Hi friends, I created a list of self-reminders to help me minimize future meltdowns by my kids or by yours truly! Parenting Reminders to self based on actual events: - You get agitated and impatient if you talk to your kids while holding your phone, even if you're not using it. Put the phone away before talking to your kids.
- You get agitated and impatient if you multi-task during homework time. Put your phone away, block the apps if necessary using AppBlock, and don't attempt to do any chores during homework time until your kids can complete their school tasks independently.
- You get only a few hours with your kids in the evenings of the workweek, so when you get home, and after having lunch while watching your favorite series for 15 minutes (or is it just me?), put your phone away.
Do you see a pattern here? Phones and parenting don't go well together. All of the above reminders could easily translate into "No phones around kids" (to the best of my ability and sanity), which I could add to my No list that I teach in the Goals workshop and mention in my latest podcast episode. Which reminder resonated with you the most? Do you, too, feel that impatience if you have your phone on you while being with your kids? I think it's good to start noticing it and then try to minimize it. Spark #4 might help you. P.S. Preparing something exciting, and I can't wait to share it with you, stay tuned! |
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Here is your weekly dose of The Sunday Spark ⚡️ a newsletter listing 5 insightful things I thought were worth starting your week with: |
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1. 🎧 Spotify's AI-powered playlist features are truly impressive! Check out my " Focus" playlist, which started with just 6-7 songs but then got enhanced with more amazing tracks tailored to my music taste. I played it when I wrote this newsletter for you. By the way, I love Lindsey Sterling. |
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2. 🐙 If you're a nature lover, you must watch " My Octopus Teacher" documentary that I watched with my kids and parents a few weeks ago. It's an Oscar-winning, beautiful and heartwarming story of a filmmaker who befriends an octopus while diving in a kelp forest in South Africa. |
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3. 📝 Did you know that journaling supports your mental health and improves self-awareness? That's why my friend, psychotherapist Dena Burgan, launched a new website for Arabic PDF journals (yes, Arabic!). Her journals provide helpful prompts and templates for morning and evening check-ins, managing anxiety, and coping with depression symptoms. Dena's content is powerful, too, I hope you show her some love. |
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4. 👨👩👧👦 As a parent and an attendee from last year, I highly recommend A Fine Parent Positive Parenting Conference 2023. It offers FREE expert insights and practical strategies to help you navigate the joys and challenges of raising kids. It takes place online on May 18-21, don't miss learning from your favorite parenting coaches. |
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5. 💬 Why do we need to design our habits? because our brains create them anyway! Here is a reminder: |
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“When possible, the brain makes a behavior into a habit, which saves effort and therefore gives us more capacity to deal with complex, novel, or urgent matters. Habits mean we don’t strain ourselves to make decisions, weigh choices, dole out rewards, or prod ourselves to begin. Life becomes simpler, and many daily hassles vanish.” ― Gretchen Rubin, Better Than Before: Mastering the Habits of Our Everyday Lives (Thank you Readwise for helping me find this quote from a book I read) |
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This is Sunday Spark issue #127! Was it forwarded to you by a friend? Receive your own by subscribing here, and don't forget to thank your lovely friend for me! |
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Some cool resources I personally use, love and recommend, with discounts just for you: - I like to start the day with my personalized Momentum Plus tab, which helps me stay focused with a powerful mantra, an inspiring image, a to-do list, countdowns to big dates, and world clocks where I keep an eye on time zones of friends and family living abroad before contacting them. Being a newsletter friend, you would get a special offer of a 10% discount when you subscribe to Momentum Plus with the promo code: bardees.
- Enjoy a free month of the Readwise app, it is the BEST way to retain the knowledge you gain through reading. Using spaced repetition, it helps you remember your highlights from kindle books/articles you read. I am in love with their new reader feature. Reading online has become a top-notch experience thanks to Reader. Get one month free using my link.
- I have been using Exist App for years as a digital journaling tool to track my mood in relation to my productivity and health choices. Try it out.
- I use Rescuetime to track my digital productivity. Rescuetime tells me how much I spend on email, Excel sheets, meetings, and nonwork activities. I have been a happy client since 2014.
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Note: some of the links above may be affiliate links, but always keep in mind that I don’t endorse anything I don’t use and love myself. |
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See you next Sunday First name / my dear friend! |
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In case you missed these posts on Instagram… |
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