Create your own custom garden journal, adding your own personal touch using found materials. By putting creativity and intention into your garden journal, you’ll find yourself more enthusiastic and more inclined to fill its pages.
Journaling has become part of my morning routine as a way to start the morning off intentionally.
I know I’m not the first person to rave about journaling. In fact, I’m hopping onto the bandwagon rather late. I transcribe manifestations, gratitude, and ideas all into the journal. Then at night, I review them rather than scrolling on my phone.
For me, journaling isn’t a New Year’s goal or a way to practice creative thinking. It’s my way to slow down, which feels like a rebellion in this day and age.
This practice also applies to the garden. Creating a garden journal is a beautiful way to add intention to your garden. It’s a place to gather knowledge, but also musings and feelings that come from the garden.
This project is an excerpt from The Wild & Free Garden, my new book about creating a garden using found materials and free resources. It’s a book that will inspire you to grow a deeper connection to your garden, your community, and yourself. The book releases February 24, 2026, and is available for pre-order now!
The Neuroscience Behind Garden Journaling
Have you noticed that when you first discover something, you suddenly see it everywhere? Like when you spot a new-to-you plant at the garden centre, and the next day you realize it’s growing in all your neighbours’ gardens.
That’s your reticular activating system (RAS) at work, the network of neurons in our brainstem that acts as a gatekeeper for your awareness. It helps us notice what matters based on our beliefs, thoughts, and experiences.
You can train your RAS through activities like journaling. When you write down your goals, intentions, and garden design ideas, you’re giving your brain clear instructions on what to prioritize. Journaling strengthens this effect by filling your RAS with information about what deserves attention.
When we combine this with gardening, there’s an additional benefit from the therapeutic act itself. Gardening helps us focus on the present and notice signs of growth and progress. We pay attention to what’s resilient and renewing, which rewires our thought patterns to help us see what’s becoming rather than what’s missing.
Garden journaling doesn’t just help us find what we’re looking for; it also helps reset our intentions and reconnect us with nature.
Create a Wild and Free Garden Journal
My mother’s garden journal, which I discovered after she passed away, was a modest spiral-bound school notebook. As I thumbed through the pages, I saw her garden come together with interesting magazine and newspaper clippings pasted alongside her notes. It was beautiful; a keepsake of her garden that was well-organized and deeply personal, yet it didn’t cost a penny to create.
Create your own garden journal with a found notebook and some decorative pressed flowers or images to make it your own. The act of creating a garden journal allows us to create a place for planning. The act of personalizing it, just as my mother did with her pasted articles, fosters value and attachment to the planning process and the record-keeping.
Dedicate as much time to the project as you like, but the more personal it is, the more you will treasure it for years to come.
Materials
Make It!
You probably have a notebook in your home or office that could serve as a garden journal. Often, we have books where we’ve jotted down a few notes or started a journal but never completed it; simply removing those pages can give us a fresh start. Or perhaps you have been given a promotional notebook from a business or event. If you don’t have something that can be repurposed, many other people do, so look for them at Little Free Libraries, paper and book recycling depots, second-hand stores, and free groups.
Once you have your notebook, take some time to personalize it. Decoupaging the cover with pressed flowers brings us into our creativity and attaches a value to the notebook that no money could buy. This decoupage project could also be done with printed photos, images from seed catalogues, or old gardening books. The instructions are the same whether you use flowers or paper.
Arrange pressed flowers or other decorative elements on a sheet of paper to map out the final design. When you’re happy with the arrangement, add another sheet of paper on top and flip the flowers so they are upside down. This will help to preserve the layers of the design while you apply the underside to the cover first.
Allow to dry, then apply two to three thin layers of the adhesive over your decorated cover, allowing each layer to dry completely before applying the next.
Create sections for different garden areas or seasons, or just begin filling the pages with notes. It will come together as you work through your garden. Add plant lists, interesting articles, seed packets, and growing tips with lots of room for notes, sketches, and pressed plants.
Expert Tip: Add the date at the top of each page you write and leave room for notes in the following years on those same pages. This way, you can see how your garden grows not just over the season, but over the years.
Fill Your Journal!
For inspiration on what to fill your gardening journal with, check out these posts. Better yet, order your copy of The Wild & Free Garden!
A city girl who learned to garden and it changed everything. Author, artist, Master Gardener. Better living through plants.
The German arms maker and the Romanian defense company signed a deal Monday to form a joint venture, with Rheinmetall holding 51% and Pirochim owning the remainder, Rheinmetall said.
TOKYO—President Trump said Japanese auto giant Toyota is poised to invest $10 billion in auto plants in the U.S., coming as Tokyo released some details about the over half a trillion dollars it has pledged to invest in America as part of a trade deal.
Trump made the remark while addressing U.S. military personnel in Japan, saying that Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi told him of the carmaker’s plan.
GURUGRAM, India—When the Trump Organization in April announced another luxury real-estate project in India, Eric Trump gave a shout out to his local partners for helping accelerate the brand’s expansion.
“We’re incredibly excited to launch our second project in Gurgaon,” Eric Trump, who runs day-to-day operations, using the former name for the city near New Delhi. “And even prouder to be doing it once again with our amazing partners.”
SALEM — An ordinance signed into law by Mayor Dominick Pangallo Monday eliminates Salem’s minimum parking mandates for new multifamily housing developments with three or more units.
The ordinance, intended to address the hundreds of unused parking spaces throughout the city, requires new multifamily housing projects receiving a Site Plan Review to identify how they will address residents’ transportation needs by submitting a “Transportation Demand Management plan.”
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WASHINGTON — In past Olympic Games held on American soil, sitting presidents have served in passive, ceremonial roles. President Trump may have other plans.
An executive order signed by Trump on Tuesday names him chair of a White House task force on the 2028 Games in Los Angeles, viewed by the president as “a premier opportunity to showcase American exceptionalism,” according to a White House statement. Trump, the administration said, “is taking every opportunity to showcase American greatness on the world stage.”
At the White House, speaking in front of banners adding the presidential seal to the logo for LA28, Trump said he would send the military back to Los Angeles if he so chose in order to protect the Games. In June, Trump sent the National Guard and U.S. Marines to the city amid widespread immigration enforcement actions, despite widespread condemnation from Mayor Karen Bass and other local officials.
“We’ll do anything necessary to keep the Olympics safe, including using our National Guard or military, OK?” he said. “I will use the National Guard or the military. This is going to be so safe. If we have to.”
Trump’s executive order establishes a task force led by him and Vice President JD Vance to steer federal coordination for the Games. The task force will work with federal, state and local partners on security and transportation, according to the White House.
Those roles have been fairly standard for the federal government in past U.S.-hosted Olympic Games. But Trump’s news conference could present questions about whether a president with a penchant for showmanship might assume an unusually active role in planning the Olympics, set to take place in the twilight of his final term.
