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6 mantras I lean on to survive a busy season

I’m in a work sprint.

I knew I would be.

This past summer, I designed my own work schedule: no meetings, long stretches for writing, research, and thinking. The kids were in camp or just bumbling around the house. Camps change week to week, and two bumbling kids will eventually need an arbitrator to swoop in—but for sure summer is easier than the school year. No 6:50 alarm, no trick word quizzes, no school emails.

But now we’re back! My daughter entered third grade and it’s feeling significantly more serious than second. There are weekly tests and assignments and, while I’m letting her be accountable, it still takes mind share to be supportive.

I’ve also re-entered my own classroom. This semester I’m teaching two courses—Advanced Marketing Strategy and Content Marketing—across four sections to about 225 students. The logistics of managing a classroom range from lecture prep to grading to office hours. Beyond teaching, I represent our school as a subject-matter expert, speaking on panels and at events that require time, prep, and energy.

Like many professors, I’m also managing a thought leadership platform outside the classroom. Here on Substack, I publish twice a week. Workhorses Only posts take 4 to 8 hours; Wednesday essays can take anywhere from 4 to 15 hours. Last week’s essay on raising kids went through four full drafts before publication. I also create content on Instagram, where I share insights on hobbies and joy.

But, let me mention one more thing.

I have a monstrously exciting project with a big ol’ deadline: I’m working on a book proposal!

I’m not doing any of this alone.

I have a wonderful support network including my husband who is currently stepping up to do more than 50% to account for my sprint (I will write in depth about how we’re making a temporary shift to make him our “default parent and default household lead”). My parents are in and out of our house on an almost daily basis to help with kids and meals. And, professionally, I pay a lovely writing editor and graphics designer and I’ve hired a book proposal editor.

Meeting with my Teaching Assistants for Content Marketing. These student leaders help me keep the train on the tracks.

Still!

This workload is a lot. Each project is fulfilling and energizing but my brain is so very full. I can feel my nervous system creaking under the sheer volume of stuff so I’m using these 3 things to keep it together:

1. Fully utilizing all the tactics I included in the “How I manage stress” post. From leaning on workhorses to creating quotas to saying no, immediately and gracefully—it’s all working!

2. My hobbies! Despite the sprint and deadlines, I have not given up my hobby time. If I don’t give my brain (and soul) a chance to go Off Duty I will not get through this sprint without sliding into chronic stress. I’m playing tennis about 3 times a week, puzzling daily, home DIYing, and playing mahjong.

3. Mantras!

Mantras have roots in Buddhism and Hinduism and are often repeated as part of meditation. They give your brain an anchor point so that you can quiet the mind, come back to the present and maybe even enter a flow state where everything falls away.

More broadly, a mantra is simply a phrase you say over and over until your brain absorbs a connection with it. As I’ve gotten older, I’ve come to rely on a handful of mantras to ground me when my thoughts start to spin out of control.

Because I’m in such a sprint I find myself repeating (muttering to myself) almost all of these multiple times a day:

1. Be here.

Anytime I need my full concentration I say “be here”. Tennis has helped me tremendously with developing this gift of full focus. Whenever I'm playing and I feel my mind drifting, I say “be here”. It signals to my brain: do not think about one point ago (in life, or in the game), or one point ahead. The only point (or moment in life) you’re in is the one that’s being played. This mantra has become such second nature to me that I can now apply it anytime I am writing, creating or lecturing and I need all the external noise to be swept away. Powerful stuff.

2. Highest and best.

There are times that I get lost with how I’m spending my time. I start organizing or clearing out my email or just scrolling my phone. Or perhaps I don’t quite know what project to grasp a hold of so I just flit between open tabs on my computer. I am prone to wandering around the house looking for something to clean just so I don’t have to start real work. Real work is hard! When I can catch myself procrastinating, I say “highest and best” and it brings me back and forces me to answer, “what should I be doing?” Answering email is easy, writing something new is hard (but best). Scrolling my phone is easy, synthesizing what I’m reading is hard (but best).

