Instead of the usual conversation between Brooke and Ben, today's episode is simply a reading of the final ever edition of The Tortoise newsletter.  Take a listen, and please know that it has been an absolute pleasure to be heard by you over the years.  https://brookemcalary.substack.com/p/sometimes-life-surprises-us  Much love and thanks for listening, Brooke and Ben xxJoin The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A more accurate title for this episode might have been: The Myth of Work-Life Balance, because both Ben and Brooke think it’s fundamentally BS, but that was too long a title, so Balance it is. In this episode, they look at the idea of balance through a post-lockdown, new-workplace lens, in an effort to make sense of why it feels harder to achieve now, and what we might be able to do to create it. They dig into their own definitions of balance, the pros and cons when it comes to self-employment, how they each differentiate between work time and non-work time and why they find the goal of work/life balance to be damaging. The also talk about anti-balance or tilting as an alternative, as well as the impact of the upcoming “right to disconnect” legislation, the attraction of "working ahead", how to approach changes in your own workplace when you’re not self-employed, and why it’s important to start small, specific and slow. It’s a juicy topic, not least because it applies to everyone differently and we hope you enjoy it. Head over to The Tortoise for the full show notes, and if you haven't already, make sure to subscribe to the free weekly newsletter while you're there.  Thanks for listening! Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this month's episode, Brooke and Ben dig into the topic of body image. How do we see ourselves in the world? How does that inform our choices and beliefs? What inputs have the most impact on our self-image?  What began as a conversation about "hot rodent men" became an exploration of how we take up space in the world, the comments, trends, beliefs and expectations we internalise, how those things impact our behaviours and the role that media and marketing play in all of it.  Brooke shares how her body image has shifted over the past few years, due to health issues, getting older, shifting priorities and the impact of slow living, and Ben looks at the differences in body image for young boys versus men.  They also discuss their different experiences of negative body image growing up, how body and beauty trends keep us feeling "wrong," why the resurgence of “skinny” might be in direct response to body positivity, why body neutrality could be a healthier place to aim when it comes to self-image, and the importance of body appreciation and its role in our well-being.  Head over to The Tortoise for the full show notes, and if you haven't already, make sure to subscribe to the free weekly newsletter while you're there.  Thanks for listening! Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Pleasure. Just the word brings a little shiver to the spine, doesn't it? Defined as “a feeling or experience that involves enjoyment or satisfaction,” in today’s episode, Brooke and Ben dig a little deeper into what pleasure is in real terms, what it means to them personally and why expanding our individual definitions might be the key to unlocking a whole new way of experiencing life. For Brooke it relates to not only her word of the year (joy) but also the theme she's currently exploring over on The Tortoise — rebellious living. While at first glance, pleasure doesn’t appear to be particularly related to living rebelliously, throughout this conversation, she and Ben dig into why centring pleasure in a world that feels too much, too heavy, too overwhelming really can be an act of rebellion. (Honestly!) In a wide-ranging conversation, they also discuss how the senses are related to pleasure, why redefining and reclaiming it could increase the amount of pleasure we experience, the relationship between pleasure and addiction and why embracing joy and delight might make us less prone to capitalistic manipulation. They also talk about the six-second kiss that's been a game-changer, list some of their own simple pleasures and talk about the importance of becoming a better self-observer if we're going to invite more pleasure into our lives. Head over to The Tortoise for the full show notes, and if you haven't already, make sure to subscribe to the free weekly newsletter while you're there.  Thanks for listening! Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