There is ample precedent for military and National Guard forces providing security support during U.S.-hosted Olympic Games. But coming on the heels of the recent military deployment to Los Angeles, Trump’s comments may prove contentious.
French President Emmanuel Macron was a key figure in preparations for last year’s Paris Games, including expressing his vocal support for the ambitious Olympic opening ceremony plan to parade athletes down the Seine River on boats. Many officials were concerned about potential threats along the 3.7-mile stretch, but authorities responded by increasing security measures that included up to 45,000 police officers and 10,000 soldiers.
The task force, to be housed within the Department of Homeland Security, will “assist in the planning and implementation of visa processing and credentialing programs for foreign athletes, coaches, officials, and media personnel,” the executive order said. City officials have expressed concern that the president’s border policies could deter international visitors and complicate visa processing for Olympic teams.
Tensions with L.A.
More concentrated involvement from Trump could spell further strain with Los Angeles city officials, who sought to make nice in the wake of devastating January fires, but have fiercely bucked Trump’s recent immigration offensive. Trump swiped at Bass during his remarks on Tuesday, calling her “not very competent” and criticizing the pace of city permitting for fire rebuilding.
“We’ve had a productive working relationship with the federal government since Los Angeles was awarded the Games in 2017 and we will continue preparing with all partners to host the best Games in history – Games that will benefit the entire nation for decades to come,” Bass spokesperson Zach Seidl said.
Known for her coalition-building skills, Bass is not, by nature, a public brawler. In the aftermath of the Palisades fire, she appeared determined to preserve her fragile relationship with the president — and the billions of dollars of federal aid her city was depending on — responding diplomatically even as he publicly attacked her.
But that determined cordiality crumbled when masked immigration agents and military personnel descended on the city. With troops stationed in the city and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and other federal authorities arresting undocumented immigrants at courthouses, car washes and Home Depot parking lots, Bass took on Trump forcefully.
At news conferences and in interviews, she accused the president of waging “an all-out assault on Los Angeles,” inciting chaos and fear and using the city as “a test case for an extremist agenda.”
Casey Wasserman, chairman of LA28, attended the White House event, thanking Trump for “leaning in” to planning for an Olympics that was awarded to Los Angeles during his first term.
“You’ve been supportive and helpful every step of the way,” Wasserman said, noting that the Games would amount to hosting seven Super Bowls a day for 30 days. “With the creation of this task force, we’ve unlocked the opportunity to level up our planning and deliver the largest, and yes, greatest Games for our nation, ever.”
Wasserman will also have a delicate political balancing act, managing a Games in a deep-blue city with a famously mercurial Republican president in office.
President Trump holds a full set of medals from the 1984 Olympics in Los Angeles during Tuesday’s event at which he announced an executive order regarding federal involvement in the 2028 Los Angeles Games.
(Julia Demaree Nikhinson / Associated Press)
A Hollywood scion and sports and entertainment mogul, Wasserman has long been a prominent Democratic donor known for his close relationship with the Clintons.
But in recent months he has diversified his giving, with hefty donations to the National Republican Senatorial Committee, the National Republican Congressional Committee and House Speaker Mike Johnson’s leadership fund. Wasserman has publicly praised Trump’s commitment to the Games and traveled to Mar-a-Lago in January to meet with the incoming president.
Presidents have long played a role in the Games. In 1984, Ronald Reagan formally opened the Summer Olympics in Los Angeles, becoming the first American president to do so. Reagan attended several Olympic events, but repeatedly emphasized the federal government’s role was focused on security, according to the White House Historical Assn.
The Olympic Charter requires the host country’s head of state to officially open the Games, but before Reagan, the duty had been fulfilled by local political leaders or vice presidents representing the president.
Ever-tightening security
The federal government has historically provided significant funding when the Games are hosted on U.S. soil, with financial support going toward both security and infrastructure.
Leading up to the 1996 Games in Atlanta, the federal government spent $227 million on security and transportation, playing “very much a junior partner” to the Olympic Committee, then-Vice President Al Gore said at the time. Still, a bombing at the Centennial Olympic Park during the Games that summer shook the security establishment.
The 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City were the first Games to be classified as a “National Special Security Event,” the government’s highest security rating for any event that designates the U.S. Secret Service as the lead agency for implementing security. That standard has remained in place for U.S.-held Olympic Games ever since. The Secret Service will also lead security coordination for the 2028 Games.
The federal government was particularly involved in the Salt Lake City Games, which were held just months after the 9/11 attacks.
Los Angeles leaders are actively involved in the security planning, and are currently in negotiations with LA28 for the use of the city’s police, traffic officers, and other employees during the Olympics and Paralympics.
Security, trash removal, traffic control, paramedics and more will be needed during the 17-day Olympics and the two-week Paralympics the following month.
Under the2021 Games agreement between LA28 and the city, LA28 must reimburse Los Angeles for any services that go beyond what the city would provide on a normal day. The two parties must agree by Oct. 1, 2025, on “enhanced services” — additional city services needed for the Games, beyond that normal level — and determine rates, repayment timelines, audit rights and other processes.
Overtime for Los Angeles police officers, and any other major expenses, would be acutely felt by a city government that recentlyclosed a nearly $1-billion budget deficit, in part by slowing police hiring.
Wilner reported from Washington, Wick and Nguyen from Los Angeles. Times staff writer Dakota Smith contributed to this report.
The City Council on Tuesday evening, July 22, is scheduled to hear a presentation on the navigation chart for America’s oldest seaport over the next decade as Mayor Greg Verga announces the completion and official adoption of the city’s Comprehensive Plan for 2025 to 2035.
If you want to learn more about the plan, the Community Development Department is scheduled to present it to the City Council at its at 6:30 p.m. in the Multipurpose Room of the Rose Baker Senior Center, 6 Manuel F. Lewis St. The meeting is being carried on Zoom; the link is https://gloucester-ma-gov.zoom.us/j/86257093786.
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Do you have trouble transforming talk → action? Learn about Personal Growth Initiative (PGI) and the essential components behind a lifelong mindset of self-improvement.
Personal growth doesn’t just happen — it requires intention, planning, and action. While many of us may talk a lot about the things we want to change in our lives, transforming that talk into action can be a real challenge.
Psychologists have identified Personal Growth Initiative as a mindset that bridges this all-too-common gap between “talk” and “action,” helping individuals actively and consciously pursue their development in a clear and deliberate way.
As a reader of this article, you likely already check off some boxes for Personal Growth Initiative. The average person doesn’t consciously seek out knowledge about psychology and self-improvement, so you’re in a unique and special group of people. By virtue of being here right now, you are demonstrating a rare initiative.
Now let’s dive more into what PGI is all about.
