Tips For The Most Productive Day

Image from everlasting.charm Instagram

I'm not going to lie ... I have absolutely been nailing my to do list this weekend and I wanted to share some of my secrets to having that productive day. I love to plan one of these when I feel like I'm getting a little overwhelmed with everything that whirling around in my head.

This weekend have managed to get up to date with work, completed a couple of modules on a course I am working on, cooked fresh meals at home, headed to the gym at 5am Saturday and Sunday (yes, even on the weekend), and just generally bossing my to do list.
The best tip is to start with some good foundations, so you can hit the ground running when you wake up.

WRITE A LIST. The most obvious, but the most simple. I like to start with writing down every nagging task that is in my head under category headings. For me these are things like; work, cleaning, blog, study etc.I like to break down my lists, so that I will have one or two things from each of my categories. I have found that for me, this is the best approach, because it forces me to break down tasks into smaller tasks and then do one larger thing per night. So have a think about what it is you want to achieve the following day, and be realistic!

TIME YOUR TASKS. I like to think about how much time a task will take me, and set a timer. If I finish a task, then I will let myself spend the rest of the time doing whatever it is I've been dying to procrastinate on ... social media, texting, ASOS. This also motivates me to also complete the tasks quicker and not procrastinate.

PREP THE NIGHT BEFORE. If you are planning on heading to the gym in the morning the get your clothes ready to pull on. Also, ensuring that your surroundings are tidy. Tidying your whole house will make you much more productive, but if you don't have time then just the specific place you need to be the next day. I.e your desk or kitchen etc.

HAVE A GOOD NIGHT'S SLEEP. Because quite simply if you are sleepy or cranky, then you will not want to nail that to do list.

WAKE UP EARLY. (if you are an early bird!). For me, if I can tick a workout and a couple of other points off my to do list by 10am, it actually makes me feel more productive.

What helps you to be more productive?

5 Tips for Summer Entertaining

Image from Lauren Conrad

One of my favourite things to do in the Summer is to host gatherings for all my friends and family. Whenever there is a sporting event, or a birthday we use that as an excuse to get everyone together. So here are a few tips for easier Summer Entertaining.

1. Create one main dish, with smaller supporting dishes
2. Be ready when people arrive

Image from redonline

For a summery gathering, something like Pulled Pork is perfect. This one from redonline is amazing (We had this for Ryan's birthday last year!) Keep this one in the oven for 12-18hours, shred it and leave it in the oven to soak up the juice for another hour, meaning that your main is done. Add a couple of supporting dishes, such as coleslaw, salad, buns etc makes this into a 'make your own' dinner, and definitely grill some corn on the cob to go with this too! Being ready when the first guests arrive is imperative for a relaxing gathering.

3. Create a drinks table (Or trolley), they look amazing and they are so practical for guests. You can leave them to their own devices, have whichever drink they would like, leaving you to chat to everyone and make your food is all looking lovely.

Image from So Haute

4. Lighting! This sets the scene for the evening. Having dimmed lighting and way too many candles makes the room feel cosy and your guests will settle down and really feel at home.

5. Lastly, make sure you have a summer playlist going. This sets the mood, and music makes everyone happy!

Hope you have some fantastic, chilled gatherings this Summer and have lots of yummy food!