Want to know how to get more done without working more hours? This episode of Called to Both is the first one in a new series. As I step away for maternity leave with my third little one, I thought it’d be fun to invite guest hosts to take over the podcast. These are women that I have admired and learned from for a long time, and I’m so excited for you to get to know them.
This week’s guest host is Kyann Molina, a podcast host, systems strategist, mom of three, homesteader, and homeschooler. She’s here to share how you can double your productivity with little ones at home through simple rhythms. She drops some serious gems about how we can be called to both and what this season looks like as moms.
Listen to this episode now:
Search for episode 140 of Called to Both on your favorite podcast player!
Meet Our Guest Host: Kyann Molina
KyAnn Molina is a wife, mom of three kids five and under, and the host of the top one percent globally ranked podcast Simple Rhythms for Busy Moms. KyAnn helps entrepreneur moms create intentional daily rhythms and systems to help them feel balanced in managing motherhood, homemaking, and business.
She is passionate about helping moms calm the chaos and grow in finding their identity in Christ, not their to-do list. When she isn’t coaching moms to help them slow down and simplify, you can find her sipping on iced coffee pretty much any time of the year.
You Are Not Doing It Wrong
Do you feel like you’re always behind and you can never get on top of things? No matter how hard you try, you can’t seem to get a handle on your to-do list? It can feel like everyone has it figured out and you’re doing it wrong.
You are not doing it wrong. If you’re an entrepreneur and a mom, your hands are full. Kyann has lived through seasons where it felt like there was very little margin in her life.
After having three kids in three years, she struggled with postpartum depression and workaholic tendencies. She had already been an entrepreneur for ten years, and while she and her husband set up systems to help run their businesses, they didn’t have systems in place that prioritized their home life.
In the midst of postpartum depression, she realized that something had to change. She had to get out of the constant hustle-burnout cycle. She did the inner work that was needed to let go of workaholicism, and she worked on her systems.
As a result, Kyann created a four-step plan that helps her get more done without working more hours so she can prioritize her life at home. She also began surrendering her plans and beginning each day in prayer to build resilience against unexpected curveballs.
Step One: Process
Each evening, take five to ten minutes to think through the next day. Open your calendar and look at your appointments, meetings, and hard deadlines. I love to write down everything I have planned in a notebook or the Notes app on my phone.
Taking a few minutes to think through your day helps you get out of reactive mode and limit overwhelm. You’ll go into the next day feeling grounded and prepared.
Step Two: Let it Out
Step two is to brain dump everything that’s on your mind onto paper. Most of the time, the overwhelm that moms experience comes from having to make so many decisions and walking around with too much information on their minds.
Before you can create an effective system to be more productive, you have to get everything in your brain out. Once you have it all on a “brain dump list,” you can set it aside. You don’t have to stress about forgetting something because you’ve already put it somewhere that you can go back to later.
Step Three: Arrange Your Expectations
Go back to your brain dump list and ask yourself what you can realistically get done tomorrow. Moms have to-do lists that are miles long, and it’s impossible to get everything done in one day, so you need to learn how to identify your top priorities.
Once you decide what you can get done tomorrow, move everything else from the brain dump list to a separate list.
This step is not about lowering your standards, it’s about aligning your expectations with the season you’re in. It helps you show up for the commitments you’ve made and gain momentum with your priorities.
Step Four: Noted Priority
Take the list you just made and make a note of your top three priorities for the day. If you could only get three things from your list done, what would they be? Put those items at the top of your list, and then add space between those items and the rest of your list.
Visually breaking up your list like this will help you prioritize your top three items. You’re training your brain to accomplish your top priorities first before you move onto the rest of your list.
When you accomplish your top three priorities, you’ve won the day. The rest of the day can go off the rails, but you’ve gotten done exactly what you needed to do.
Small Rhythms Add Up
Writer Annie Dillard says, “How you spend your days is how you spend your life.” Establishing small rhythms that keep you grounded and help you stay flexible to life’s curveballs will not only boost your productivity, but they’ll also give you more time to spend with your family and create margin for rest.
Find it quickly:
3:12 – Meet KyAnn Molina
7:19 – KyAnn’s challenges in business and motherhood
12:38 – Starting the day with prayer
15:41 – The four-step P.L.A.N. to double your productivity
21:33 – What rhythms give back to your life
Mentioned in this Episode:
Website: kyannmolina.com
Podcast: podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/simple-rhythms
Facebook Community: facebook.com/groups
If you decide to use any of the links above and buy through them, I’ll receive a small commission back. All of those affiliate income commissions really add up over time and help generate revenue to help support this podcast.
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