036- Summer Energy Series: The Schedule Whiplash

Tired before summer even starts? You might be experiencing Schedule Whiplash. In this kickoff to the Summer Energy Series, we’re talking about the messy in-between: school isn’t quite done, summer hasn’t fully started, and your energy is spiraling.

This episode unpacks:

• Why seasonal transitions, even good ones, are exhausting
• How to recognize the warning signs of your yellow energy zone
• Three micro-shifts to help stabilize your energy this summer

Whether you're overcommitting, underperforming, or snapping at your kids for asking what's for dinner (again), this one’s for you. Plus, a sneak peek into a fun, free tool I’m building to help you map your personal energy zones.

✨Take a deep breath. You’ve got this. Let’s make this summer one that fuels you, not fries you.

I am rolling out a fun new tool FREE to my email list subscribers! It's a personalized Energy Zone builder that will map out your energy zones for you! 

Get on the waitlist HERE and be one of the first to try it!

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Disclaimer:  I am not a medical doctor. The information and recommendations provided during our coaching sessions are intended to support your overall health and wellness and are not a substitute for professional medical diagnosis or treatment. Always consult with your physician before making any changes to your medication, treatment plan, or if you have any concerns about your health. 

Transcript

Introducing the Summer Energy Series

Speaker 1 2:28

Thanks so much for tuning in. Be sure to hang on till the end, because I'm very excited to announce a special offer to my email list subscribers, a fun new tool that I am currently developing. The school year's wrapping up, summer is creeping in or it's crashing in, and your calendar is starting to look like a choose your own chaos novel. In today's episode, we're kicking off the five-episode Summer Energy series, and we're starting today with the Schedule Whiplash. You know that weird in-between season where your brain is still trying to finish May, but your body and your brain feel like they are already buckling under the summer mode or the thought of summer mode. So by the end of this episode, you'll have three micro habit shifts that you can implement to help stabilize your energy this summer, starting today and moving forward. Remember, this isn't about overhauling your life. It's about catching the warning lights before you crash. So let's make this summer one that fuels you and fills your soul instead of frying you. For the final days of school and I'm talking field day Don't forget the school shirt and the water bottle. Don't forget to tune in to that live video stream of field day, final projects, work deadlines, camp signups. Who am I kidding? I actually had to sign up my kids for summer camp back in October to make sure that we had a spot, and all those open tabs in your brain related to impending overlapping transitions in your schedule at the end of the school year and beginning of the summer, while still trying to tell yourself I've got this, take a deep breath, you do have this.

Speaker 1 4:33

So let's talk about this for a minute. What is the schedule whiplash. Well, we all know what whiplash is. Hopefully you've never had to experience it, but it's the same exact thing, but in a mental and emotional way the mental and emotional toll of going from somewhat structured routine to sort of summer mode, without any real transition time During the school year or traditional work cycles. Many women, especially those of you in leadership roles, operate inside a semi-predictable system Alarms, reminders, drop-offs, meetings, structured work blocks, sports schedules, dinner prep, bedtimes. It's hectic, but there's a little bit of a rhythm to it. Yes, there are definitely faulty routines, and in that routine too, but in a sense there's still some structure, still some boundaries and that all too familiar chaos. But then comes late May, early June, and here we are, my friend, and everything starts to unhinge. School's winding down calendars feel like they're getting messier, when summer is usually a time of when we feel like less chaotic. Events start to overlap and selling. The structure you were operating within is dissolving before your eyes before a new one has really taken over in its place. So you're supposed to be preparing for summer, but you're still wrapping up May, and it's a lot. This is the schedule whiplash.

Three Micro Shifts for Energy Stability

Speaker 1 6:10

Transitions in and of themselves can be exhausting. Even a positive change is still a change, and your nervous system doesn't care whether a transition is good or bad. It just simply registers that there is some instability or an unknown and the disruption that you feel, the sense like you're forgetting everything, you're behind on everything and somehow still responsible for everything. You might be telling yourself but summer is coming, I should feel relaxed. But this is the gray zone, the part of the year feels like you're being caught in between two realities. You're not in the school year anymore, but you're not into the full swing of summer rhythm either. So you're floating in this gray zone where the logistics of schedules and routines are fuzzy. Your body hasn't quite figured out how to exist in this new rhythm yet, and so that in-between feeling that's where the spiral starts to kick in you forget what day it is, you're feeling foggy or off, and even though you've technically got less going on or in some cases maybe more going on, you overcommit, you underperform, you push through until you crash and burn. What zone is that? That's the red zone. So this is yellow zone territory, right, territory. You're not in full crash yet, but you're definitely teetering on the brink. And in that yellow zone you're feeling edgy, you're mentally cluttered, you're foggy, your focus is short, you're snapping at small things that maybe wouldn't normally phase you, or you're feeling like you're going to cry for no reason at all. And then you say yes to more. You say yes to one more thing and you're instantly regretting it.