Personal Growth Initiative: The 4 Core Components
Personal Growth Initiative (PGI) is a set of beliefs and attitudes that help individuals intentionally engage in their own growth process. It consists of four main components.
Readiness for Change
The first step is to be ready to make a change. A person can have all the help, guidance, and resources in the world at their disposal, but it all amounts to nothing if they aren’t ready to make that final leap. The basic truth is we often need that proverbial “fire under our butts” before we take conscious action. Once you’re ready, the next step is to translate that readiness into a clear plan of action.
Thought Patterns:
“I am aware of when I need to make a change.”
“I take every opportunity to grow as it comes up.”
“I am willing to step out of my comfort zone to achieve growth.”
“I take an active role in my self-improvement.”
“I don’t sit and wait for change to happen.”
Example: Imagine facing burnout at work. Instead of feeling trapped, a person with a high readiness for change may recognize this as a signal to re-evaluate their work habits or career path, making room for new habits and healthier routines (such as sleep, diet, exercise, or leisure time).
The second step is to create realistic plans for your growth. An idea remains just that until you put it on paper and hold yourself accountable. Having a clear vision of your future and where you want to go, then setting small and realistic goals that are within your reach, can help propel you forward in a natural and sustainable way.
Thought Patterns:
“I set realistic goals for what I want to change about myself.”
“I have a specific action plan to help me reach my goals.”
“I break down larger goals into smaller, manageable tasks.”
“I regularly review my progress and adjust my plan accordingly.”
“I stay committed to my plan even when faced with setbacks.”
Example: Let’s say you want to improve your physical health or lose weight. Instead of jumping into an unsustainable workout routine, a planful person might research the best exercise programs, consult with a trainer, and create a structured plan that best fits their lifestyle, personality, and fitness goals.
Another essential feature of the Personal Growth Initiative is actively seeking help and guidance from outside resources, including learning materials like articles and books, as well as reaching out to friends, mentors, or counselors. This is one of the most common ways people handicap themselves because they wrongly believe “I have to do everything on my own,” when the truth is there are plenty of resources available to take advantage of (including this website).
Thought Patterns:
“I ask for help from others when I need it.”
“I do my own research to learn more about new topics.”
“I like reading articles and books to learn new things.”
“I’m not afraid to reach out to a therapist or coach if I really need one.”
“I connect with communities or groups that align with my values and goals.”
Example: During a stressful life transition, like a divorce or job loss, someone with strong PGI would actively seek out the right books and resources, such as counseling or career coaching, to navigate the situation more smoothly and effectively.
Intentional Behavior refers to the daily or weekly actions you take that are purposefully directed toward achieving your goals. Unlike Readiness for Change, which is about being mentally prepared and open to growth, Intentional Behavior is about translating that readiness into consistent, goal-directed actions. It’s the final step between “talk” and “action.” For example, Readiness for Change might mean deciding that improving your health is necessary, while Intentional Behavior is actually getting up every morning to go for a jog or preparing a healthy meal.
Thought Patterns:
“I turn my intentions into actions.”
“I take small steps forward every day.”
“I build new habits into my daily routine that bring me closer to my goals.”
“I know what steps I can take to make intentional changes in myself.”
Example: After recognizing the need for change and making a plan, intentional behavior would involve committing to daily or weekly actions—whether it’s setting aside time for self-care or networking to explore new career opportunities. Each small step compounds over time, leading to greater progress and resilience.
Each of these components supports and strengthens the next, creating a clear pathway from “ideas” to “actions.”
“Readiness for Change” sets the foundation by keeping you open to new paths and patterns in life, ensuring that you are mentally prepared for growth and change when needed. From there, “Making a Plan” gives direction and a direct course for action, “Using Resources” provides support, knowledge, and inspirational boosts, and “Intentional Behavior” turns plans into consistent daily and weekly action. Together, they create a feedback loop that encourages continuous growth and resilience.
For example, someone with high Readiness for Change will see a major setback, like losing a job, as an opportunity to learn new skills or change their career path. They use Planfulness to plot a course of action they can follow, like going back to school or learning a new trade, seek new resources like career counseling, job fairs, or apprenticeships, and take consistent daily action, such as taking classes, practicing new skills, or sending out resumes – all of which help them not only cope with this major life change, but also thrive and ultimately find a better path forward in the long run.
One study published in the Journal of Happiness Studies found that PGI is positively related to adaptive coping styles and self-efficacy, suggesting that those who actively engage in personal growth are better equipped to handle negative and stressful events more effectively, because they approach life’s obstacles with the mindset of growth and learning rather than resignation and defeat.
If you aren’t ready to make a change – or you are completely resistant to change – it’s unlikely to happen. This includes therapy and coaching, where studies show that “motivational readiness” can be a contributing factor to how effective a therapeutic intervention is. This aligns with common factors theory, where one of the most important features of successful therapy and counseling is “shared goals” among therapist and client – you have to be on the same page about where you are and where you want to go.
Overall, PGI fosters a mindset that not only supports mental health and well-being but also builds long-term grit and resilience. By approaching challenges with intentional growth, individuals are more prepared to navigate life’s obstacles, setbacks, and inevitable ups and downs.
Embrace the Will to Improve
The best way to prove your commitment to something is through your actions.
Ask yourself, “What is the smallest step I can take today to start moving in the right direction?” Maybe it’s joining a gym, starting a new hobby, setting a 10-minute daily reading habit, or subscribing to our newsletter for more actionable tips and advice on self-improvement.
Personal Growth Initiative is about more than just wanting to improve — it’s about intentionally working toward becoming a better version of yourself. Start today by taking one small step, however small it may be.
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While some financial advisors recommend the 50-30-20 rule, where 50% of your pay goes to fixed expenses, 30% to discretionary and 20% to savings, putting aside just 10% of your take-home pay for savings is OK, too. “We can be as efficient with that 10% as we can possibly be… meaning we could put your savings in a diversified portfolio where the expected returns are going to be higher and over a longer period of time.”
Ayana Forward, a financial advisor and founder of Retirement in View in Ottawa, acknowledges how hard it can be for single women—and all women—to create a plan to invest, particularly early in their careers. “You have all kinds of competing priorities,” she says, including possible childcare expenses, a mortgage, car payments and school debts. However, Forward encourages women to begin saving anything they can as soon as possible to build habits and benefit from compound interest, which is when your money’s interest starts earning interest of its own.
Here’s how that can look: Let’s say you take $100 a week from your miscellaneous allotment and invest it at an interest rate of 5% and watch it grow. After 30 years, if you had put that $100 in a savings account with no or a low interest rate, you’d only have $156,100—but because you invested it, you’d have $345,914. (Calculate your savings with our compound interest calculator.)