If you spend any time on TikTok, you've probably seen the #softlife trend pop up over the past couple of years. Brooke and Ben aren't on TikTok, so are late to the party as usual, but wanted to dive into the sister movement of slow living anyway. In today's episode, they look at what soft living is, where it began, how it relates to slow living, and why it's following a similar trajectory as that of self-care, slow living, and other counter-cultural movements. (ie. becoming increasingly mainstream and commercial). They look at soft living as the opposite of hard living (which proves both obvious and helpful) and try to define it for themselves. For Brooke it revolves around joy, and for Ben its in learning how to ask for help - both of which offer unexpected ways of looking at softness. They also talk about the consumerism attached to these movements, and offer some practical suggestions on how to create space for softness in your day-to-day life. Head over to The Tortoise for the full show notes, and if you haven't already, make sure to subscribe to the free weekly newsletter while you're there.  Thanks for listening! Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

You know the feeling. Life is motoring on in much the way you expected it to, you’ve got plans, you’ve got goals and then — BAM — a curveball gets whacked your way. Suddenly the plans, the goals, the vague idea of what we thought life would look like are shaken.  In this month's episode of The Tortoise, Brooke and Ben are talking curveballs, trying to answer the question of how to navigate the unexpected challenges life can throw in our way.  In this conversation they look at what defines a curveball, how to use some of the ideas of slow living to help navigate them, as we as:  examples of some curveballs they've faced themselves recently  the role that simply noticing — our emotions, our stories, our egos — can play in accepting and moving forward once we face an unexpected challenge “feeling our feelings” as the first step in moving on from a curveball, and why there are many different ways to do that how acceptance of what is can help us to move forward and why it’s such a difficult thing to achieve the rising movement of Stoicism and concerns about the difference between being stoic and repressed two different ways of using perspective to reframe our curveballs over time the role of gratitude in moving on from an abrupt life change, and why we can’t always rush straight to it why self-care is so important when navigating new life circumstances Head over to The Tortoise for the full show notes, and if you haven't already, make sure to subscribe to the free weekly newsletter while you're there.  Thanks for listening! Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Today’s episode is all about joyful living. What it is, what it isn’t, how to get more of it and how it differs from happiness. Stemming from Brooke's intention to try and find more joy in 2024, this conversation is delightfully and unexpectedly wide-ranging, and in it Ben and Brooke explore: the definition of joy, and why it means so many different things to so many different people why much of the literature around joy is religious or spiritual how joy differs from happiness and how it is similar  the role that alcohol has on our ability to experience happiness and joy (and how Brooke's experience has changed since she stopped drinking) how to adopt a lens of joy and happiness to life when you’re not a joyful person by default why choosing joy is a revolutionary act what the difference is between choosing joy and toxic positivity how we can add more joy to our lives Head over to The Tortoise for the full show notes, including links to the articles mentioned in today's episode, and if you haven't already, make sure to subscribe to the free weekly newsletter while you're there.  Thanks for listening! Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Welcome to Episode 10 of The Tortoise - the p(l)odcast all about the possibilities of slow. In today's show — the final one for 2023 — Brooke and Ben look back over the year that was and walk through their personal Top Ten list. That is, their favourite: TV show Small detail Movie New destination Book (you know I failed to limit this one) Discovery Album New listening (podcast or otherwise) Meal Experience It’s a fun thing to do together, and they'd love to hear your Top Ten list for 2023.  Head over to The Tortoise to share your list and to see the full show notes, and if you haven't already, make sure to subscribe to the free weekly newsletter while you're there.  Thanks for listening, and see you in 2024! Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This month's episode digs into the topic of addiction (and more broadly, obsessive behaviour) for things like tech-use, busyness, food and consumption. If you need help with addiction or mental health, there's a list of resources over at The Tortoise.  In today's show, Ben shares his experience with tech over-use and the links he sees between it and the hustle-grind-capitalism-productivity culture, and he and Brooke look at how the proliferation of tech (especially smart phones and social media) have increased our desire for instant gratification.  Brooke talks through her compulsion to consume bad news, and shares a few ways she's trying to break those patterns of behaviour. She also talks about the role that tech and consumerism intertwine to create a world that feels simultaneously too much and not enough, and how that has her and many other women she knows feeling angry.  It's an interesting and meandering conversation that will hopefully leave you with lots to think about. Head over to The Tortoise for the full show notes, and if you haven't already, make sure to subscribe to the free weekly newsletter while you're there.  