Meeting your goals when no one is watching
This is the most common struggle I see: staying focused on important tasks when no one’s watching. Whether you’re studying for a qualification, doing paid work, or just keeping life running, it’s hard to give your best energy to the work that matters especially when it’s not always exciting.
In my 8-week programme, we focus on one-three big priorities which are typically below:
Wellbeing (often exercise)
Launching a creative venture (activities that are outside of comfort zone)
Life admin (everything from banking to decluttering)
All you need is a structure that honours your cycle and goals. Here is my 3-Part Daily Split to help you out.
3-Part Daily Split
Ingredients
A calendar (digital or paper)
Timer or alarm
Spreadsheet or habit-tracking app (optional, but useful)
1-3 priorities you’re currently struggling to show up for
A quiet 2–20 minutes at the start of each day
1 week to trial the structure, followed by a 28-day commitment
Method
Choose Your Window
Work within your existing productive window (e.g. school hours if you’re a parent).
Split your available time into three equal blocks. School hours becomes 3 blocks of 1 hour 45 minutes.
Daily Planning Practice
At the start of each productive day, spend 20 minutes doing the following:
Name your 3 categories.
Write 1–2 key tasks per category that would move the needle forward fastest.
Set your intention: “Today, I’m showing up for myself by doing…”
If you don’t have 20 minutes, try this: Infuse your visions into your morning routine.
Use the Blocks
Dedicate each block to one of your priorities.
Start each block with the most impactful task.
Track and Reflect
At the end of each day, take 2 minutes to jot down what worked, what didn’t, and how you felt.
Use a colour-coded calendar, notes app, or journal to track patterns.
Weekly Review
After 7 days, reflect:
What got done?
When did you feel most productive?
What needs shifting?
Refine and Repeat
Continue the structure for 28 more days.
Tweak the time blocks, order, or categories every 28 days until you find your sweet spot.
Remember: productivity is cyclical. You’re not a robot and you can adapt the system to suit you.
Good luck! Let me know how you get on.
Infuse your visions into your morning routine
I used practice every day when I left the comfort of a stable job to pursue my first business. It became a grounding ritual and daily reminder of my priorities and the abundance already present in my life. On the hardest days, when doubt crept in and the weight of uncertainty felt heavy, the repetition of this practice was soothing while providing clarity.
Ingredients
Speaking aloud to someone or yourself. At one point, I sent voice notes to myself via WhatsApp.
Method
Each morning say aloud…
Your long term, infinite vision.
What you will achieve today.
What you are grateful for.
Repeat this every day and witness the shift. Your actions align, your vision begins to materialise, and your sense of gratitude deepens.
You might also like Becoming, an 8 week programme for the woman ready to actualise her dreams.
Amplify your True Brand
For the woman building an authentic brand grounded in who she truly is
In 2018, I launched my first company. I had already helped other businesses with their branding, but this time, the brand was me. By anchoring into my natural strengths and values, I grew an idea into a profitable business in six months and a team of five within eighteen. It was all grounded in a clear brand, so people knew exactly who they were working with. That experience taught me this: building a personal brand is about honouring what already lives within you.
This practice can be applied to all kinds of branding whether you're launching a creative venture, building new friendships in a new city, or calling in your soulmate.
What is a True Brand?
A True Brand surfaces and amplifies the elements of our natural selves that already exist. This takes less energy than trying to mould ourselves into something new. And as we strengthen the core parts of our identity, the parts that no longer serve us naturally fade away.
Draw from this practice the elements that will provide clarity to others on what it means to be connected to you.
Identifying and Embodying Your True Brand
Ingredients:
A large piece of paper, pens, and highlighters. I used the back of some building materials as I wanted something big enough to reflect on. Get creative!
A space where you won’t be disturbed.
A way to centre yourself. I use karakia and light a candle to create a sacred container for myself.