Prioritize what you love
What are your absolute must-haves in life? Your non-negotiables? You don’t have to give those up—you may just have to find an alternative way to make them work while meeting your savings goals. “My client, who is a college instructor, loves to travel, and her trips are usually tax deductible,” says Hughes. But to be able to afford her trips while continuing to save, she picked up a part-time job. “It gave her some extra income since she was determined to meet her goal, which was to own a place of her own,” says Hughes.
Whether you pick up a side hustle or not, chances are there will still be a few sacrifices you’ll need to make. It comes down to looking at your budget and deciding what you want to prioritize in the immediate time period, says Cornelissen, and deciding what you can let go of for a while.
Or it can relieve you from doing the opposite, over-saving for fear of not having enough money. Knowing how much money is going in and going out of your account is key to making a plan for your money.
Revisit your employee contract
If you’re employed full-time, find out if your company offers a pension or an employer-sponsored plan, such as RRSP matching (where an employer contributes the same amount as an employee to a registered retirement savings plan). This will help you determine how much you need to save for retirement. “If you don’t have a pension, you’ll need to save more than someone who has a pension,” says Forward.
Also, when planning for your retirement explore government income sources that may be available, like the Canada Pension Plan (CPP) and Old Age Security (OAS). “You can go into your My Service Canada account to get those benefit statements so you know what you’ll be receiving from those programs,” says Forward. (You can log into your My Service Canada account using a unique password or use your bank account log in.)
Have you ever heard someone say, “You can get money back with time, but you can’t get time back with money,” or anything that relays a similar message?
Basically, this is saying that if you lose money, you will have a chance to earn it back. However, if you lose an hour, you can’t replace it.
Your time is valuable, which is probably evidenced at the end of those days when you reflect on the last 14 hours and realize you didn’t really get anything accomplished. However, the day is over, and you can’t get it back, so you have to hope to do better tomorrow.
The key to doing better is to develop a time management skill that helps you focus on what’s important in your life.
Having good time management skills will help you improve the quality of your work, your ability to practice self-discipline, your decision-making abilities, and increase the number of things you can get accomplished in one day. Knowing how to effectively manage your time can create a cycle that can improve all aspects of your life.
If I don’t take the time to plan out my day and I just try to “wing it,” I always find myself wasting time, whether it’s by getting too caught up in a task that isn’t important or realizing I don’t know where to start, so I try to do too many things at once.
And let me tell you, there are few things as aggravating than feeling like you’re busy running around all day but realizing you’ve actually been completely unproductive.
I have learned that by taking 7 minutes to plan my day, I end up saving so much time in the end–and I reduce the amount of stress and pressure I feel throughout the day to get things finished.
Planning my day also helps me prioritize, as I can easily recognize the tasks I have on deck that actually aren’t that important and won’t end up making it into my schedule. I can prioritize my time so that only the things that really matter can get my attention throughout the day.
In this article, I will help you understand the importance of managing your time, as everyone can benefit from using the finite resource of time more effectively.
I’ll give you a simple, step-by-step plan that you can use to schedule your day to create a balance in your life and find the best use for every minute that you have. By being aware of how you’re using your time, you will leave more of it open to spend on the things that you want to spend it on.
Let’s look at how you can effectively plan your day in just 7 minutes or less…
Time Required: You only have to do this once, but it may require some trial and error. This step doesn’t count toward the time it will take to perform the daily habit of planning your day.
Before we start talking about how to plan your day, it’s important to mention that you need to have the tools that will make planning the easiest for you. Everyone is different here, so something that you find helpful might not be the right fit for the person across the hall from you in the office. Whatever you find works best for you, you will use this tool to keep track of your scheduled appointments, tasks, goals, important dates, etc.
Depending on which you find to be more helpful and accessible, you can use a digital or physical planner. Some prefer a plain notebook, while others use more elaborate tools.
One tool that I have found to be incredibly useful in helping me manage my tasks is the Todoist app. I’ve found this to be especially helpful because it allows me to collaborate with other members of my team and create step-by-step lists for projects that I am working on in any area of my life.
No matter what you find works for you, it will make planning your day a lot easier.
Step Two: List Your Fixed Tasks
Time Required: 1 minute
Before you can add anything to your schedule, you need to block off times for things you can’t change. This includes work, doctor’s appointments, meetings, etc.
When you’re putting these things into your plan for the day, make sure that you account for travel time and any possible buffer time that you may need. If you are going to see that one doctor who is always running an hour late, take that into account.
You also want to list your tasks by priority. Is there a work deadline coming up that you need to meet? Make a list of the most important things you have that need to be done. Doing so helps you prioritize and can also help clear your mind since you won’t have to remember everything you are supposed to do. More on this below.
RELATED: Habits that Stick!
Want to build a new habit that will stick for the rest of your lifetime? In this video, you will discover a simple 9-step process about building habits that you can immediately implement.
Step Three: Identify Your Three Most Important Tasks (MITs)
Time Required: 1 minute
Whether you want to make progress on a project or complete a task, put the three things you absolutely want to accomplish in writing. Then give each goal an estimated time it will take you to complete it.
You want to get your most important tasks completed at the beginning of the day, so even if the rest of your day is unproductive, you were still able to do the most important things that day.
Keep in mind that people tend to write long lists of goals because they are scared of forgetting something important. But, since you never know what else will come up throughout the day or how your priorities could change, it’s best to start the day with a limited list of prioritized tasks.
It may also help to plan at the same time each day. This helps you create a daily habit, and this kind of good habit can help keep you on track. Many prefer to do their planning in the morning with their coffee, while others may find themselves more functional the night before.
Step Four: Consider Your Self-Care Activities
Time Required: 1 minute
Do you want to reserve some time for going to the gym tomorrow or maybe having lunch with a friend? Do you like to start (or finish) your day with some quiet meditation? Don’t forget your own needs when planning your day.
Make sure to plan activities that will help you take care of yourself. Without taking proper care of yourself, your work in every other area of your life will suffer.
After finishing this step, you will have identified everything on your radar for the day. You just need to figure out your timing for completing each task.
Step Five: Putting the Puzzle Together
Time Required: 3 minutes
Put your fixed tasks into the time slots that they are already assigned so you can see what times of the day you have a bit more flexibility. You will likely notice that you have some flexibility in the early morning, which is a great time to be productive.
As you progress through the day and your energy is depleted, your motivation follows suit. Try to schedule your most important tasks for the very beginning of the day.
Before planning any task for your day, you have to come up with a rough estimate of how much time it will take. Even if you’re off, you’ll start to get some practice on how to properly manage your time. Once you do this regularly, it will get easier to predict what you can actually accomplish in any specified amount of time.
Aside from setting aside time for self-care every day, you also need to schedule time to spend with your loved ones. It can be easy to let family time fall down on your list of priorities because you probably assume that spending time with your family is something that can always wait until the weekend.