Thanks for listening! Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Today Brooke and Ben are talking about hard times. Or more specifically, how to deal with the emotional heaviness that comes from living through really difficult things. Digging into this feeling of heaviness, they discuss how they're trying to acknowledge and accept the challenges, as well as the tools they use to help them move forward. They also talk about practical ways to protect ourselves when things feel hard, why limiting social media is a powerful way of drawing boundaries, the impact of gentle activism, why rage-cleaning can help process anger, the rebelliousness of finding joy and why pairing all of these things with action is so important.  Hopefully this conversation shows that it’s okay to look for and hold onto joy in amongst the difficult times.  Head over to The Tortoise for the full show notes, and if you haven't already, make sure to subscribe to the free weekly newsletter while you're there.  Thanks for listening! Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this month's episode, Brooke and Ben dig into the topic of seasonal living. Not only the calendar kind of seasonal living, but also the other seasons that exist in life too. The ones that don’t change every three months. The internal seasons, the life seasons, the in-built cycles and rhythms that — whether we realise it or not — have a profound impact on how we live, how we grow, how we show up in the world. They begin with a pretty traditional look at what seasonal living means — that is, how it can impact the food we eat, the activities we do, our energy, our personal environmental impact, our connection to the world around us and the rhythms that drive it all. But from there, they dig into the broader conversation around seasonal living, including the seasons we experience throughout life, why many people find themselves resistant to the stereotypical ‘spring, summer, autumn, winter’ analogy, the archetypes that mark our way through adulthood and the importance of recognising the inherent messiness of transitions. It's thought-provoking and juicy in all the best ways.  Head over to The Tortoise for the full show notes, and if you haven't already, make sure to subscribe to the free weekly newsletter while you're there.  Thanks for listening! Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

For a term we throw around a lot, self-care is not all that well defined. It’s attached loosely to the ideas of wellness, self-help, relaxation and mindfulness, and so often comes to us packaged, commoditised and ready to be bought/sold. Ben and Brooke start today’s episode by trying to define self-care, and eventually land on one that is as broad and inclusive as possible: Self-care can be anything that leaves us feeling cared for or supported from within. From there, they dig deeper into their own experiences of self-care, including how they make time for it, what constitutes "boring self-care", the weird rituals that act as self-care on the days there's not a lot of time and the parts of self-care they struggle with. Brooke then reflects on a comment left on a recent Tortoise newsletter about toxic positivity, which asked about the difference between resilience, positive thinking, wallowing and toxic positivity. It's a juicy topic that both Brooke and Ben have some thoughts on, and will no doubt return to again. Head over to The Tortoise for the full show notes, and if you haven't already, make sure to subscribe to the free weekly newsletter while you're there.  Thanks for listening! Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

For our kids (and adults as well), there is barely a part of life that isn't somehow connected to smartphones, social media or screens, and they're starting to feel the effects of being constantly connected.  In today's episode, Ben and Brooke talk about their experience raising two high school-ages kids (12 and 14) and the constant negotiations around tech boundaries. They also talk about the broader impact that high levels of screen time are having on kids in general, the challenges that are beginning to emerge in regards to relationships, well-being and self-esteem, and what we as adults can do to help support them.  Brooke also reflects on a hugely impactful documentary she saw recently, that has given her something that's been in short supply lately: hope.   Head over to The Tortoise for the full show notes, and if you haven't already, make sure to subscribe to the free weekly newsletter while you're there. Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It's a phrase we hear a lot about — the mental load — but what does it actually mean? And how can we navigate life while carrying it?  Brooke and Ben discuss their differing definitions of mental load and how it plays out for them personally. They also dig into the broader conversation (Is a heavier mental load a gender issue or one of personality? Is it about convenience? Does it differ across generations?) and look at suggestions on how to make changes that could help lessen or even out the load in a relationship. In the reflection part of the pod they discuss the big, beautiful benefits of being content versus being happy, and dig into how our values might help define both contentment/happiness.  Head over to The Tortoise for the full show notes, and if you haven't already, make sure to subscribe to the free weekly newsletter while you're there. Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

