Today, we’re talking about another common habit bottleneck: the chaotic routine.

This is a familiar one. Probably everyone can recognize the feeling of having a really chaotic day. Your day is running away from you and you feel like you you’re a side character in a dramatic play that you didn’t audition for.

Usually, at the end of the day, you’re exhausted and even though you may have done a lot of things and you were running from one place to the next, you don’t feel like you accomplished anything.

But I want to encourage you because establishing a routine that works for you can be done and it’s less complicated than you think.

In this chapter, we’re doing to talk about why chaotic routine is a common habit bottleneck and what makes this hard for introverts in particular. We’re going to talk about 4 reasons why being disciplined to stick to the same routine every day isn’t the best strategy for everyone and we’re going to look at a few examples to help you create a routine that works well for you.

I identified ‘chaotic routine’ as one of the common habit bottlenecks because I get a lot of questions related to this. A LOT of people struggle with feeling chaotic throughout their day.

People will ask me things like:

I want to learn a new language or I want to pick up an old (or new) hobby but how do I possibly fit that into an already packed schedule?

or My life is so chaotic right now that I feel like I don’t have any time for myself

or From the moment I wake up to the moment I go to sleep, I’m just running. I hardly have time to catch my breath.

My clients work from full time or part time home and in the office and for them, feeling chaotic with their day is very common because they’re handling work, family, house chores, birthday parties and what not all within the same time windows.

It can be hard to come up with a routine that works for you and for allows you to do your work well and be there for your loved ones.

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Related chapters: 044 | Introduction to habit styles: https://link.chtbl.com/whats-your-habit-style

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▶️ Get on the waitlist for the free gift bundle ‘Successfully planning your day for introverts: Discover a willpower-free way to learn healthy habits easily - no matter how busy or overwhelmed you are’: go.thefrankermessage.com/waitlist

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🎵 Andrés Rodríguez

Maybe you’ve experienced this before: You were doing well with your healthy habits but now things just feel hard. You start skipping a day. Then another day. Then another day. You start to feel guilty. You start slipping back into old patterns and unhealthy habits you wanted to change. It’s probably not the first time this has happened either and you start wondering what’s wrong with you and why you’re just not disciplined enough. A lot of people struggle with this situation. In fact, in a survey that I sent out, across platforms 44% of people said that falling into old patterns is the #1 reason why they can’t seem to make their healthy habits stick. This is related to the habit bottleneck that we’re going to talk about today: the off-the-wagon misunderstanding. And I’m not talking about drinking alcohol, as this expression is often used. Everyone has run into this habit bottleneck in their lives. It’s when things feel really chaotic and it’s really hard to stay on top of things. The off-the-wagon-misunderstanding can happen when you’re trying to learn a new habit, when you’re circumstances have changed or when you’ve done something that’s really drained your energy and you’re trying to keep everything together. In this chapter of the podcast, we’re going to talk about how this habit bottleneck can get in the way of managing your personal energy and what introverts can do to remove the off-the-wagon bottleneck.

00:00 Falling into old patterns is a common habit bottleneck

01:55 Welcome to productive introvert community

02:29 Feeling like you've fallen off the wagon?

04:25 Shifting your focus

06:32 Figuring out your Peace Of Mind area

09:08 Recharging your energy is key for introverts —

▶️ Suggest a topic for a future episode: ⁠https://forms.gle/tNjvPHBJBF4JucCn6⁠

▶️ Get on the waitlist for the free gift bundle ‘Successfully planning your day for introverts: Discover a willpower-free way to learn healthy habits easily - no matter how busy or overwhelmed you are’: go.thefrankermessage.com/waitlist

▶️ Blog and client stories: ⁠⁠https://www.thefrankermessage.com/blog⁠⁠

▶️ Follow me on LinkedIn: ⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/mariellafranker/⁠⁠

—

🎵 Andrés Rodríguez

When I decided to coach introverts working from home specifically around healthy habits, I thought I had a good idea of what a habit is.

But as I started to talk about this with people, I realized that there are many different ways that people think about habits and that I really didn’t understand what habits are as well as I thought I did.

After working with 1-1 clients as a productivity coach for a few years, I realized that if we paid attention to a few key habits for my clients, it brought them much more joy and peace of mind, and that ended up achieve what they wanted more easily.