However, weekends quickly come and go and are often filled with various activities outside of the home, which may leave you wondering on Sunday night where all of your “free time” went.
Because family time can easily slip away from you, make sure to spend at least some time with your loved ones every day. This can be as simple as eating dinner together as a family or taking the time to play a board game before bed.
Step Six: Fill in the Gaps
Time Required: 1 minute
If you notice you have a free ten minutes here or an empty half-hour there, fill this space with tasks that need to get done but always end up getting pushed to the side. These are things that aren’t helping you reach an ultimate goal but still need to get completed.
If you have free time, fill this space with tasks that need to get done but always end up getting pushed to the side, like getting your oil changed in your car.
For example, get your oil changed in your car or write a long overdue thank you note. During these small gaps of time, you can actually fit things in that plague you for weeks until you work up the motivation to follow through with them. If you have these things down in writing, you’re more likely to get them over and done with.
There are some tips to keep in mind when planning your day as well.
First, be realistic about the amount of time you have and the number of tasks you’re trying to plan. If you try to do too much, you may either get burnt out or feel a sense of disappointment when you’re not able to cross everything off of your to-do list.
Second, if some of your top three goals are pretty time-consuming, see if you can break them up into smaller tasks. For example, if one of your goals is to clean out the garage, break it down into manageable sections so you can tackle just a bit of it each day. This way, you don’t have to wait for a day; you have three free hours in a row to accomplish this goal.
Additionally, you want to plan in some buffer time to avoid feeling rushed all day. However much time you have to accomplish things on your list, leave a fraction of it as free time for any unexpected disruptions that will come up throughout the day.
And while you will have that buffer time to account for a meeting that is running way past schedule, sometimes you will have to execute your own assertion in ending meetings or appointments that are overflowing into time that you have already scheduled for something else (however, use your discretion to determine when doing this is appropriate).
Finally, keep in mind that sometimes you will have to give yourself a little bit less time than you had probably hoped to get something done that is a time-sensitive priority.
However, keep in mind that if you know ahead of time that you only have two hours to complete a task that you think will take two and a half hours, you can think back to Parkinson’s Law to give you a boost of confidence that you can get anything accomplished when you give yourself healthy time restraints.
Other Tips on How to Plan Your Day
In addition to the list of how to plan your day in 7 minutes, we have a few other tips to keep in mind. When following any of our tips, be sure to take advantage of other tools at your disposal, such as a digital calendar, daily planner template or app, or daily schedule book.
Brainstorm
It never hurts to brainstorm a few things when making your list. This can be especially helpful for those times we discussed above when you have gaps you need to fill in your day. You should also jot down tasks you had the previous day that you just didn’t have the time to get to. You can also write down everything you want to do, could do, and should do.
Divide Tasks
Finding that work-life balance is important when planning your day. Don’t let your tasks become so overwhelming that it causes you to shut down. Make a list of your work life and your home life.
This allows you to see what needs to be done on your to do list in each area and helps you keep your times and dates straight in your daily schedule. A daily planner app can work wonders helping you keep everything organized and encouraging productivity.
Time Blocking
Time blocking is a technique you can use to better understand how long it may take to actually complete each task on your daily schedule. This helps with future scheduling and when you find yourself making commitments.
When time blocking during any daily planning session, block off chunks of time each day or week when there are certain activities you want to accomplish. To use time blocking more effectively, prioritize your tasks as we described above and use the process to encourage more efficient time management.
A time block listed with your most essential tasks or even a recurring task each day or week allows maximum productivity and may even allow you to squeeze a few more things in since you have a better idea of how long each specific task will take.
Look at Your Week as a Whole
Finally, when planning your daily schedule, it may help to look at your week as a whole. Maybe your daily morning routine includes a 30 minute exercise each day while you only have a Zoom meeting every other day.
Some of our goals benefit a daily action, while working on others throughout the week can help us keep our momentum and personal productivity up. So, during each daily planning session, see what your week as a whole looks like.
It is much easier to predict what is going to happen in three hours than what is going to happen in three days, so breaking down your planning into daily chunks will ensure you that you won’t have to go back and erase several days and start over because something in your life suddenly changed.
I recommend creating your daily plan for the next day at night before going to sleep rather than first thing in the morning. This way, you will know exactly what you need to do as soon as you wake up in the morning, preventing you from having a chunk of time that could go to waste as you’re slowly getting up to create your schedule.
The key to having a productive day is being prepared. Making sure that your priorities are clear every day is the best way to make sure that you are having a successful day. Soon enough, you will begin to see that you do have enough hours in your day to do everything that needs to get accomplished.
Connie Mathers is a professional editor and freelance writer. She holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Marketing and a Master’s Degree in Social Work. When she is not writing, Connie is either spending time with her daughter and two dogs, running, or working at her full-time job as a social worker in Richmond, VA.
Eager to boost the supply of affordable housing, city officials in Long Beach devised a program that could help a limited number of homeowners build an extra unit on their land.
But before they could launch it, they had to decide what to call it.
“We’ve been playing with a name for a while,” Mayor Rex Richardson said, noting that a news release touting the program had been delayed days because of christening purposes. “We’re building the bike as we ride it.”
Long Beach officials settled on the self-explanatory “Backyard Builders Program,” hoping a partial solution to a dearth of affordable housing lies in the unused spaces of city homeowners’ property. It’s a concept widely supported by advocates of low-income housing although some argue that the city’s version should have included more tenant protections.
Long Beach’s pilot program uses one-time funding that will provide as many as 10 homeowners low- to zero-interest loans of up to $250,000 to build Accessory Dwelling Units, or ADUs, on their lots. Those units would have to be rented out to lower-income individuals or families for a minimum of five years.
“Long Beach has been a leader on ADU production,” Richardson said. “And we’ve done all the things we need to do … to make it easy for people to develop ADUs in their backyard.”
Claremont McKenna College’s Rose Institute confirmed in an April report that Long Beach was among the most ADU-friendly cities in the state, having issued 1,431 ADU permits between 2018 and 2022. While that total trails larger cities like San Diego (2,867), Long Beach produced 317 permits per 100,000 residents.
An ADU, as defined by the city’s Community Development Department for this pilot program, must come with independent facilities that include a living room, sleeping area, kitchen and bathroom.
In addition to agreeing to the temporary rent limit, property owners must live on site and have less than four units already on their land.
The units may be rented to anyone earning 80% or less of the Los Angeles County median income, which translates into $77,700 for an individual, $88,800 for a two-person family, $99,900 for three people and $110,950 for four, according to the Los Angeles County Department of Regional Planning.
But the program gives homeowners an extra financial incentive to rent these ADUs to recipients of Long Beach’s housing choice voucher program, which provides a portion of the rent for those who fall into extremely low income, very low income or low income categories.