If you're feeling squashed between competing needs - raising kids and caring for parents while trying to work/live/look after yourself, for example - then this episode is for you.  Brooke and Ben talk about what it means to be a part of the 'sandwich generation', and why, for them, it represents a transition rather than a challenge to be overcome. They discuss what being sandwiched could look like, why the additional pressures of caring so often fall to women, how they manage expectations, why they're thinking so far into the future, the slow living tools that might help, and yes, their favourite sandwiches (yes, really). In the reflection part of the pod, they talk about different types of community, and the lightbulb moment that came in a recent comments section over on The Tortoise. Head over to The Tortoise for the full show notes, and if you haven't already, make sure to subscribe to the free weekly newsletter while you're there. Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

What exactly is "wellness" anyway? We hear it tossed about as an umbrella term covering health and fitness and diet and mental well-being and any number of topics, but what does it mean to try and achieve wellness? And what does any of it have to do with slow living? In today's episode, Brooke and Ben dig into wellness and social media - the good, the bad, the quackery, the evidence-based and the liver-eating diets - exploring the messy mixture of influencers, algorithms and genuine well-being tools that exist in the trillion-dollar industry. It's an interesting and fraught conversation, because not only do definitions of wellness differ greatly, as do our individual levels of access, exposure and finances, but there is a clear crossover between wellness and diet culture that muddies the waters even more. And, while some of it is undoubtedly harmful, there are many parts of the wellness industry that offer genuine help too.   Brooke and Ben look at their own experiences with wellness influencers, as well as their own hang-ups, privileges and blind spots.  In the reflection segment, they discuss the benefits of embracing physical discomfort, which leads to a conversation about the different kinds of discomforts we might experience and the pros and cons they offer.  They both give a quick update on their year-long experiments (the 1% and the four-day work week), one of which is going well, the other...not so much.  Head over to The Tortoise for the full show notes, and if you haven't already, make sure to subscribe to the free weekly newsletter while you're there. Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Welcome to the first episode of The Tortoise - a podcast that digs deep into the power of slow.  Brooke and Ben are back with the first full episode of The Tortoise, and it's a good'un. They start by talking about what you can expect from the ploddie, and then dig in to today's juicy topic: is a four-day work week feasible?  This is a hot-button issue right now, as many companies around the world look to the results of a recent six-month four-day working week trial. Ben talks through his own experiment with trying to establish one, and the benefits and challenges of doing so as a self-employed person, while Brooke puts her idealist hat on and talks through a couple of interesting case studies.  They also dig into the topic of hobbies - What are they? Do we need to try and improve at them? What happens if we want to turn a hobby into an income? - and discover that it's harder than we think to separate productivity from leisure.  Brooke also gives an update on her 1% experiment and Ben talks about his Japanese lessons as his current form of continual improvement.  Head over to The Tortoise for the Episode 1 show notes, and if you haven't already, make sure to subscribe to the free weekly newsletter while you're there.   Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

We're so excited to introduce you to The Tortoise - a podcast (plodcast!) that digs deep into the power of slow.  Ben and Brooke are back with a new iteration of their slow living conversations, and the first full episode will be released very shortly. Until then, take a few minutes to get reacquainted, learn why The Slow Home Podcast is no more (RIP) and hear a little about what's in store for The Tortoise.  If you haven't already, be sure to subscribe to The Tortoise in your favourite podcast app and head over to the website to sign up for a free weekly newsletter. Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