3. Act as you want to feel.

I’m an introvert and often have a hard time transitioning from being alone to something that requires me to be “on”. That could be work or even a social function where I’m walking into a crowded room. I’ll get nervous or anxious when instead I want to feel happy and confident. You can’t energize a classroom if you don’t feel energized yourself! So I’ll start quietly chanting “act as you want to feel, act as you want to feel”. It signals to my brain that it’s time to be bubbly and even if I’m initially faking it, and in a matter of minutes, I’m actually feeling that way. I thank Gretchen Rubin for introducing this one to me because it’s helped tremendously!

4. Breathe.

I use this one so much. There are moments when the amount of inputs is just too many. I’ll be trying to send an announcement that office hours are changing while a student is asking for interview prep help while the elementary school is calling me that my kid is sick—and my brain wants to scream from the overload. Actually, my brain is screaming. That’s when I say “breathe”. I wish I didn’t need to pull this out quite so much! That cue of “breathe” removes the panic and pushes me to do one thing at a time. Student, please hold. Answer phone. Send announcement. But, first, we breathe. (My editor can attest that I have said this multiple times in our meetings :) )

5. How hard can it be?

Whenever I’m encountering something new and I feel the fear and panic rising, I say to myself, “how hard can it be?” The intent of this mantra is to remind myself that if I just break things into small chunks, nothing will be infinitely hard. There’s also a nice delusion to it where I tell myself that other people have managed to do this and I’m not an idiot, so really, how hard can it be?

6. Choose your hard.

This is the newest edition to my mantras and it’s thanks to my IG community. When I’m intimidated by how hard a task is (see the pattern?), I remember that life is hard. No matter what, every single person and family has challenges. There will be hard things! But how magical it is to choose your hard. I’ve been forced to say this one a lot lately as I encounter at least six deadlines each week—eight classes, two posts, new book sections—and remember that I chose this hard.

Do you have a mantra?

Mantras don’t have to be part of a meditation practice to be useful. Some ground me in the moment, some remind me of my value system, and some just keep me moving forward when I’ve frozen in panic.

I’ve shared my mantras because they’re carrying me through this sprint and maybe they can help you, too. Do you have a phrase you come back to when things feel overwhelming—or when you need to summon focus, courage, or calm? Please share your mantra! We could all use a few more anchors.

Your friend,

Marina

What I’m reading (books): I’ve been reading a biography on my Kindle Paperwhite as a sleep aid for over 15 years. This week I finished the 1,000- page book, My Name is Barbra Streisand. After spending five weeks with this funny, brilliant woman, finishing the book felt like I’d lost a friend. Do you ever feel like that at the end of a book?

What I’m reading (Substack): Nearly half of my Instagram feed is idealized depictions of life abroad so I appreciated the raw honesty of this piece: The days I hate living abroad by

Loni Bergqvist

.

On a lighter note, I love a Lady Jacket so much and to read an entire post dedicated to them made me jealous I hadn’t written it myself (bravo

Fanny Adams

).

A few deal alerts:

• After hemming and hawing on which blank chunky loafer to buy, I decided on this affordable pair. They have texture, tassels, and are so comfortable (fit true to size). Now they’re $30 off with GIFT-N1KJ so I ordered in brown, too.

• I was procrastinating by looking at the Tuckernuck sale page—my highest and best?! A few gems: this embroidered chambray dress absolutely works for fall. If you need a classic black work skirt, this is such a great deal. I’ve never met a crochet sweater I didn’t think was a workhorse.

• These Larroude raffia platforms were originally priced at $330, now they’re $69. The toe box is narrow so I’m going to have to break them in. If you have slender feet, go for it!

  

  with houndstooth blazer / Paige jeans

• My waterproof jacket is 40% off (code: FOREST). I feel more comfortable in this than in a long trench.

  

  with Cuyana zipper tote

• I searched far and wide to find an A-line fall colorway skirt made of a wrinkle-free material. This EM+ME one was the winner. Pair with any tops: white, black, cream, navy and style with any: t-shirt, sweater, cardigan. I went with my larger size and that was the right decision because you want this grazing, not hugging the hips. See if your size is still available at 50% off! If you love the style, consider this A-line cord beauty.

  

Thanks for being here! Writing Prof Off Duty is one of the joys of my life.

P.S. You can do something to help me that will take you less than 1 second. Please give this post a ❤️ if you found it valuable. It really, truly helps with discovery. 🙏

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