That’s when I knew that’s what I wanted to focus on for the foreseeable future.

But, as I started to explore, there were also a lot of questions about habits.

I’m going to make a series to explore all these questions in different chapters of this podcast. I’ll create a playlist on YouTube with all the habit related chapters as I go, so check that out if you want to know more about sustainable healthy habits for introverts who work from home.

For example: Is a habit really automatic? Are some people just not disciplined enough to form habits? Why do we get stuck in bad habits? Not to mention, how long does it take to form a habit and what’s the best way to learn a new habit?

Today, we’re going to start at the beginning: what is a habit? we’re going to talk about how habits can help you to conserve energy, especially if you’re an introverts. And why we get stuck in a bad habits.

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▶️ Join my mailing list for research and tips about healthy habits to improve energy and focus twice a month - especially for introverts who work from home: https://go.thefrankermessage.com/free

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🎵 Andrés Rodríguez

Have you ever noticed that after a meal, you feel really tired and sleepy?

I used to think that this was just normal and that you feel sleepy after eating because your body was digesting food.

I also thought that feeling tired all the time was just what it was for me because I was an introvert and therefore I just had less energy than more extroverted people.

I couldn’t have been more wrong.

It turns out that high blood sugar was at least part of the reason why I felt tired all the time and why I had a lot of dips in my energy and my mood.

I’ve had issues with high blood sugar for some time.

When I was 24, my doctor told me that I was prediabetic and that it was only a matter of time before I got type 2 diabetes. At 27 weeks pregnant, I was diagnosed with pregnancy diabetes and needed to take insulin injections to protect my baby.

Thinking back, eating unhealthy food started in childhood for me and it wasn’t until my late 20s that this slowly started to change.

I’ve done quite a bit of research over the years about blood sugar, inflammatory disease like diabetes and healthy nutrition to try and get my blood sugar under control.

It’s a journey that I’ve been on for a while and one that I’m still very much still on.

Today, I’m going to share with you 3 things that I learned so far about blood sugar and eating healthy that helped me to have more energy, to have less mood swings and to have better concentration and focus.

At the end, I’ll give you two simple tips that you can use today to reduce spikes in blood sugar and improve your energy.

Topics:

- Why is blood sugar important?

- What is diabetes (difference between type 1 and type 2 diabetes)

- What does this have to do with energy dips, especially for introverts?

- 3 things that helped me to eat healthy and to have more energy & focus

1. Experiencing the positive effect of healthy nutrition

2. Changing my environment to change my habits

3. Starting small vs going all in: what works better for you?

+ 2 tips from Jessie, the Glucose Goddess, that you can start today to reduce spikes in your blood sugar

- Veggie starter

- Vinegar hack

▶️ Vote for your favorite topic and receive the new training for free: https://forms.gle/ByHcSXrNCGU3zfys7

▶️ Book a free call to learn if the No-Discipline Healthy Habit Roadmap for introverts is right for you: https://go.thefrankermessage.com/freecall

▶️ Join the mailing list for healthy habit research & tips in your inbox twice a month - especially for introverts who work from home: https://go.thefrankermessage.com/freegift

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Resources mentioned in this podcast (I’m not affiliated with any of the resources that I share on the podcast, I just share them out of personal interest and to give you context about these topics)

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📖 Jessie Inchauspé - Glucose Goddess https://www.glucosegoddess.com/

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🎵 Andrés Rodríguez

We all know that sleep is important. If you don’t get enough sleep, it impairs your mental ability, your ability to learn and remember things, it affects your mood and your body’s metabolism and immune system.

I got a request to talk about how to sleep better without sleeping more. So, let’s talk about that today!

I’ve had my share of sleep issues too. When I was in my teens and early 20s, I struggled with depression. Back then, sleep was an escape for me and I easily slept between 9 and 12 hours a day.

A few years later, the reverse happened: I started sleeping only 3-4 hours a day due to stress and that was one of the reasons I burned out when I was 27. My ability to focus and my energy levels plummeted and it took me years to build them back up.

When I had my first child, sleep became a whole new chapter and it was a challenge to get enough sleep with interrupted nights and nightly feedings.

I’ve tried a lot of sleep tips to try to get my sleep back under control and to sleep better.