We have reached the last episode of this year's Summer Series/Winter Warmies and Brooke takes us through her (one of) favourite episodes of the past 7 years featuring Katie Bowman on nutritious movement and couchless living. Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The 3rd instalment in this year's Summer Series/Winter Warmies includes an episode recorded in 2019 with Beth Kempton.Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Part 2 of this year's Summer Series/Winter Warmies sees Ben and Brooke look way back into the archives with a 2017 banger on food waste reduction featuring over 50 ways you can seriously reduce your waste footprint.Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Ben and Brooke talk through the format for this year's Summer Series/Winter Warmies and bring you Part 1, featuring analogue creativity with Jess Davis. Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Welcome to the fifth and final episode of the Summer Series (/Winter Warmies!) For all of January, we’ve been bringing back the best of 2018, re-sharing some of our favourite episodes to keep you company on the beach (or the slopes!) Last but not least, this week is our episode with the awesome Jocelyn Glei, writer and creator of the podcast Hurry Slowly. Now seemed like the perfect time to feature Brooke’s chat with Jocelyn, as they focus on the relationship between technology, work, life, slow and creativity, as we all get back into the swing of work after the holidays. Jocelyn shares so many great resources with us, and we hope you find something to explore from this episode. Head over to http://slowyourhome.com/234/ for all the links and resources mentioned, as well as the full blog post. And we’ll see you in February for the new season of the show! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ===Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Welcome to the fourth episode of the Summer Series (/Winter Warmies)! For all of January, we’ll be bringing back the best of 2018, re-sharing some of our favourite episodes to keep you company on the beach (or the slopes!) This week we’re heading back on the road, with Brooke’s conversation with friend of the show Tsh Oxenreider on the Slow Book Tour. This was a live recording at an event in Austin, Texas, featuring a lovely audience full of great questions that Brooke and Tsh got to answer. The two of them also spoke about what slow living looks like for them in real life, their thoughts on balance, what they see minimalism and simplicity morphing into in the age of social media and so much more. It’s an inspiring chat, so we hope you enjoy! To read more about the episode, head over to http://slowyourhome.com/251/ for all the links and resources mentioned, as well as the full blog post.  ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ===Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Welcome to the third episode of the Summer Series (Winter Warmies!) For all of January, we’ll be bringing back the best of 2018, re-sharing some of our favourite episodes to keep you company on the beach (or the slopes!) Today we’re highlighting one of the most-loved episodes of last year - when Brooke interviewed Ben about his slow living journey. What started out as a chance to turn the tables and switch the spotlight ended up being a deeply personal and raw conversation. Ben talks about how he went from working a stressful, corporate job to being self-employed, and how he continues to make choices to live a slower life. So many people connected with this episode, which is why we decided to include it in the Summer Series. If it resonates, we’d love for this to start a new conversation about slow with your loved ones. It’s the perfect time of year to check in and examine your priorities for 2019, so we hope this helps! To read more about the episode, head over to http://slowyourhome.com/242/ for all the links and resources mentioned, as well as the full blog post. ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ===Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Welcome to the second episode of the Summer Series (/Winter Warmies!) For all of January, we’ll be bringing back the best of 2018, re-sharing some of our favourite episodes to keep you company on the beach (or the slopes!) Today we’re highlighting one of Brooke’s most inspiring picks of the year - her interview with Rob Greenfield. Rob is a self-described ‘dude making a difference’: an activist, environmentalist and all-around legend. We love that Rob shares his story so honestly and in a very relatable way - he was just an average guy who had a wake up call, and he talks about what his catalyst for change was, how he started to make changes, having the realisation that you can’t make enormous changes overnight and more.  We can’t wait to see how Rob goes with his current project - growing or foraging 100% of his food for a whole year. To read more about the episode and Rob, head over to http://slowyourhome.com/241/ for all the links and resources mentioned, as well as the full blog post. ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ===Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Happy New Year, and welcome to the first episode of the Summer Series (Winter Warmies!) For all of January, we’ll be bringing back the best of 2018, re-sharing some of our favourite episodes to keep you company on the beach (or the slopes!) We’re kicking off by harking back to Brooke and Ben’s favourite experiment of 2018, and an episode that came just after it: Brooke’s chat with Florence Williams, author of The Nature Fix. In this episode Florence shares why time in nature is so important, tips for how to make it happen and some of the benefits she’s found in her research. This conversation only further convinced Brooke of the importance of spending time in nature - let us know if it made you feel the same way! Head over to Instagram and share your thoughts. To read more, head over to http://slowyourhome.com/232/ for all the links and resources mentioned, as well as the full blog post.  ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ===Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Cue the jazzy Christmas tunes - it’s our final episode of the year! Welcome to the crowd-sourced holiday special, where we share your tips for staying slow in the silly season (and throw in some of our own). Thank you so much to everyone who got in touch - we loved reading through your responses, and hearing all the different ways you not only cope with, but enjoy what can be a stressful time of year. Brooke and Ben share more than 40 tips from listeners, all about how to bring a little more slow to your holiday traditions, gifts, finances, food, time with family and friends, decorations and environmental impact. There’s so much goodness in here, and definitely something for everyone to consider for either this year or next. Whether it’s sipping a candy cane martini every Friday night like Steve or getting organised with gifts, we hope you’ll find a nugget that resonates with you! When in doubt, if you come back to ask what your priorities for the season are, how you want it to feel and what you want to remember, that’s a pretty great place to act from. Annnnnd that’s a wrap (pun intended)! Thank you so much for your support for all of this year, it means so much and is why we do what we do every day. We wish you a safe and happy holiday season, and all the best for 2019. Looking forward to more slow times ahead! To read more about the episode, or to sign up for the 365 Days of Slow experiment, head over to http://slowyourhome.com/262/ for all the links and resources mentioned, as well as the full blog post.  ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ===Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

We’re back! Thanks for hanging tight with us over the final few weeks of the book tour. In today’s episode, Brooke and Ben check in and catch us up on how they’re feeling and what’s happening next, as well as sharing a reminder about A Simple Year and the special offer available until 14 Nov (more info at slowyourhome.com/simpleyear). The guys kick off by looking back at the tour (briefly - more on the tour in ep 260 if you missed it), and then sharing how they’re feeling now that it’s all over. It’s a mix of exhaustion and creative energy at Brooke’s end (an interesting combination!) and the joy of being able to finally relax for Ben. Which means a lot less doing for the whole family, and a lot more being and tilting into filling up their cups, including some dedicated creative time - both Brooke and Ben are doing NaNoWriMo! They’ve also had time to think about what’s next.  Wary of her tendency to announce things too soon, Brooke is shy on the details for some projects she’s currently working on (including the proposal for her next book!) but share that in the spirit of tilting into rest and working on 2019 things, there will be no more episodes for 2018, except for a Christmas Special (more info below). Then there will be the Summer Series as usual in January, and then we’ll be back in Feb, shifting to seasons of the podcast rather than weekly episodes. Brooke explains the reasons for this shift, and what she’s excited about with the new format. She also shares some other ideas in the works, like a revamp of our Patreon community, the return of the Slow Post and Live Life Simply online retreat and the demise of our Facebook page. Planning times abound! Speaking of that Christmas Special, it’s going to be a wrap up of listener contributions for ways to stay slow during the silly season. So share your hot tips with us! Please send us an email at [email protected] with your ideas so we can include them in a whizz-bang final episode for the year.  Be sure to hang out with us on Instagram, and use the #slowhomepod so we can see what you’re sharing. To read more about the episode, head over to http://slowyourhome.com/261/ for all the links and resources mentioned, as well as the full blog post.  ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially and join in on our live monthly video calls. And thanks so much for listening! ===Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Welcome to this week’s episode - a catch up on all things travel with Brooke and Ben after their US Slow book tour. They received so many questions about the logistics of their trip, so today they dive into them all, talking the how, where and why of their time away so far. First up they talk about how they managed to do the tour - the decisions they made and steps they took in order to pack up their lives in Australia and hit the road. Then they go into the nitty gritty of accommodation and planning, including a sweet hack for longer stays in Airbnbs or VRBOs and the benefits of spending more time in a home-like environment when travelling with kids. They talk about the difference between the first half of their trip and the book tour, and also why they decided (after a test run of the #vanlife in the Yukon) not to go down the campervan/caravan route. Then it’s onto how they came up with their itinerary, the decisions they made around food (i.e. not to stress about it) to make their lives easier and how they structured their days. They admire the resilience of their kids, and talk about the power of expectations and how they managed them throughout the trip: the highs, the lows, and the things they’d do differently next time. Ben finishes up by sharing some touching words about how proud he is of Brooke, and Brooke shares her advice for people wanting to travel with their families: just do it. We’d love to hear your thoughts, especially if you’ve travelled with kids or plan to in the future. Be sure to get involved in the conversation on Instagram, and use the #slowhomepod so we can see what you’re sharing. To read more about the episode, head over to http://slowyourhome.com/260/ for all the links and resources mentioned, as well as the full blog post.  ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ===Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

We're not gonna lie, after some 17,000 miles, 29 US states and more than 35 incredible, heart-warming events, the Slow book tour is all wrapped up, and we're a little tired. But before we put a bow on what's been an incredible experience we want to share one final live recording with you, because it's a special one. The tour finished up in Minneapolis, where Brooke sat down for a conversation with her friend Joel Zaslofsky at ModernWell. Joel asks Brooke the big questions (he always has, it's one of his superpowers) and they dive deep in to topics we haven't covered before.  Enjoy! And another heartfelt thanks to everyone who came out to the book tour events over the past few months - words can't describe how grateful we are.  ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially and join in on our live monthly video calls. And thanks so much for listening! ===Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

After a few technical hiccups Brooke and Ben were finally able to record one of their live podcast recordings while on the Slow book tour, and today's episode was recorded live at Anderson's Bookshop near Chicago.  The crowd was really engaged and Ben and Brooke had such a wonderful time talking about Slow, the practical realities of slow living and family life, their experience while travelling through the US and Canada for 8 months, and their plans for the future.  They also talk about privilege and slow living, and why Brooke firmly believes that slow living will change the world - by helping people create space and time to care more.  The live events have been such a highlight this year, and here's hoping 2019 brings more opportunity to get together with like-minded people!  Enjoy! Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It’s the last Slow Experiment episode for September! For the final week of Mindful Moments, Brooke and Ben look at journaling as way to bring a pocket of slow and mindfulness to a busy day. It’s no secret that Ben is not the biggest journaler alive (see: the great journaling experiment of 2016), but by the end of the episode even he is convinced to give it another crack. Maybe. Brooke is a big journaler, and has used it as a tool to manage anxiety, give shape to her mornings and help her find slow moments in everyday life for many years. She found during the book tour that the busier life got, and the more she had to strip back her morning rhythm and self-care, journaling was a thing that stuck, and kept helping. It gave her immediate relief on anxious days, was portable and easy, could be as big or small a task as she needed and she felt the effects throughout the day. If that’s not a testimonial, we don’t know what is. The guys then share a few ideas for ways to bring journaling into your day, from Brooke’s ideal scenario (Julia Cameron-style, 3 A4, handwritten, stream-of-consciousness morning pages over a cup of coffee) to the reality of some days (a couple of bullet points quickly jotted down). They also share techniques floating around, including Gretchen Rubin’s one sentence a day and the movement that is Bullet Journaling (abbreviated to bujo, I believe). Whatever works for you is the way to go. Brooke also talks about the research she found about the impacts of journaling on physical and mental health. Studies have shown that journaling can help strengthen your immune system, and that people