Three Major Benefits Of Using The Routine Block Planning Method

Ashley Brown 0:00 [Intro]
Routine blocking is a new way to plan. It helps you easily organize and prioritize the things on your plate plus so much more. In this episode of the routine and things podcast, you'll learn three major benefits of using the routine block planning method, what it will do for your life is simply revolutionary.

Ashley Brown 0:32
Back in 2018 When I was a stay at home mom struggling to manage my household and my sanity, I decided to use planning to get more organized, I went to the store, I grabbed a really simple planner. When I got home, I opened it up just to stare at the lines on the page for 10 minutes. Then after some time, I decided you know what, let me plan based upon the areas of my life I was constantly thinking about and managing. Long story short, I stumbled upon a new way of planning that changed the way I organized my days is called the routine block planning method, which helps you simplify your planning by organizing daily tasks into four routine categories. Self care, family, cleaning, and cooking. And lucky for you, I put together a free training that tells you all about it. In this free 15 minute video training, you'll learn how to get organized using the routine block planning method, you'll learn how it works. And why is the solution to living a more organized life to start watching head to routinethings.com/training or just click the link in the show notes.

Ashley Brown 1:38
Hey, and welcome back for another episode of the routine and things podcast. Welcome. Happy you're listening today. Happy to be here today with you. So today I am going to be breaking down the three major benefits of using routine blocking. Three major benefits of using the routine block planning method for your life. And so I want to share what this planning method is all about and what is going to do for you. Because I'm telling you right now is going to do a lot for you, especially if you're struggling in certain ways. Routine blocking is going to be so great in helping you to manage your life with more ease and more intention, which is always the goal, right?

Ashley Brown 2:24
It's to manage life with ease and intention. So let me break this down for you right now. So first, let me just explain what routine blocking is. Routine blocking is a very simple planning method where you organize weekly tasks into four routine categories, including self care, family, cleaning and cooking. And it is very similar to time blocking but without the time restriction. Because for some of us, having a time constriction or just a time constraint isn't helpful. It isn't even going to work for some of us in seasons of life, especially when we have families, especially when we have busy seasons. It's like wait, I can't be held to a certain time when my kids interrupted me every five seconds.

Ashley Brown 3:10
So what routine blocking really does is allows you to set boundaries and set limits but within the form of a category instead of a time. So that's what I love about it's a lot more flexible, and gives you more guidance in how to prioritize and the things to stay focused on. When it comes to routine blogging, there are three major benefits that I have to share with you. Because this is what makes routine blocking so, so helpful and effective, especially if you are in seasons of life where you need more guidance in terms of how to prioritize if you need more guidance when it comes to organizing the management of the things in your life, this is going to be perfect for you.

Ashley Brown 3:55
So let's get to it. The first thing, number one benefit is it helps you manage the foundational areas of your life, aka helps you manage the basics. Okay, the four routine categories are self care, family, cleaning, and cooking. Tell me right now are all of those four things, things that you think about? The foundational areas of your life, basically, the basics of your life, the things that when you manage them, well, you'll feel pretty daggone good in life. When you're keeping up with what's going on with your family when you are keeping your home clean, when cooking is somewhat effortless or at least not as much of a headache, right. And also when you are caring for yourself. This is the foundation these are daily priorities that we are thinking about, or at least we need to be thinking about if we want to manage life well.

Ashley Brown 4:45
And so being able to stay focused on these really core areas of your life, keep you maintaining the basics well and when you feel like you have the basics maintained when you feel like you're managing the foundational areas of your life, when things come about when you feel like you're stressed, or when you feel like, you know, you got to put out this fire randomly or something happens, that kind of will get you a little bit anxious or overwhelmed, you feel more equipped to handle those things, handle those problems, because you know, that you have the foundation laid. Many times when we're feeling really overwhelmed and stressed in life is this internal conflict, that we're not maintaining the basics well.

Ashley Brown 5:31
That we're getting behind on laundry, that we're eating out all the time, because we haven't thought about what's for dinner, because of the fact that we haven't even taken care of ourselves in the longest time in a way that's going to bring us joy and happiness and light, right? Like, it's so important that we lay and create a strong foundation in our lives so that we can weather any storm that comes and we feel more equipped to weather any storm that comes. And so that's the first major benefit is that routine blocking helps you build a strong foundation and consistently helps you manage the basics in your life.

Ashley Brown 6:10
Those foundational areas that are consistently coming up for you that you know, when you manage them well, you feel good. So that's the first huge benefit of routine blocking. The second major benefit of routine blocking is it helps you become a good steward of your time and energy. Okay, so I have a question for you. Do you feel like you struggle with time management? And if the answer is yes, then keep listening. Because routine blocking is excellent at helping you manage your time and energy in a better way. Routine blocking really helps you become a good steward of your time and energy. Because it is a visual reminder for you.

Ashley Brown 6:52
If you are a visual learner, you're gonna love routine blocking, because the grid that your routine blocking within is a huge visual cue. When you are looking at that grid, you're essentially going to be planning within blocks one the blocks are only so big. And what that does is it forces you to simplify what you're doing and how much you're doing. It forces you to do that. Because let's be clear, for some of us, we don't really have the best boundaries or limits, we are not the best at setting limits in our life and saying you know what I've done way too much, or you know what I'm about to do way too much. Let me scale this back. Let me reel this on.