Speaker 1 8:11

Your nervous system hasn't caught up to the season shift. This is not a time to power through it. This is the time to honor the lag it. This is the time to honor the lag, the pause, and allow your body and your mind to catch up. So you need a plan proactively to monitor and acknowledge your energy zones, so you have time to pump the brakes a little bit and give yourself a little bit of time to recalibrate. So how do you stabilize your energy before full-blown summer hits?

Speaker 1 8:51

I'm going to give you three micro shifts to try this week. Number one anchor one part of your day and, throughout the summer, pick one thing that you can anchor as part of your day and you can put that in a time block. Whether it's morning, afternoon or evening, but schedule this block consistently and this gives your brain and body something steady to rely on and also look forward to. So, whether that is a morning walk around the block or the neighborhood before you start your work day, before you drop the kids off at camp, or maybe it's an afternoon break where you just sit outside and put your feet in the grass and just breathe, or maybe it's going to be, you know, the same time every day is where I'm going to take the kids to the park, and that is going to be our one staple, one anchor part of the day every day, and that's going to help you build your new routine.

Visualizing Your Perfect Summer Moment

Speaker 1 9:57

Number two ask yourself what three things actually matter today and honestly ditch the rest. Name it your daily top three. Those are your things today. Everything else can wait till tomorrow for your next daily top three. And number three account for buffer time, that transition time. Build in 10 or 15 minutes between switching major tasks like school or camp, drop off to your work, meeting on Zoom. Schedule yourself a lunch break. This is to help you reorient your energy or Savor the flavor.

Speaker 1 10:39

Get in a stretch. Practice some box breathing. It's not a sprint, it's an easement into your next task. We live in a world where everything is on demand, and so you subconsciously have learned to be expectant of things to happen right away and thus putting unrealistic expectations on yourself to do the same. So let's take a moment and slow your breathing.

Energy Tracking Resources and Announcements

Speaker 1 11:24

Now close your eyes and picture what the best part of summer looks like for you. Maybe it's sitting outside in the sun on your anti-gravity chair, with your eyes closed and that summer breeze blowing through your hair, sun smiling down on you, and you feel those few minutes of peace. Cannonball into the pool, the refreshing water enveloping your body until the water covers your head and you feel cooled off, and then you push up from the bottom of the pool with your feet to surface again. Or maybe it's having the house to yourself for a couple quiet hours to do what you want to do. And if all you want to do is take a nap, take the nap. Don't lose sight of what makes you happy as you transition into summer.

Speaker 1 12:28

This week, the week of these scheduled transitions, is not the time to start a new routine. It's a time to notice where is your energy leaking, what are your yellow flashing lights, what is your energy, your yellow energy zone? So I invite you to listen to episode 33, where you can map out your own energy zones and spend the next week simply tracking your energy. Knowledge is power, noticing is powerful. Adjusting and tweaking doesn't require an overhaul, just small shifts. It can be that simple.

Speaker 1 13:06

If you need help finding what may be draining you or how to tweak it with a small shift, the Energy Tune-Up Tracker is made for this. It's a self-audit that you can use to spot where energy may be leaking. It focuses on five foundational elements. It takes three self audit that you can use to spot where energy may be leaking. It focuses on five foundational elements. It takes three minutes a day, zero judgment, and can give you clarity fast. You can grab it at melissahinmancom forward slash tune up.

Speaker 1 13:29

And I'm also very excited to offer to my email list subscribers a fun new tool that I am developing. It's a personalized energy zone builder that will map out your energy zones for you. Click the link in the show notes to join the wait list. This will only be free for those who are already on my email list, so you don't want to miss this. Sign up now. All right, thanks for hanging with me today. This is episode one of our summer energy series. On the next episode, we're talking about how more daylight could bring more pressure and how to find that balance between productivity and relaxation. Until then, honor your yellow lights, keep your schedule simple and maybe cancel something just because you can.