Julie (00:01):
So you wanna launch a subscription box and don't know where to start. Girl, you are in the right place. I'm Julie Ball, a subscription box coach, and your host here at subscription box basics, a podcast for new and aspiring subscription box entrepreneurs that want to avoid overwhelm, grab a coffee, some pen and paper, and let's have some, Hey and welcome back to subscription box basics, the podcast I'm Julie Ball, your host, and not sure if you even noticed, but I took a week off last week from the podcast because of, I just had a lot of things going on. We had spring break recently, we had all kinds of other big things going on, on in our family. And so I just realized that I needed a freaking break. So I took one and I that's what I'm kind of gonna talk about today. I know that as a subscription box business owner, there's a lot of moving parts and it be can become very overwhelming.
Julie (00:58):
So I'm gonna share with you today, five ways at I decompress when I'm feeling overwhelmed, take it or leave it. Hopefully some of these help you out. Um, I, by no means am a mental health specialist, but I am an advocate for taking care of your mental health and I'm gonna share how I take care of mine. So when you feel overwhelmed, just know you're not alone. So of us as entrepreneurs are going through this overwhelm. And oftentimes I tap into my network, my box bestie, my mastermind, my team. And so that's one of the things that really, really helps me. Actually. I'm gonna talk about more than five <laugh> now that I think about it, I have five tools and resources specifically, but I'm just gonna and talk about this for hot minute first. So when I do get to that overwhelm stage, I think I pull inward.
Julie (01:50):
Um, my team will often notice that I'm on Voxer, less Voxer is like a walkie talkie app that we use to communicate. It's my favorite, but they'll notice that I'm on less. They'll notice that my energy level is down and sometimes they'll bring it up to me, which I am so grateful for. But sometimes it's one of those things where I just have to figure out like I'm in a funk, what am I gonna do about it? And so that's the first thing you need to do is figure out what's triggering your overwhelm, your funk, your, you know, whatever you're going through, figure out what's triggering, triggering, and address the problem. It, we're not trying to, um, cover up the problem. And I'll just give you a quick example sometimes. And in, especially in the past, I had been triggered by the comparison trap and in fact at sparkle house will grow.
Julie (02:40):
We just took that on as a topic a couple of months ago. And we read the book called comparisonitis by Melissa Amini. I highly recommend it. If comparisonitis is your trigger that sends you into overwhelm where you're thinking I'm not posting enough, I'm not good enough. This person's way far ahead of me. I, you know, I am missing out all these things can really trigger that overwhelm. So figure out like, think about what is triggering it and really address the problem. That is the biggest thing here. And it's so much easier said than done. So now I'm gonna share those five tools and resources, those things that I do when I get to that moment where I might be trying to address the problem, but I need some things to kind of level me out and like recalibrate in the meantime. So number one is the first thing I do is I need to get outside.
Julie (03:31):
So often it's maybe I've been in front of my computer far too long hustling. You guys know how I feel about the hustle, um, that you need to and what it means to you. You need to have seasons of rest, seasons of hustle. You can't be hustling all the time, you know, 24 7, 365, because that's just gonna lead to burnout. And so when I start to feel that way, I will go outside. Some of my go-to activities outside are honestly just like a basic walk. I'll go somewhere where there's beautiful surroundings. There's a couple of parks and lakes around where I live, that I will frequent. I'll take a coffee or a tea with me and just enjoy some nature. Sometimes I'll listen to something on my headphones. Sometimes I will not. I'll just need quiet. And so another activity I really love to do is hike.
Julie (04:16):
I like to go stand up paddle boarding, which is about now, the season will start for me here in Western North Carolina to get on the water. And it just makes me feel so much better. Just reconnecting. I know this might sound a little bit. Woo. But I'm below part. W what about putting your feet in the grass? They call it grounding and there, I don't know the scientific reasons for, or what it does, but gosh, darn it. Whenever I put my feet in the grass and in the dirt, just relaxing for a little bit, whether that's walking around or just sitting in the sun with my feet in the dirt, I always feel better. So while I can't explain that one, Google it, I don't know. I'm sure there's something to do with earthing and grounding. So another thing that I like to do outside is to spend time with friends, but with no talk of business, sometimes we feel like our business defines us.
Julie (05:11):
It's where we find our value. And we need to remember that it is not our entire identity. It's a part of it. Yes. But you need to make sure that you're balancing out. And I know there's never like true balance, but I'm saying like, you need to make sure that you are having conversations. That aren't just about business all the time. I know sometimes it might feel hard because business lights me up. I love what I do. I find so much joy in it, but I really need to make sure that I am pouring into other buck of my life, of my identity. So get out there and spend some time with friends and family outdoors in the sunshine, and I guarantee it will help you decompress. The second thing that I do, and this is, this has been my go-to for, for ages. Like even when I was in corporate America, it's called a brain dump and it is simply getting a pen and paper, whether that's a journal or, uh, I prefer it not to be on my notes app because I wanna get off a screen, but it can be on a notes app if you want on your phone.
Julie (06:14):
But just take a moment to all of the thoughts that are racing around in your mind and put them on paper, get them out of your mind so that you don't have to continue thinking about them and worrying about them. What this does for me is it allows me to have a little bit of peace of mind takes all of those racing thoughts out of my mind and allows me revisit them tomorrow with a fresh set of eyes a new day, but I won't have forgotten anything because I brain dumped. I, I took all of those thoughts and put them on paper so that I could look at them later. It just it's so helpful. I oftentimes have a small notebook and a pen on my nightstand because sometimes my mind will start racing right before bed. That's the worst because you know, you need to get them out of your head so that you can have a good night's sleep.