Method:
Self-Reflection: On the left-hand side of your writing board, list all the words that describe you. These words should represent you in your entirety and what has been revealed to you so far. It’s an honest assessment of who you are, the good, the bad, the beautiful, and the messy. (e.g., visionary, runner, over-sharer, kind, structured, intuitive, teacher, analyst). You can use words that you have heard others say about you if it feels right. You can also ask others what comes to mind when they think of you if you need inspiration.
Future Visioning: On the right-hand side, write down your dreams, aspirations, intentions, and goals. Who are you becoming?
Your People: Below your dreams, describe the types of people you want with you on the journey and what kind of people you would feel excited about building relationships with. What words come to mind when you think of them?
Brand Magnetism: Using a highlighter, circle the qualities about yourself that will magnetise your dreams and attract the right people and relationships for you. Focus on the qualities that make you unmistakably you. What makes you compelling? How do you look? How do others feel when they’re around you? What do you wish to share with the world?
Refinement: Identify your Top 5 words. These words will form your brand qualities. Place them at the top of your board. Beneath them, keep the remaining qualities that will act as support for your brand. You can thread these in and out of your brand over time.
Affirming Your True Brand: Create one affirmation for each of your Top 5 words, your brand qualities to strengthen your identity.
If your brand includes healthy, fit, beautiful, you might write: "I am healthy, I am fit, I am beautiful through my wellbeing activities that I prioritise each day."
If your brand includes strong financial skills, you might write: "I have strong financial skills using intuition and strategy.”
Refine Your Statements: Polish your affirmations to make them powerful and resonant. You should have an emotional reaction when you read these out. If reading your affirmations makes you squirm a little, you are in the right zone! Keep going in this direction. Allow yourself the freedom to grow and expand through this process.
Embody Your True Brand: Keep your list of brand qualities, dreams, and people somewhere visible. For five minutes every day for 21 days, review your words and speak your affirmations aloud.
This practice will help you integrate your True Brand into your thoughts, habits, and actions, which will strengthen the unique qualities about yourself that you love, thereby weakening the parts of yourself that need to fall away.
Stepping Into Your True Brand
This process is about owning and amplifying who you already are. When you align your brand with your pono (truth), you move through the world with more confidence, energy, and ease.
And when you show up in this way, you naturally attract the right opportunities, people, and experiences that resonate with your essence.
To every woman navigating a major life transition and redefining how you show up for yourself and others, this is your invitation. Step into your brand with clarity and courage. You are already enough.
Let me know how you go. I would love to hear your reflections. 💛
With aroha, Cleo xx
You might like to check out Becoming: 8 Week Programme
Find your Work Purpose
Work creating from your unique talents, fuels your soul, and contributes meaningfully.
A practice I was introduced to during a time when I needed clarity. I love when what we need to hear arrives in the perfect moment. Here is how to find your Work Purpose, inspired by Ikiga.
Ingredients:
A large piece of paper, pens, and highlighters. I used the back of some building materials as I wanted something big enough to reflect on. Get creative!
A space where you won’t be disturbed.
A way to centre yourself. I use karakia and light a candle while I’m creating.
Method:
Centre yourself.
Divide your paper into four sections:
What You Love: Write everything you love, beyond just work include all areas of your life.
What You’re Good At: List all your strengths, including those others have recognised in you.
What You Can Make Money From: Think creatively and feel free to research there are endless possibilities.
What the World Needs More Of: Consider community-level needs all the way to a global perspective.
Look for synergies between all four sections and begin highlighting or circling common themes.
In the middle of the page, start writing a statement that threads these elements together into your work purpose.
You may come up with multiple statements that could become your Work Purpose. Refine them until you find the one that feels absolutely true.
Sit with your Work Purpose. Close your eyes. How does it feel? Write that down.
There should be a whole-body fuck yes moment when you land on it, maybe goosebumps, maybe an undeniable pull. If it doesn’t come immediately, let it sit with you for a few days. I refined mine for a week before it fully landed.
Keep your Work Purpose somewhere visible so you can reflect on it daily. As you build the courage and ideas to step into it, let it serve as a guiding light.
