What can you start incorporating into your daily routine in order to change your brain, your focus, or your thinking? Just like negative daily habits, such as spending too much time comparing yourself to others on Instagram or Facebook, can negatively impact your brain, positive daily habits, like affirmations spoken aloud, practicing a new skill, or limiting your time spent on social media, can bring about powerful changes in your brain and your productivity!

We all know meditation and mindfulness is helpful for an overactive brain. But what about smell?

Just yesterday I was talking with a client about the start of the school year. She mentioned the importance of a new routine and the challenges that presents. I shared with her my own family’s experience of getting ready for the school year. I hope sharing our family meeting and family guidelines will help fellow parents think about the best ways to create structure within their own busy households.

With colleges in New Orleans and Baton Rouge starting next week, it's time to think about kicking the year off right. How can college students (or grad students, or young adults) be successful and independent? How will you balance your classes, work, social life, time spent online, and other priorities? How can you achieve all of your goals this academic year? Let's tackle this school year together!

In January 2017, I helped New Orleans' Academy of the Sacred Heart redesign their planner, and conducted a workshop with the entire freshman class. The original student planner was nothing more than a glorified assignment pad, and together we turned it into something functional. 

Let's take a minute today to reflect on social media, especially when such terrible things are happening in our American society, like the recent events in Charlottesville. Perhaps social media helps you feel connected to our political landscape, to the people who are fighting for love, acceptance, and justice. It's important to feel connected, but if the world feels very heavy today, and you feel like you're barely hanging in there, try taking some time away from your devices.

"The Civil War Inside My Brain," by June Silny over at Additude is a sweet little slide show for when you can't find the words to explain what it's like to have ADHD. I find the article especially helpful for adults with ADHD. 

"7 Things That Could Happen When You Quit Social Media," by Abbey Schubert, is a quick read, and worth considering.  If you can't quit social media forever, let it be a conscious and limited time that you devote to it. Turn it off for the time devoted to work or spent face-to-face with loved ones.

Summer is winding down, and local schools are gearing up for a new academic year. I'm readjusting to the New Orleans heat after a family trip to France (that's me on the Seine!). Let's end the summer on a high note! It's not too late to establish a structure for you, your child, or your family in order to be productive before the new school year.

Steve Fuller's article, "Audacious Sacrifice with Incredible Payoff: The Purpose Journey of REI," discusses an amazing example of living your life as a manifestation of your purpose. Bravo to REI!

Sure, you can get it on a to-do list, but actually doing it? It is so, so hard. 

"The Procrastinator's Guide to Getting Things Done" at Additude magazine is a helpful list of ten ways to meet daily goals.

It's easy to be tempted to wait until the school year officially starts before setting up a mind coach for your child or yourself. But once the school year hits, we're often bombarded with things to do, new stressors, new classrooms and teaching styles to adjust to. Before you know it, the holidays are right around the corner, and then the new year!