S1 E2 Simplify​-ing My Life | Podcast

H​i​, welcome to ​Simplify Simplify​-ing. If you're craving more time, energy and space, but simplifying feels too complicated, you've found your people.​ Simplifying can feel simpler, if you take small, messy steps. colour code the mental load on one page and outsmart decision fatigue.

​I'm Lisa, a designer, simplifying my life using the design process, self care fitness food style home admin work and love. Sharing the messy steps. This isn't about becoming Insta perfect, or organising the clutter into matching containers (though I do love a container), but swapping stress for simplicity and chaos for calm.​

If you’re anything like me, you’re constantly juggling, and carrying around a lot of mental load. You want to simplify your life but the idea of starting feels so complicated. I'm excited to share tools to design life simply and actually enjoy your glow up! Today, I’m going through my simplify design process live, and I hope it will give you a blueprint to start taking steps.

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​SIMPLIFY DESIGN PROCESS

​As a designer, I always start with a brief, defining the problem and the goal. I used to apply this process with clients. But I realised the ultimate design project was my own life!

The simplifying design process helped me tame my Olympic over-thinking, and get off the treadmill of burnout with Ehlers Danlos Syndrome chronic illness. It starts with constraints and dreaming.

I’m doing this live because I want you to see that even though I'm a designer, yoga teacher and health coach, I don't have this all figured out. Life is constantly life-ing, and simplifying is an ongoing process of checking in and refining.

CONSTRAINTS & CREATIVITY

​Every good design has boundaries, which allows creative solutions. I think in life, the main constraints, and possibly superpowers, are time, health, and money.

My current reality includes chronic illness, so in terms of those constraints I have lower health, more time and enough money. I need lots of rest, for my habits to be dialled in, and to be flexible and focused, as symptoms can be unpredictable. On the flip side because I'm fortunate to have freedom to focus on my health, and time to put towards simplifying. In different seasons of life, this will be different, with more freedom in some areas, and less in others.

Take a moment and think about your constraints. You might be the opposite with great health, but less time, working full time and managing kids. Designing life simply is about working with your constraints. With less time, simplifying is about letting go of non essentials. With less energy, it could be automating or outsourcing.

​DEFINING MY DREAMS

Dreaming is defining your why behind simplifying. I'm not simplifying to be minimalist, but so I can feel calm, with energy to focus on the things that light me up!

My simple feel-it-tingling-in-my-toes goal is to improve my health so I can make memories with my husband and loved ones. That’s my north star. I also dream of bringing Simplify Simplify-ing to life, because I've dreamed of it since uni! Being a writer, content creator, product designer, and expert in applying design thinking to life. Everything I let go, every piece of clutter, unnecessary email, complicated recipe, or good-girl yes, is to make space for that dream. I gotta focus on gentle and effective habits. No extremes, just consistency.

What are your big dreams? To feel present on the weekends? Is it to finally start that hobby? Is it to look at your calendar and feel a sense of calm? Pin that down.

ONE PAGE SIMPLIFY LIST

The centre of the simplifying design process is putting all my mental load on one page. I've been doing this since school with A4 printer paper, a black pen and seven highlighters, colour coding my life and what to focus on first to cut through the overwhelm.

Everything goes on the list in self care fitness food style home admin work and love. Find a natural shampoo, book that session with the personal trainer so I know what I'm doing, oh gosh the dentist, car service, broken tap, op shop donations to drop off, people to call, clothes to repair, subscription to cancel, birthday coming up, organise date with my husband, admin to do's and that work project. Everything.

As I designed and refined my One Page List over the years, it became easier to not only work through the list, but visualise the categories in my mind. It structured my thoughts and made me feel more on top of my life!

​If you'd like the Simplify in One Page PDF emailed to you, subscribe by email in the footer.

SIMPLE GLOW UP HABITS

Okay, dream locked in. Now I'm getting strategic because dreams are built on simple, doable habits. These are the habits I'm focusing on over the next few months:

• Simplifying self-care  Instead of sixteen step routines I'm choosing natural products that don't flare my immune system, booking health check ups, and remembering to breathe, even if it’s only two breaths when I make tea.

• Simplifying fitness I’ve invested in a training program by a PT that understands Ehlers Danlos Syndrome with strength, mobility, rest, and walking with my favourite podcasts.

• Simplifying food I’ve also invested in an appointment with Dietician for a simple meal plan that hits my nutrition needs around my sensitive digestion. This allows me to streamline our grocery shopping, pantry, fridge and kitchen, and throw diet rules in the bin.

• Simplifying style I'm committing to a comfy chic capsule wardrobe and actually choosing outfits every day, in my black, white, denim, gold, and pop of colour palette.

• Simplifying home I’m sparking all the joy, taking small steps to declutter each area, an easy to maintain, natural cleaning routine with my favourite brand Simply Clean, plus adding repair jobs to my One List.

• Simplifying admin & work I'm streamlining and automating if I can, setting up email filters, unsubscribing, and batching tasks. So I have time for the projects I can’t stop dreaming about ~ like Simplify Simplifying!

• Simplifying love This is the most important, my ultimate reason for simplifying. I’m simplifying love by so I can enjoy and have more capacity for the people I love.

TAME MY CALENDAR & INBOX

So much mental load can live in my calendar and inbox. Even though it can take some time to simplify, it pays off with daily calm and space. I love Google for email, calendar, files, reminders, documents, notes. I keep my digital life organised, colour coded and filed. I also keep blocks of time for rest, which is important for managing chronic illness, and all other life challenges.

​SIMPLIFY GLOWING UP

Over the next episodes we’re going to break down how I’m simplifying each area of my life, without it feeling complicated or overwhelming. I’m so excited to be simplifying life by design together. It's not about perfection, but making small steps, that lead to big changes, and your glow up!

THANK YOU FOR LISTENING

It's been a dream to start this podcast so I hope it inspires you to start simplifying! Next week, we're talking all things simplifying self care, from natural products and rituals, to mini breathing and journalling moments. Subscribe on Spotify so you don’t miss an episode, and let’s make simply sexy!

I'd love you to check out the Simplifying Cards, Simplify in One Page PDF (subscribe in the footer), Blog articles, and to connect on Instagram, Facebook or Pinterest.