A lot of introverts think that if they could only sleep more, they would stop feeling so tired all the time, but sleeping more is only one piece of the puzzle. If you want to get better sleep, there are a few other things to think about.

Today I’ll share 5 things that I’ve learned about sleep that have helped me to sleep better and to feel more energized during the day without actually sleeping more hours.

Why is sleep important?

Why a lot of introverts struggle with sleep

Number 1: Simply focusing less on sleeping more

Number 2: Training myself to fall asleep quickly

Number 3: Keeping a regular sleep schedule

Number 4: Paying attention to what I do during the day

Number 5: Intermittent fasting

— Related episodes:

Everything you need to know about introvert hangover: https://link.chtbl.com/068-introvert-hangover

— Resources:

📖 Want to Fall Asleep Faster? Military Pilots Use This Hack to Sleep Anywhere in 2 Minutes or Less by Melanie Curtin on Inc.com: https://www.inc.com/melanie-curtin/want-to-fall-asleep-faster-combat-pilots-use-this-hack-to-get-to-sleep-in-2-minutes-or-less.html

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▶️ Book a free exploration call to discover a will-power free way to have more energy and focus, no matter how busy or overwhelmed you are: https://thefrankermessage.com/freecall

▶️ Join Productive Introvert Letters for weekly insights from a certified habit coach for introverted solopreneurs: ⁠go.thefrankermessage.com/subscribe⁠

▶️ Blog and client stories: ⁠https://www.thefrankermessage.com/blog⁠

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—

🎵 Andrés Rodríguez

There are a lot of studies that show that the placebo effect is real. “Fake” treatments can actually make you feel better. Interestingly, they can also make you feel worse. The nocebo effect is also real. Is this all just perception? Is it the power of the mind? Or is there something else going on? ▶️ Join Productive Introvert Letters for weekly insights from a certified habit coach for introverted solopreneurs: ⁠go.thefrankermessage.com/subscribe⁠

▶️ Blog and client stories: ⁠https://www.thefrankermessage.com/blog⁠

▶️ Follow me on LinkedIn: ⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/mariellafranker/⁠

— Resources mentioned in this podcast (I’m not affiliated with any of the resources that I share on the podcast, I just share them out of personal interest and to give you context about these topics) 📖 https://dash.harvard.edu/bitstream/handle/1/3196007/Langer_ExcersisePlaceboEffect.pdf 📖 https://www.sydney.edu.au/news-opinion/news/2019/11/20/you-know-medicines-placebo-effect-now-meet-the-nocebo-effect.html 📖 https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9399436/ 📖 https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/advances-in-psychiatric-treatment/article/rethinking-placebo-in-psychiatry-the-range-of-placebo-effects/48E57FE6798A75E5C019B0CAC3213B38 📖 https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6176716/ 📖 https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/advances-in-psychiatric-treatment/article/rethinking-placebo-in-psychiatry-the-range-of-placebo-effects/48E57FE6798A75E5C019B0CAC3213B38 📖 https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamapsychiatry/article-abstract/210854 —

🎵 Andrés Rodríguez

In today’s chapter, we’re talking about time blocking. We’re diving into how to make a plan for your day to help you stay focused and energized, especially if you’re an introvert.

If you're interested in time management, or if you're struggling with procrastination, you might find time blocking helpful. Time blocking is like making a plan for your day. You plan your day by setting aside certain times to do certain things. Like saying: “I’m going on a call from 2pm - 3 pm, then I’m going to read a book from 3 pm -4 pm.

But there’s more than one way to do it.

I've tried time blocking many times over the years, and it was tough to find a method that worked for me. One that helped me make the most of my time and energy. As an introvert who runs a business from home and has a family, managing my energy is really important.

But time blocking can be hard to do.

Some of the introverts in Productive Introvert Community that I’ve spoken with say that they start using methods like time blocking and feel good at first because they're getting things done. But after a few days or weeks, they find it hard to stick to their plan. It takes up a lot of energy. They feel tired all the time and they start procrastinating on important things. Then they think time blocking doesn't work and they stop using it.

Often, the problem is that they're being too strict with how they plan their day.

They make a plan for the day and force themselves to stick to it no matter what. Or they try one way of time blocking and if it doesn't work, they give up planning their day all together.

