Whether you are a caregiver, a student, or just aiming to keep your head above water, this time of year can be an unwelcome reminder that we are over the halfway mark for the year.

You may be asking yourself if the physical exams, dental appointments, pet visits, holiday planning, etc are scheduled and have a focus on getting what feels like an unending task list before the end of the year.

You may be looking at vacation plans or scheduling out babysitters and trips home for school breaks, but whatever you find yourself doing as we hit the end of August, make sure one of those things is checking in with yourself. (You may remember we talked about self-care earlier this year- I encourage you to revisit for ideas on how to make time for yourself.)

It is easy in the flow of life to want to operate efficiently, but sometimes we can become consumed with the idea of completion, which may lead you more directly to burn-out. For all brains, this can be challenging without building systems of support that ground us, and we can find ourselves fighting through both expectations and tasks.

We recently wrote about methods for retrieving your to-dos and keeping a list of elements in order to sustain focus and remain productive. Whether you are working through your goals for the year or preparing for a life event like school starting back, make sure you afford yourself a little grace and allow room to exist without a definitive “right way” to get through your list and daily life. Transitions from season to season persist. We have the ability and creative license to adapt our approach to these milestones.

Keep these strategies in mind as you head back into the rhythm of the fall season:

• Plan your breaks: Designing your schedule for the day with consideration for meals and brain breaks can help you stay inspired and encourage you to focus and support your brain. 

• Rewards: Have you seen freeze-dried candy all over social media? Have you tried incorporating fun recipes into your meal planning? Using something novel and exciting to reward task completion can help encourage you to get through the tasks, BUT mark the completion with some time to recover and celebrate.

• Buffer time: When building your routines, have you created a small space for accommodating traffic or unplanned impacts? Part of caring for yourself and applying grace means that if impacts shift plans, the task still feels doable. We can’t control everything, nor do we want to but being flexible can help alleviate some stress in life.

• Know yourself: Are you an early riser able to take on the world? Are you a night owl able to focus attention after a day full of activities? Keep these considerations in mind when preparing your plans. Knowing yourself and your brain can help you build routines and schedules that support you wholly which feel more natural and prevent burnout.

Your life is unique and although we all share similar requirements for daily functions, being able to customize your own goalposts can help you recognize the power of a win simply by shifting the way you show up.