It’s crazy I even believed this

Do you need permission to stop feeling guilty for not being a “productivity machine” every single day?

I used to hold a crazy, unquestioned belief— that I should be able to be productive on the same level, with the same output every single day . Do you believe that too?

You might be sitting there thinking, “I HAVE to be ‘on’ all the time just to keep up,” and if that’s you, It makes total sense why you feel that way.  Given that we live in a world that screens ads for Barocca to “stay focused for longer” and for when “fatigue slows you down”, and given that the normal workday was originally created by men whose hormones cycle over 24 hours, you’d be forgiven for believing your energy can reset every 24 hours for a another fully productive day and that there’s something wrong with you if you can’t cope.

But I don’t have to tell you that, physiologically, your body wasn’t built to function like a machine. If you’re reading this that probably means your body has already started trying to get that message through to you?

Women’s menstrual cycles are impacted by the lunar cycles. All bodies have a circadian rhythm that’s intertwined with light and dark. Our entire endocrine and nervous systems are impacted by the intricate dance of the sun and the moon. When you stop fighting these natural rhythms and start working with the connection between your body and nature you don’t just prevent burnout—you unlock a level of health, vitality, and intuitive “magic” that most people spend a lifetime searching for.

Right now is a new moon—a time for wintering and going inwards for male and female bodies.

Be honest with yourself: Are you feeling a little more tired? Do you feel less inclined to socialise?

That’s great news! It means your body is perfectly tuned in.  But if you keep tuning it out, you’ll keep feeling overwhelmed, under-resourced and stuck.

Tamacin McLellan and I recorded a podcast about our own experiences of burnout and working with natural rhythms. We’re also holding a retreat in exactly a month during the next new moon, in the middle of winter to help women to learn how to embrace the practice of surrender and rest to uplevel your work, health and life (it sounds counterintuitive doesn’t it!? But it works….)

Can you imagine what it would feel like to lead and create from a connected, nourished place where your potential is fulfilled without sacrificing your soul?

Here’s more info on the retreat.

By the way… every phase of the natural cycles has a gift. The gift of this new moon is that the rest you take now gives you far greater returns than rest taken at any other time during the natural cycles. Not only that, but your intuition is ramped up and it’s a potent time to set intentions, like little seeds that will bloom in the full moon phase of this cycle or beyond.

There’s so much magic you can leverage when working with natural cycles (I even sold two houses in a single lunar cycle!).

One final thing…. You don’t have to rest for the whole weekend. You just need more rest than you usually take. Aim for a half hour if you can. Bank that rest and reap the rewards… guilt free. After all no one can ignore the call of nature!