Building an ADU has grown more expensive in recent years, with labor and material costs jumping 11% and 9%, respectively in 2021 and 2022, while construction labor costs rose 34% between 2018 and 2023.
The loan covers up to $250,000 in planning, permitting and construction costs, though Kelli Pezzelle, a Backyard Builders community program specialist, doesn’t anticipate the loans needing to be that high.
The interest on the loan will remain at 0% as long as the owner rents the ADU to a low-income recipient. A stipulation for loan qualification is that the owner must rent the home to a voucher recipient for a minimum of five years or a nonvoucher, lower-income tenant for seven years.
The loan’s interest rate will jump to 3% if rented to someone who doesn’t meet the income limits after the five- or seven-year period. An owner would incur a $2,500 monthly penalty if the ADU is rented to a nonqualified tenant ahead of time.
The possible removal of low-income tenants concerns Long Beach Residents Empowered, or LiBRE, an advocacy group that pushes for the creation and preservation of affordable housing and renter protections.
“We’re happy that the city is investing in affordable housing and trying to reduce the housing shortage,” said LiBRE’s Project Director Andre Donado, via a phone call. “Every single renter, however, is at risk of eviction after five years.”
Donado also hoped the city would consider offering relocation assistance of $4,500 to low-income renters displaced through no fault of their own in all cases.
“I think there are several positives with the program, and we’d like to see it made permanent, with some adjustments,” Donado said.
The pilot’s loans are significantly larger than the up to $40,000 in aid provided by California Housing Finance Agency’s ADU Grant Program, which doled out $125 million to help homeowners cover permitting and planning costs before running out of funds.
The city believes that house-rich, cash-poor homeowners, particularly seniors, could take advantage of the loan to build an ADU and create passive income. The program estimates that the ADUs built with its loans would generate more than $1,000 monthly for owners who rent to voucher holders.
“You may be a grandma or someone who’s got way too much backyard, and you want to be a part of the solution, but it may be hard for you to navigate or identify financing,” Richardson said.
To that end, the city is expected to appoint a project manager to help loan recipients choose an architect, builders, planners, contractors and others needed throughout the planning and construction process. That manager will work as an intermediary between the property owner and the general contractor.
One caveat for interested property owners is that a qualified renter cannot be a relative or a caregiver for their household.
As for the loan, payments will be deferred during the building process up to two years.
Richardson said since the program is based on loans that will be repaid over time, it will be self-sustaining. If it’s deemed a success — meaning that ADUs are built and rented to lower-income tenants — he said the city would consider looking for more revenue streams to expand the project.
The city is hosting a series of Zoom webinars to gauge interest in the program and answer questions.
Fee-based advisors, who charge based on asset size, typically work better for people with more assets and dollars to invest.
Tam said fee-based financial planning aligns the motivation of an advisor with the client.
“They’re not going to be motivated to do what we call churning your accounts, or selling and buying similar mutual funds, so they can make a commission,” he explained.
On average, fee-based planners charge a flat rate of 1% and provide holistic advice such as tax planning, estate planning or even everyday financial planning during uncertain economic times.
While uncommon, fee-only, advice-only financial planners are another way to seek help with your money. This type of planner reviews the client’s finances and makes recommendations. It’s then left up to the client to implement those recommendations.
These advisors simply provide guidance and do not sell investment products, Tam said.
“It truly is a decoupling of advice versus sales, which we think is a very positive thing,” he said.
The fee is typically charged at a flat rate, Tam added.
You don’t need me to explain the personal perks of having a vacation home or a cottage. But to many people, a cottage is also an investment. There are costs and hopefully returns, especially if you decide to rent it out. If you hope to buy, find out what you need to pay beyond the listing price and how you might finance the purchase.
Is there a capital gains tax exemption for a cottage?
Sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but there isn’t. There was once a lifetime capital gains exemption of $100,000, but that no longer exists. It only applied in Canada from 1984 to 1994. There are other ways to minimize taxes on the sale of a cottage, though. What about selling to a family member: Can you avoid taxes that way? It depends on a few factors, such as the relationship, if the second property can be claimed as a principal residence, and more.
The short answer: It depends on your relationship to the person who owns it. Are you an extended family member? Their adult child? Or are you their spouse? Find out how inheriting a cottage can affect taxes for a spouse with children and the steps to take to minimize what’s owed.
Earlier in July, a vague Instagram post from Fares “Freddy” Zeideia brought joy to Chicagoans familiar with Zeideia’s famous New York restaurant, King of Falafel & Shawarma. Zeideia announced he was opening his first restaurant outside of the Empire State. He’s picked the suburban locale of Chicago Ridge and hopes to open in mid-September.
Zeideia’s legend has grown since he opened his first food cart in 2002 in Astoria, New York. While Chicagoans may be familiar with halal street food carts — Halal Guys arrived in Chicago in 2018) — Zeideia says he declined expansion overtures. He objected to greedy investors taking control of what he built. “The Falafel King of Astoria,” as the New York Times called him in 2016, has built a kingdom of two food trucks and one restaurant.
The Palestinian immigrant has family in the Chicago area, and Zeideia’s business partner lives there, too. Zeideia spoke about how Chicago is the Palestinian capital of America with the largest community in the country — it’s mostly focused in the Southwest Suburbs along Harlem Avenue through Bridgeview. That’s why he’s opening the first King of Falafel outside of New York in the suburbs, about 35 minutes from Downtown Chicago near that Palestinian enclave. The location will be for takeout and drive-thru only. Any upcoming locations would have dining rooms. Zeideia says he wants to open three or four in the Chicago area, including in the city proper.
“Everyone over the years has been telling me to come to Chicago, come to Chicago,” Zeideia says during a mid-July interview. He apologizes for not immediately returning a message. He underwent open-heart surgery the week before.
Blissfully unaware of Chicago’s restrictive food truck and mobile food cart laws, Zeideia says he also wants to open a food truck in town. After that, he’ll turn his attention to opening restaurants in Dallas. The New York operation has nothing to do with a similarly named San Francisco restaurant that closed in 2015. Zeideia also wants folks who have visited the New York restaurant to experience the same feel.
“I’m not going to change anything,” he says. “It’s going to be the same, old Freddy; the same attitude, same personality.”
That includes the restaurant’s branding, which now includes the phrase “Free Palestine.” Zeideia has celebrated his Palestinian pride more overtly in recent months as the war in Gaza continues. He’s plastered a cast of politicians — from President Joe Biden to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu — on the floor for customers to step on; Zeideia calls them war criminals and blames them for the death toll overseas. He’s encountered backlash. Those disagreeing with his views have led a campaign to have Google erroneously list his restaurants as closed.
However, Zeideia has found more supporters thanks to how social media spreads his exploits. He says random folks will approach him and ask, “Aren’t you the guy with the things on the floor?”