When I rediscovered my Work Purpose, I felt a deep knowing and a little fear. The truth was, I wasn’t pursuing my deepest dream, and it was time to step up. It took another month to clarify what this truly meant for me and how I would deliver this for myself. And another month to confidently state to others: This is my work. I create supportive spaces for women to actualise their dreams.
This work is driven by my belief that if we all actualise our dreams in ways that align with our deepest values, without exploiting others or the use of unfair value chains, the world would be a more equitable and peaceful place.
If you give this a go, I would love to hear where you land. What does your Work Purpose reveal to you?
A Practice for Intentional Living
Bring balance to your life by focusing on the areas that matter most to you.
Each season, I take time to reflect on different areas of my life, checking in on my wellbeing, relationships, creativity, and work.
This practice provides me with awareness and helps me observe changing patterns over time. The findings help me create small changes and I move in a more intentional direction.
How it works
I created 13 themes based on what is important to me in my life. You are welcome to use what I’ve come up with or create your own themes or edits as you desire.
Once you have your themes, rate each area on a scale of 1-5 for whatever feels right (I rate mine 1=needs urgent attention through to 5=positively flowing). It is exciting to see high level trends once you’ve gotten into a regular rhythm of completing over time. You can reflect on what cannot come with you into the next season and in its place what you wish to cultivate more of in your life.
The important areas of my life - season in review
Rest and Sleep
Am I getting enough sleep, restorative sleep?
Do I wake up feeling rested?
What habits are helping or harming my sleep quality?
Physical Wellbeing
Am I moving my body in ways that feel good?
How is my energy level throughout the day?
What small shifts could improve my physical health?
Magical Physical Space
Does my home/space feel like a reflection of me and the people who live here?
Is it supporting my creativity and peace?
What changes could make it more aligned?
Emotional and Mental Wellbeing
How have I been taking care of my mind and emotions?
What helps me feel balanced and resilient?
Are there any unresolved emotions that need attention?
Relationship with Myself
Have I been connecting with myself deeply?
Am I honouring my needs, desires and boundaries?
How can I deepen my connection with myself this season?
Motherhood
How present and connected have I been with my son?
What moments have felt the most special or meaningful?
What support do I need to nurture myself and my son?
Immediate Family
How present and connected have I been with my family?
Are there any relationships that need more attention?
How do I feel when I spend time with them?
Friendships
Am I nurturing the friendships that matter to me?
Do I feel seen, supported, and connected?
What kind of friendships do I want to cultivate?
Romantic Relationship
Am I making space for love in my life?
Is this relationship deepening in the way I desire?
Do my actions align with the kind of relationship I want?
Creativity & Art
Have I been making enough space for creative expression?
What’s inspiring me right now?
How can I bring more joy into my creative process?
Time in Nature
How much time have I spent outdoors?
Do I feel grounded and connected to the whenua (land)?
What outdoor activities nourish me the most?
Work Performance
Am I showing up as the version of myself I want to be at work?
What’s working well? What could improve?
How does my work align with my larger goals?
Entrepreneurial Activities
Am I giving my dreams the attention they deserve?
What progress have I made in the past season?
What’s the next small step toward expansion?
Learning & Growth
What new knowledge or skills have I gained this season?
Have I been actively seeking learning opportunities that excite me?
How has learning contributed to my personal and professional growth?
What areas do I feel called to explore next?
Bringing it all together
Following each practice, I look at my ratings and reflections. This season I’m celebrating the peace, joy, and healing in my closest connections while recognising other connections that have fallen away. In amongst my relationships, motherhood and my connection to my son has lessened as he grows to build a stronger bond with his father, a magical change while noticing some grief coming up as we both transition. My intentions will be focused on supporting this change while finding moments where we grow and share together.
I need much more rest and sleep, but that goes hand in hand with the number of ventures I’m creating at the moment and my romantic connection. Great things are flowing in, which adds pressure to allowing what is not serving this season to fall away.
This season I am choosing not to validate the feelings of others when it is in line with dishonesty or the exploitation of others.
Give it a go and let me know how you get on.
With aroha, Cleo xo