Sustainable Productivity

Let's dig a little deeper today - imposter syndrome and the importance of small deaths. You know, the light stuff life is made of. For me imposter syndrome shows up as that voice in my head that says, “Who do you think you are?” Or “Why do you think you are the right person for this?” Sometimes it is condescending, “Stay in your lane, honey. Let the real writers/podcasters/creators do this.” S...

Digital clutter impacts our health and wellness as much as physical clutter. It IS part of our environmental surroundings. Digital clutter covers communication like emails, texts, DMs, and voicemails (for those of us who are dinosaurs that still leave and accept VMs), social media including Snaps, likes and saved ideas from Facebook, Instagram or TikTok; photos on your phone, on your computer or i...

Burnout is beyond stress and the right hobbies can be just the antidote you need to relax, recharge, and regroup. Burnout is a real thing - not something you can manage through or toughen up against. Think about what was happening in your life today. Maybe you felt like you were withdrawing from friends and responsibilities – isolating yourself. Or after months of battling stress at work, you find...

Of the 23 books Susan started in July, THREE of them were 5-star books for her. Listen to this bonus episode to learn more. Full show notes - including links to the titles mentioned in this episode - can be found ⁠at this link⁠ . Read on!

When does self-care become self-soothing? The phrase “self-care” seems to have morphed into a catch phrase and punch line these days. Is a glass (or bottle) of wine after a tough day really self-care? Are you really taking good care of your colleagues by bringing a couple dozen donuts to the office? Part of making the distinction between self-soothing and self-care is that self-care allows you spa...

Does it seem to you like some people are just better at time management? Why is it some people seem to be able to accomplish so much more than others? Why do some days feel like you really nailed it and some days feel like time just got away from you? Spoiler alert! It is not really about time. Time is a fixed entity each day - we all have 168 hours in a week. How you approach time and the systems...

When we talk about physical clutter we are talking about two kinds – paper and objects. Paper and objects both come into your life for different reasons and hold different meaning. These are the stacks of papers that don’t ever seem to be filed or the influx of children’s artwork that you can’t stand to throw away, but also can’t stand to have stacked on the dining room table. This is the lack of...

This week's focus is the impact of media on your personal productivity. Media is a component of the Environmental Surroundings dimension along with clutter. Basically all the inputs that are physically and virtually in your environment - news, movies, books, TV, podcasts, social media, and magazines that you take in on a daily basis.  Learn from  Jose Ortega y Gassett: “Tell me to what you pay...

Relationships are a component of the Mental Well-being dimension of Sustainable Productivity. When we talk about relationships in this context, we are talking about 2 different kinds of relationships – internal and external. In this episode we will dive into the relationship with your Higher Power (however that looks for you) as well as coworkers, spouses, and friends. Who is contributing to a sus...

It's that magical time of the season - time for a reading round up and all thing literary life lately. This installment is extra special since Susan's sister will be joining her on the microphone. Before they offer up thoughts on who and what they have been reading lately, Elli and Susan chat about literary life NOT lately. Here is what you can expect in today's episode: What memories...

In honor of Susan's 49th birthday, this episode is all about how to celebrate. We range from the woo woo to the practical and everything in between. Whether you are a reluctant or newbie or veteran celebrator you will find something for you in Episode 20. Here is what you can expect in today's episode: A walk down Susan's memory lane in batches of 7 years (and why 7 years). Examples of...

Rest is so important that it is a component of all three dimensions of Sustainable Productivity. In this episode Susan highlights the work from Dr Saundra Dalton-Smith in her book Sacred Rest and expands it to apply to Health and Fitness, Mental Well-being, and Environmental Surroundings. Let's be clear: rest is not sleep. Rest is an active or passive activity you participate in so you can rec...

Most of us grew up with nutrition messaging like the food guide pyramid and learning "You are what you eat!" Then life gets in the way, we numb out on unhealthy foods and eat our feelings so we can continue to RISE AND GRIND! Listen to this week's episode to learn a new way forward when it comes to nutrition - a productive way forward that is sustainable long term. This is not about...

One of the frequent questions that comes into the Sustainable Sue inbox is about where to find book recommendations. Susan does not mind being a bit of a book bully, pressing books into people's hands and sending unsolicited recommendations at random. But her tastes may not line up with yours. Or you might be in a book rut and need to find a new book bully to tell you what to read. Here is wha...

It is one thing to make a Sustainable Productivity adjustment to your habits, but it is another thing to fully embrace that adjustment mentally and emotionally. Susan had to create a new normal around Fitness for herself in order to make it Sustainably Productive - something that worked for me long term. Fitness means so much more than who crosses the most finish lines or is the fastest or thinnes...

Today we are talking about what is making life sustainably productive this spring. This episode is originally publishing on May 15, 2023 and I know many mothers who refer to this month as Mayhem. Or May Madness. When I start to spin out on the business of life, it helps me regroup by identifying what IS working. Things that are working have gone through iterations of Sustainable Productivity adjus...

Sometimes on the podcast we will talk about existential questions like why we do the things we do, what happened in our childhood to make us the way we are, and how to move forward when you are so burned out you can’t sit up straight. Today, it is a topic that might seem more trivial and purely surface level. But I assure you there is always more to what meets the eye. Listen to the latest episode...

Its time to see what's happening in Sustainable Sue's literary life lately! It has been awhile since we have checked in on what Susan is reading. This episode expands past books to include magazines and prepping reading material for business travel or vacation. Of course we talk about a few books Susan read since we caught up last. Some books were a hit, some a miss, and one was in the par...

Everyone knows exercise is good for them, yet we don't seem to be able to consistently start and continue a fitness program. In this episode you will learn why exercise is important to our Health and Fitness, what the components of fitness are, and get a few tips to inspire you to start, return to, or keep going on your exercise routine. Don't worry - this is more than just lace up your sneakers a...

Susan's hope for this episode is that you will hear acceptance of what she likes and doesn't like - and that this will help you figure out yourself a little bit more. This is how we discover what is truly productive for the REAL us - no sense continuing something long term if it does not serve us or bring us joy. Full show notes can be found ⁠at this link⁠ . Follow Susan on ⁠Instagram⁠ or...

If we are lucky, we will live long enough to change and grow. What is considered productive today, will be different in five years. What used to be sustainable ten years ago is no longer tenable. Shifting perspective and reframing priorities are skills that we will all require as we go through life. No one can do reframing sustainable and productive better than today's guest - Ainslie MacEachr...

Habit change is easy when it can be done in a perfect world. But none of us lives in a vacuum. We are challenged by schedules, other people's chaos, shifting priorities - you know the stuff that makes up life. And we don't always want to avoid these things either - a friend coming to town is a good thing. A last minute cancellation in your schedule can be freeing. But it can impact the suc...

Quick Bonus Episode! Whenever Susan finished a book that is a 5-star read, she wants you to know about it. Readers who subscribe to the Sustainable Sue Bookmobile find out first, and podcast listeners are next. Listen to this quick bonus episode to find out how this book made Susan realize she isn't really a good friend and what she could do to fix that. Plus why she might have scared the auth...

Your life is made up of routines whether you like it or not. The Sustainable Productivity question for you is - How are those routines working for you? On this episode Susan teaches about the difference between schedules and routines and a theory she relies on to keep routines consistent. After walking through some real life examples, Susan will provide three practical strategies you can use to im...

In this episode Susan shares how she reads about 200 books each year. Although books might not be your thing, the suggestions she shares about different ways she fits reading into her schedule during different seasons of life might work for your hobby of choice. Listen to learn some tools and tricks that might help you find more time to read, craft, exercise, sing, or whatever brings you joy. Full...