Chicagoans know the type of restaurant owner Zeideia represents. He’s someone who connects with customers and shows up daily to build strong rapport with his customers. He was back at the restaurant a day after heart surgery. Zeideia says he didn’t want to be bored away from the restaurant. While he is excited to be in Chicago to see his six grandchildren more, he’s still a New Yorker to the core. Zeideia says he craves the city’s manic pace which other cities can’t match: “In Chicago, you can sit on a light and nobody honks their horn,” he says.
King of Falafel and Shawarma, 6085 W. 111th Street in suburban Chicago Ridge, planned for a mid-September opening.
Every client can expect one-on-one service that includes transparent fees, a fully customized tax-efficient portfolio and financial planning services tailored to their specific needs. Gunn takes the time to learn about what’s important to his clients. “No two clients are alike, but they all have goals and dreams, and sometimes those are overshadowed by fears,” he says. Regardless of the situation, Gunn listens and helps develop a plan to deal with the issues and set his clients up for success on their terms.
With a focus on long-term solutions, Gunn says he builds relationships with his clients to ensure they consistently succeed in their financial pursuits; because his success is tied directly to theirs. He says he is motivated to help his clients achieve their financial goals and grow their wealth.
In recent years, Gunn has specialized in an area that seems under-serviced. It is one thing to help clients gather assets and watch them grow over time, but it is a completely different skill that allows his clients to live off the fruits of their labour throughout retirement. “Time is no longer your friend, and the strategies required to make this happen are very different,” he says. Many cannot afford to make mistakes during this phase of life, he adds, and this is when a financial expert is required. Becoming a retirement income specialist was the best decision Gunn says he ever made. Knowing his clients sleep at night without worrying about their money running out and the stress that causes provides him with incredible satisfaction.
Over the years, Gunn continued his education and added certifications to serve his clients better and provide a wide range of expertise. Gunn is a Certified Financial Planner, Registered Retirement Consultant, Certified Executor Advisor, Certified Professional Consultant on Aging, Real Wealth Manager and Licensed Insurance Broker.
Continuous education is essential, according to Gunn, and he does not believe you can ever “know too much.”
• Fees paid by clients based on assets managed by advisor
Languages written and spoken
• English
Why did you become a planner?
The financial industry always interested me, and I started helping people to understand how this industry works and how to address certain financial situations. I started investing in my teens and learned early to never lose sight of the taxes paid and reduce them whenever possible. As a result, wanting to become a Certified Financial Planner came very naturally to me. I realized I could utilize my financial acumen to help other people. The bottom line is, I really enjoy helping people succeed.
What is your approach to financial planning?
Use of common sense and time-trusted methods. Financial planning does not need to be complicated. The more clients know the more comfortable and motivated they become. I focus on educating my clients, so they have a solid understanding of the elements of financial planning before the plan is put to work.
What is your proudest achievement as a financial planner?
Servicing multi-generational clients and seeing the younger generation embracing financial advice. Building a solid foundation for their futures is very rewarding. I work with a family of three generations, and working with them together provides them with real comfort not just for their individual needs but for intergenerational wealth transfer later, too.
From the perspective of a Downtown Cleveland optimist, the area spells promise for the near future as far as development is concerned.
A new Rock & Hall of Fame extension is coming. Bedrock just broke ground on its $2 billion riverfront neighborhood. And Mayor Justin Bibb’s Lakefront Plan’s likelihood got a boost after his Shore-to-Core-to-Shore tax-increment financing plan was passed earlier this year by City Council.
But, a group of students at Cleveland State’s College of Urban Affairs asked recently: What is to be done with Downtown’s prime piece of transit potentially linking—key word being potentially—all of the area’s newest points of interest?
That is to say, how do we ensure the Waterfront Line, the RTA’s two-mile line of track that hasn’t been in daily service since 2021, doesn’t miss out on Cleveland’s trajectory forward and serves as a reliable connector?
Such speculation was at the heart of the study released this week by a team of 16 graduate students, a plan detailing, in a highly-comprehensive 125 pages how the city, the county and the RTA could efficiently makeover the line and idling land around it. A plan that cried with a resounding voice: build housing, build housing, build housing.
“Right now, there are a lot of great opportunities, but there’s not a residential density that supports the Waterfront Line,” John Miesle, 29, a graduate student and member of 17th Street Studios, the moniker the CSU team gave to their cohort project, told Scene. “There’s not a commercial density that could support it. That could support 24-hour rail service.”
John Miesle, a graduate student in CSU’s College of Urban Affairs, helped, with 15 others, create a capstone class’ massive makeover plan for RTA’s flailing Waterfront Line.
Miesle’s lament, common amongst transit advocates, revolves around the cry to reopen the Waterfront Line to how it used to function before it went out of commission following the need for necessary repairs in the fall of 2021.
Although the RTA teased its comeback by running the line during Browns Sunday home games last season, the result—and ridership—was somewhat disappointing. Only 2,300 Clevelanders and Browns fans rode the line on average each football Sunday; twenty-two years ago, in 2002, the entire light rail system (including the Green and Blue lines) clocked about 259,000 riders per month.
Hence 17th Street Studios’ central thesis. The team believes that, like found in light rail systems in Denver and Minneapolis, the Waterfront Line could see a whopping comeback if large amounts of shops and apartments were built nearby it, primarily on the vacant parking lots built decades ago to meet a perceived demand for cars.
Like the actual feat of reviving the lingering waterfront in general, the students’ ideas are quite massive in both scale and financial heft.
Along with trails and bike paths up and down West 3rd and East 9th, the students suggest a new connection—with a line of townhomes—linking East 18th St. to the easternmost South Harbor Station. (Near where Noble Beast Brewing is.) Over in the Flats East Bank, redoing West 10th with a tree line and erecting a brand new Settlers Garage to consolidated parking demand left by new housing a few blocks north.
And, of course, the plan’s pièce de résistance: linking the South Harbor Station and the Tri-C Station with an on-street track line running down East 17th, a line that would link Historic Chinatown, Playhouse Square and Cleveland State with, for the first time ever, an actual route.
Part of the study suggested better connectors to Waterfront Line stations, like a bike lane linking West 3rd pedestrians to its station near Cleveland Browns Stadium.
The master recommendation from CSU’s year-long study: suggestions for housing in orange, and new or improved green space in green.
In urbanist parlance, that’s transit-oriented development, homes erected as close to transit stations as city permits will allow. Which should in theory lead to, the students believe, “increasing density, getting parking right, providing safe connections, fostering vibrant public spaces, and prioritizing affordable housing.”
“As the area becomes more livable, walkable, and connected, this will attract more residents and visitors and increase demand for regular light rail service,” it added. “This, in turn, will make the Waterfront Line an even more convenient and attractive option for getting around, thereby creating a virtuous cycle that benefits everyone.”