Ashley Brown 7:33
Because I know I'm a little busy body and a high achiever over here, let me reel this on it. And some of us are not the best at doing that. And it's because we haven't put it into practice that's the only reason why. It's not because you can't, it's just because it hasn't been put into practice. So what routine blocking helps you do is put boundary setting and limit setting into practice, because the blocks are only so big. So you're not going to get to a point of filling that block so much to the point where you feel overwhelmed, because you're not going to be able to. It makes you get intentional, it forces you to remain intentional because you're looking at that block and you're saying one, do I need to fill this block today.

Ashley Brown 7:33
And two, if you do need to fill it, what actually needs to go in here one thing many times is enough. And so routine blocking is a huge visual cue, because you are consistently asking yourself, do I want to fill this space in my life? And so by the time you get done filling in the routine blocks for the week, you'll be able to look at it and you will be able to see what how much space did I actually create for myself? Did I fill in every block? And now I feel like I don't have any space? Or you know, what did I actually fill some of these blocks. And I feel like you know what, I have a little breathing room in my life. So that's how routine blocking is helping you become a good steward of your time and your energy.

Ashley Brown 8:56
Because you are asking yourself every single time do I need to fill this space? And if so, what is important to fill this space with what really needs to rise to the top? and you are putting into practice boundary setting, limit setting which when you are in practice with that you get better and better and better with it. And so you don't get to points of feeling burnout, because you're always remaining intentional. So that is the second way that routine blocking benefits you in your life. Now the third way and this is honestly if I had to choose a favorite, which I really is hard to do as I try to think about a favorite child.

Ashley Brown 9:40
But if I had to choose a favorite this would be my favorite in terms of the benefit that it brings to you and that is it promotes consistent self care. Oh my gosh, I know that self care is a huge buzz word and to be perfectly honest, I hope it remains that way because we need to be reminded as often as possible to do self care to give to ourselves, especially as parents, especially as mothers, it is so important that we care for us, it drives me insane when I see people's lives and how they plan, it ain't nothing on there for them. I'm like, Wait, so you do all of this. But really, there's nothing going on here for just you? That's the quickest way to get to burnout right there is by not caring for yourself.

Ashley Brown 10:32
And so when you look at the routine block grid, you're going to see that self care is the first block that is very intentional. I did that on purpose with purpose. Self Care is the first block because I don't want you skipping over you, I don't want you forgetting about you in the equation, you need to be on your list as well, every single daggone day if you want to fill every block, that's the block to feel is the self care block. self care is important for you, as you're managing this thing called life as you're doing all of the things the cleaning, the cooking, the taking care of the kids, the taking care of your significant others, the managing the follow up the this the that you are important, and you matter.

Ashley Brown 11:15
And it's important that you show yourself that love because as we all know, nobody is going to take care of us as much and as well as we take care of ourselves. So if you're not taking care of you, who's taking care of you? Self care, and that's what routine blocking does is it reminds you that you matter, it reminds you to put something on the list for you girl because you matter and your self care is important. And it helps you better manage everything else around you. As you probably have realized, if you've ever had self care part of your life, or just in moments, you realize that oh, this helped me actually manage things a little bit better when I care for myself.

Ashley Brown 11:53
So that is another huge benefit of routine blocking is that it promotes consistent self care. Absolutely amazing for that. So those are the three benefits. It helps you manage the foundational areas of your life. So you maintain the basics. So you have a strong foundation, and that you are constantly focusing on the things that keep you with a strong foundation two it helps you become a good steward of your time. And energy is going to help you put into practice the boundaries, the limit setting around your time and your energy that you need in order to not feel burned out. In order to not be so overwhelmed, in order to manage life in a way that feels good.

Ashley Brown 12:29
In order to open up space for you so that you're not crowding your day with a to do every five seconds. Lastly, it promotes consistent self care for you as a mom, for you as a parent, for you as a person. It promotes consistent self care, self care is so important for you and you need it. And so you will be putting yourself on the list every single week using the routine block planning method. Okay, that's it. Let me get off my high horse y'all because I just felt like I was on my high horse for the full 15 minutes. And so I'm coming on down and but I want to share with you that the planner that comes out October 5.

Ashley Brown 13:05
Are you on the email list? If not get on the email list. A simple way of doing it is by getting one of our freebies right now we have the free training, which is Get Organized using the routine block planning method. So if you want to see an example of that, if you want to see me talk you through an example if you want to hear more about routine blocking, you can get that training. And that is there for you. When you are on the email list, you will get an email on October 5 that allows you to shop early this year, I am only getting a limited quantity of planners because it's the first year that they are out.

Ashley Brown 13:37
And so if you want to have a better chance of getting one you being on the email list is your way to do so so that you shop early and hopefully fingers crossed, you get a planner. So I'm so excited about the launch of the routine and things planner. This planner is unlike any other it goes above and beyond to help you get organized and into routine so that you enjoy the heck out of your life. When you are able to manage life well you feel better in life, you feel more joyful and life you feel like you know what? I'm good. And so you don't have these regrets.

Ashley Brown 14:08
That's like wait, I don't know what I'm doing here. I want to make the most of my life. The routine and things planner is going to help you get organized by merging routine and planning to very powerful tools that when these are working in synergy you are able to get and stay organized in your life and be able to manage life with more ease and enjoyment. Thank you for joining me today. I hope that this was enlightening and that you learned something new and until next time. I hope that you enjoy wherever you are. Whatever you're doing, girl, Stay happy, and I will talk to you next week.

Ashley Brown 14:43 [Outro]
Thanks for listening. If you enjoyed today's episode, take a screenshot and share it on social I would love to know you're listening. And for tools to help you start maintain and enjoy your routines. Be sure to head to routineandthings.com Here's to staying happy