Julie (07:05):
Sometimes I'll even wake up in the middle of the night with an idea. Don't tell me you've never done that. Come on. I know you have so write it down so you don't forget about it and you can revisit it later and it'll allow your mind to rest. Now, my favorite thing to pair up with, um, this brainstorm, this brain jump, um, at the end of the day is a cup of hot kava tea. If you are the kind of person like me, that you just get all these ideas and they're just racing and you really, really need them to calm down kava tea is my go to, I love it. I specifically love the kava stress relief tea by Yogi. It's meant to basically promote relaxation. It's caffeine free. It's an herbal tea, and it's the actual kava comes from a plant in the south Pacific people often use it for anxiety, for stress, um, for sleeping problems.
Julie (08:02):
I kind of looked it up and there's no like really good scientific evidence to support these. It freaking works for me. Like, I, I can't explain it, but I love it. And whether it's kava having this relaxing effect on you or whether it is kind of that mind over matter type thing ever been in this situation where you need to do something to switch your mindset, sitting down with a pen and a paper and a cup of hot Cova stress relief tea, like going through that kind of ritual. I don't, I don't know if that's the best word for it, but that, um, that set up really helps me de-stress and get past that overwhelm. I highly recommend you try it. I will put a link to this kava stress relief tea. I'll put an Amazon link in the show notes in case you wanna try it out, but Ugh, it is my go-to.
Julie (08:54):
I love it. I throw a couple of bags of it when I travel and guys give it a try. I, I think you'll really like it. Okay. Number four, you knew this one was coming. If you know me, music music helps me get over my overwhelm. It helps me decompress. I've got all kinds of different playlist for different mindset shifts. So like when I need to get hyped up, we've got a playlist for that. Um, with sparkle hustle grow, it's called girl, you're a boss. I'll put the link to that one in the show notes as well. When I need to decompress, I've got a playlist that helps me chill out. It's just filled with mellow music. One of my go to, um, artists for probably, I don't even know over a decade, probably two decades has been Nora Jones. I don't know what it is about it, but she's got some songs that remind me of a specific time in my life, but they also bring me a lot of calm.
Julie (09:50):
And so in the past, when I was in my twenties, I would experience panic attacks. And for whatever reason in Nora Jones music was able to calm me down, not the fast stuff, but like the slow calm stuff. And so this day I go back to Nora Jones for that type of calming effect, but create a playlist. I love Spotify makes it really easy to create these playlists, but it's better to, to make these playlists in advance. Think about maybe three mindset shifts that you would need to make and sit down one day and just compile three different playlists for those moments. It's better to have those playlists made and ready for when you need them, rather than trying to create them on the fly when you're feeling a specific emotion. And if you don't wanna create your own playlist and you go to Spotify or wherever you get your music and just type in like relaxing music, and I guarantee there'll be hundreds of playlists for you to choose from.
Julie (10:41):
And number five, the last tool and resource that I wanna share with you is an app that I use called Headspace. You may have may or may not have heard of it. It's mostly known for being a meditation app. And I know sometimes I like, uh, I don't like to meditate. Well, sometimes I don't like to meditate either, but it really, to me, but to be honest, Headspace is more than just a meditation app. It has all kinds of different resources on there. They even have, if you log in and you go to their explore function, it breaks it down into four categories for you, meditate, sleep, move, and focus. So if you need help in any of those areas of your life, then Headspace could be a really good app for you. Um, there are courses in there, there are audio courses and they even have some video courses in there.
Julie (11:29):
Now I was just doing this, um, like 30 day workout challenge. It had some audio resources, but it also had some video resources with an instructor showing you the movements. So I really highly recommend it. You can do these tiny little quick meditations that are meant for, um, you know, they're like, what are two minutes for when you're feeling a panic attack, or if you are feeling overwhelmed or you're feeling burnout or angry, they have these great little mini meditations may also have longer meditations too, to help you really disconnect from the feelings that you're feeling of overwhelm or whatever it is, but check it out. You, I, I really think that you'll like it. They have all kinds of different voices to listen to, and it really helps guide you through something that you might not be able to do on your own, but you might not have the resources immediately available.
Julie (12:18):
So check it out. It's called the Headspace app. I'll make sure to put a link in the show notes for that. So let's recap this quick episode, when you are feeling overwhelmed, the first thing you need to do is figure out what's triggering you and address that problem. It, it could be as simple as that by addressing the problem, you might be able to find the solution, but if you're struggling like I do, these are the five tools that and resources that I recommend. Number one, get outside, do some sort of outside activity, whether that's exercise or a basic walk, spend some time with friends, not talking about your business. Number two, brain dump all of those racing thoughts in your head and get it on paper. So you can revisit it later and just give your mind that freedom, that white space that it needs so that you can relax.
Julie (13:07):
Number three, kava stress relief tea from Yogi. I'm sure there's plenty of other brands you can, but that's my favorite pair up that brain dump with a hot cup of kava tea, and I guarantee your mind will stop racing. Number four, music, create yourself three playlists for different emotions so that you have go-to jams to help you mindset shift and number five, one of my favorite apps, head space to help you through those difficult moments with guided meditation and other resources to help you focus, move, meditate, and sleep. All right, guys, that's it for me today. I felt this was a good topic to cover after I just had to do some decompress from feeling the overwhelm of just running a business, being a mama, being a wife and the changing of the seasons. There's just a lot going on. I'd love to hear the ways that you decompress. You can DM me at subscription box bootcamp over on Instagram, and we can chat about it. If this has been helpful, please share with a, a friend subscribe rate and review. It helps the podcast get in front of other people, just like you, who are interested in starting or having a thriving subscription box business. Thanks for listening today. And I'll see you in the next episode.