The key word being everyone. Though Downtown’s population has grown 41% in the past decade or so, the growth has been mostly composed of white people in their mid-to-late twenties and thirties. RTA’s average rider, which it has long catered to, is a carless Black woman in her twenties making less than $25,000 a year.
17th Street’s study, which echoes Bibb’s calls for equity on the lakefront, makes an attempt to bridge the gaps left by demographics and pure economics. (And those who can afford a car in the first place.)
Either near the Settlers Landing Station or the Muni Lots hugging the North Coast Station on East 9th, the students suggest, based on housing data, that there’s “unmet demand” for some 1,840 apartment units. And units of varying rent levels. In one analysis of the Historic Flats, the students found that 400 units clocking $456/month would be worthwhile to build—just as some 500 units charging renters $1,902/month.
But, as 17th Street’s shiny renderings give off, anything is better than barren concrete lots. In the Muni Lot West, they imagine a shipping container park and mid-rises. In “The Pit,” the gargantuan lot south of the Browns Stadium, some 70,000 square feet of day cares, pet goods stores, apartments and restaurants.
Both the demand and promise for defeating RTA’s, and transit in general, oldest stigma as lesser than car trips comes straight from 17th Street’s survey of hundreds of Clevelanders, about half of which claimed they would ride the Waterfront Line even if they didn’t own a car. A little more than half called the line “not convenient”; two-fifths found the train cars took “too long”; twenty percent couldn’t find the RTA sufficiently safe.
“The Flats have lost their color,” another stakeholder wrote. “Everything is gray.”
“Public transit has a stigma,” another said.
Thomas Hilde, a professor who co-teaches, with James Kastelic, the “Planning Studio” graduate course that produced the study over the past two semesters, told Scene that his students came to the typical conclusion that planners have long arrived at: defeating RTA’s “unsafe” perception and increasing its riders are parallel goals.
“I think that’s the biggest challenge, just getting more people” on the line, Hilde said. “Like Jane Jacobs said in the 1960s—eyes on the street, just having people present. That’s the best way of changing that perception.”
But could the city actually build all of this? Will developers, often skeptical observing rising construction costs and steep lending rates, see the vision promulgated by a series of optimistic planners in their mid-to-late twenties?
Hilde thinks so, to some extent.
“Many of these planning studio projects have influenced real outcomes in the city,” he told Scene. He cited “Balancing Broadway,” 2022’s study of Lorain’s Main Street. “They’ve taken off! I mean, not as they’re written, but they’re influential. And they contribute to the conversation.
The Ringer’s Bill Simmons shares some brief thoughts on the Celtics’ loss to the Cavaliers (2:08) before he is joined by Matthew Belloni to answer 10 burning questions about the Oscars (8:46). Then Bill talks with Casey Wasserman about planning for the 2028 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles (42:17), managing talent at Wasserman, the future of college sports (1:02:38), media, the next generation of stadiums, and more (1:34:54).
Host: Bill Simmons Guests: Matthew Belloni and Casey Wasserman Producer: Kyle Crichton
Emotion regulation: Engaging deeply in an enjoyable activity boosts your mood and generates positive emotions, which in turn strengthens your ability to manage stress and navigate difficult emotions. It helps maintain emotional balance, which is beneficial when making investment and spending decisions. Being calm means you’re less likely to react impulsively with your money, leading to fewer costly mistakes. This emotional steadiness leads to thoughtful financial choices.
Fulfillment and happiness: Flow can bring enjoyment to what you’re doing, making the activity rewarding. Csikszentmihalyi’s research indicates that flow can contribute to increased happiness and overall life contentment. Budgeting to have more of these moments can lead to lasting life satisfaction.
How money can make you happy
You’ve likely heard that money is a tool. While that’s true, using money as a tool for happiness can be challenging. We attach so many emotions and meanings to money that it can be hard to separate them. However, that shouldn’t deter us from using money to mindfully invest in engaging, joyful activities and experiences that create moments of flow.
How to use flow for a better relationship with money
A musician I know named Greg says he’s always been grounded by music. He was born deaf, and a successful surgery at the age of two unlocked sound for him. He has embraced music ever since. By his early 20s, Greg had learned to sing, write music and play the guitar. He performed at local gigs and on international stages. Yet, as he became more and more successful, accomplishing the stardom he always thought would make him happy, he felt drained by his music label’s relentless push for commercial hits, which diminished his drive for creating artful and meaningful music.
Greg went to Hawaii for a year-long reprieve and rediscovered flow in music. He looked back at his “best” performances, where he felt deep flow states, and recognized that it didn’t happen at sold-out shows. Instead of pursuing commercial success, he focused on making music at private workshops, writing songs for people, and performing at wellness and yoga festivals.
Now, more than 20 years later, Greg’s life is filled with flow moments that involve his music. In Hawaii, he built a life with meaning and purpose. It’s no longer about chasing success, money and big hits.
His new life comes with challenges, of course, especially when it comes to finances. And when I asked Greg if he would change anything, he responded with a big smile: “Would I like more money? Sure, but I wouldn’t change a thing. My [happiness] bank account is through the roof. I have a great life.”
How to invest in self-care and flow states
The takeaways from Greg’s example and Csikszentmihalyi’s research are to integrate more flow states into our lives (and ultimately our finances) by doing the following steps:
Write out the activities you find flow in. What are you doing when you feel in the zone? What captures your full attention? List the activities and think about how to prioritize them in your life.
Budget for flow moments. Dedicate money to these activities you truly love. Think of it as investing in your well-being. Cut out activities you’re doing just because you think you should be doing them.
Be smart with your self-care choices. Balance flow with your need for financial security—they’re not mutually exclusive. Don’t risk essential expenses for flow states. However, you can still evaluate your expenses (housing, transportation, food, etc.) to discover ways to decrease those costs.
Don’t do it alone. Sharing your flow experiences with others can deepen them. Can you join or create a group aligned with your interests?
Reflect and adjust. Just like you do with your annual budget or investing portfolio, regularly check in on your flows. Reassess how your spending affects your ability to achieve flow. Be flexible and reasonable, and adjust as needed.
Why should you care about flow? If you care about your money, you will
When reflecting on our lives, we hope that when our time on this Earth is over, we can say, “I did it. I lived a good life.” Of course, a “good life” doesn’t mean it was easy—life is always full of challenges, obstacles and setbacks. But scientific research shows that the more we invest in our well-being, the more resilience we have during challenging times. Flow states offer us emotional regulation and life satisfaction.
By intentionally spending time and money on areas in our life that bring flow and happiness, perhaps we can experience not just how money makes the world go around, but also how we can use it to sing and dance a little more.