Today, I’m going to tell you about 3 ways to time block to help you feel more focused and energized, especially if you’re an introvert.

The 3 time blocking methods are: activity time blocking, energy time blocking, and theme days.

I use these methods myself and they work great for me. But remember, what works for me might not work for me. That’s okay!

I'll also give you tips that can help you to plan your day in a way that works for you.

— ▶️ Book a FREE call to explore if one of my coaching programs for introverts is a fit for you. I'll help you identify the habit bottleneck that's getting in your way right now and show you the best next step for you so that you get focused in the next 3 months: go.thefrankermessage.com/freecall

▶️ Join Productive Introvert Letters for a summary of new podcast episodes right to your inbox twice a month: https://www.thefrankermessage.com/

▶️ Blog and client stories: ⁠https://www.thefrankermessage.com/blog⁠

▶️ Follow me on LinkedIn: ⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/mariellafranker/

—

Resources mentioned in this podcast (I’m not affiliated with any of the resources that I share on the podcast, I just share them out of personal interest and to give you context about these topics)

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📖 Time blocking 101 by Jo Johansson (covers basic time blocking, day theming, task batching, time boxing, Elon Musk’s 5 minute time blocking, Eisenhower matrix & Pomodoro technique: https://resourceguruapp.com/blog/time-blocking

📖 Time blocking by Laura Scroggs (covers task batching, day theming & time boxing): https://todoist.com/productivity-methods/time-blocking#what-is-time-blocking

📖 How to boost your productivity with time blocking by Rachel Hakoune (covers traditional time blocking, pomodoro technique, time theming, energy management time blocking & batch time blocking): https://monday.com/blog/productivity/increase-your-productivity-with-time-blocking-a-step-by-step-guide/

📖 Elon Musk’s 5-minute rule: Block your time like Tesla’s CEO by Timeular: https://timeular.com/blog/block-your-time-like-elon-musk/

📖 Why theming my das has made me a better dad by Mike Vardy: https://productivityist.com/theming-days-made-better-dad/

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🎵 Andrés Rodríguez

This week we’re talking about dopamine.

I feel that there's a bit of confusion about this topic. Maybe you’re wondering what does dopamine do? How does dopamine make you happy? How can I increase my dopamine? And is too much dopamine bad for you?

It's really normal to be confused about this topic.

If you search online about dopamine and how it influences us, you might find things describing how dopamine makes you happy, how to hack dopamine to be more disciplined and motivated and how you can boost dopamine to be happier.

But you may also find resources saying that we’re addicted to dopamine, that instant gratification is ruining our lives and that you should go on a dopamine detox or a dopamine fast and delay gratification.

So, yeah… If you’re confused about this topic, you’re not alone…

I want to demystify this a little bit for you today to help you better understand how the brain works and how you can stop fighting and instead start working with your natural processes more.

Calling dopamine the happy hormone is a bit misleading and I’m going to tell you why.

There are two sides to this:

1. what is dopamine and what does it have to do with happiness? and
2. what do we humans actually need to be happy?

— Resources mentioned in this podcast (I’m not affiliated with any of the resources that I share on the podcast, I just share them out of personal interest and to give you context about these topics)

📖 All in the mind podcast: Pleasure, pain, dopamine and the brain with dr. Anna Lembke: https://www.abc.net.au/listen/programs/allinthemind/pleasure-pain-dopamine-and-the-brain/14043764

📖 Everything you need to know about introvert hangover (what is it, the science, and how to recover): https://link.chtbl.com/068-introvert-hangover

📖 Veritasium: What the longest-running study on happiness reveals: https://youtu.be/vSQjk9jKarg

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Learn more from me about healthy habits for introverts

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▶️ Book a FREE call to reveal Your Habit Style and walk away with a 1-page pdf about your personal habit building process: ⁠https://calendly.com/thefrankermessage/reveal-my-habit-style⁠

▶️ Join Productive Introvert Letters for weekly insights from a certified habit coach for introverted solopreneurs: ⁠go.thefrankermessage.com/subscribe⁠

▶️ Blog and client stories: ⁠https://www.thefrankermessage.com/blog⁠

▶️ Follow me on LinkedIn: ⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/mariellafranker/⁠

—

🎵 Andrés Rodríguez