you for coming and not just sharing about the product because our team loves them, but just for sharing just daily success habits and strategies and being open and honest about your own life and your kids and parenting. Because so many of us, like, we're just hanging on by a thread with this word called balance, which I just think is total garbage. It doesn't really exist. We're just trying to do the best we can in all areas of our life and a lot of us have kids and we're trying to manage it all. So I really appreciate your time today. Thank you for being a part of the Boutique Hub and being on the podcast and I can't wait to show these off even more. Lindsey, thank you so much.

Thank you so much.

Hey guys, thank you so much for listening to this episode. We hope that you loved it. Don't forget to hit subscribe and leave a rating and review down below for a chance to be one of our featured listeners each and every week. For more information on our spirit of community over competition and how to access complete show notes and bonus downloads from our guests, head on over to the boutiquehub.com and join the community. We'll see you next week.

Sam.