who journal regularly heal more quickly and get fewer colds/flus and viruses. Journalling also reduces levels of stress, anxiety and depression, and influences our emotional intelligence, and ability to identify and solve problems in relationships. Sounds good to us! Join us this week and experiment with a different kind of journaling. Feel free to share your efforts over on Instagram, using the hashtag #slowexperiment. A big thanks to everyone who played along this month - we’ve loved seeing your mindful moments. Next month we’ll be sharing some live recordings, as well as a hostful reflecting on all things book tour. So stay tuned, and be sure to keep an eye on slowyourhome.com/events for all the Canadian mini-book tour stops as they get confirmed. To read more about the episode, head over to http://slowyourhome.com/257/ for all the links and resources mentioned, as well as the full blog post.  ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ===Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It’s week three of the Mindful Moments Slow Experiment, and today’s episode is all about gratitude as a tool for mindfulness. For Ben, the importance of cultivating gratitude has been one of the biggest lessons he’s learned from slow living. For Brooke, gratitude is an invaluable way to prevent that shift into negative thinking that can happen when life is busy or stressful. It’s a practice that can take just a minute or two in your day, but have incredible benefits for your life. So let’s dive in! First up, the guys break down exactly what gratitude is, and identify that it’s the specific kind of thankfulness that they’re focusing on, not the rose-coloured glasses approach to life. They then share some different examples of gratitude practices: a gratitude journal, having a chalkboard in the kitchen where everyone in the house writes one thing they’re grateful for everyday, writing a thank you note, using technology, loving-kindness meditation, sharing at the dinner table and more. These techniques help us to be mindful as they require us to shift out of autopilot and pay attention to and engage with what’s around us, and be thoughtful about what we have to be thankful for. They then go on to look at the benefits of gratitude, which are vast. From developing love, compassion and empathy to helping us sleep better at night, there are so many benefits for our physical and mental health. Grateful people feel fewer aches and pains, feel healthier (and generally are healthier), and are more likely to exercise regularly, get regular checkups with a doctor and live longer (say whaaaat?!) It’s also the antidote to the build-up of toxic emotions, and helps to build resilience, perspective and self-esteem. Brooke shares that gratitude helps her to really savour the good moments, and allows them to be the bits of her day she remembers, rather than the less-amazing times. So give it a try - connect on Facebook and Instagram by sharing one thing you’re grateful for this week, using the hashtag #slowexperiment.  And go from there. To read more about the episode, head over to http://slowyourhome.com/256/ for all the links and resources mentioned, as well as the full blog post.  ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ===Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this week’s episode Brooke and Ben continue their month of Mindful Moments for the Slow Experiment, looking at the technique of mindful attention or observation. This is something that Brooke has been practicing for a few years now, and is an excellent example of just how simple mindfulness can be. At its core, mindfulness is paying attention, and this technique takes that to a granular level. Try sitting in study of a tiny detail for a couple of minutes, noticing something you wouldn’t have otherwise, and then see how you feel afterwards. Another way to do this is a body scan, where you sit and rotate your awareness through each of your five senses for a couple of minutes in total - getting very specific about what you can see, hear, smell, touch and taste. Brooke still remembers the impact this had on her at the height of her overwhelm and depression years ago, and the way it would pull her into the present moment and out of resentment and anxiety. For Ben, this mindful attention technique translates to the workplace as single-tasking. After years of being told multitasking is gold, he now breaks projects down into tasks and then works through those tasks one at a time, focusing on nothing else until the one at hand is complete. There are so many benefits to these techniques of stripped-back mindfulness. Brooke shares a study she found that said even after one week of a short daily mindfulness practice, participants showed significant improvements in attention, energy and ability to cope with stress, as well as in processing, working memory and executive functioning. We’d love to hear how you’re going if you’re playing along, and whether you’ve noticed any benefits like these. Let us know how you go - connect on Facebook and Instagram. To read more about the episode, head over to http://slowyourhome.com/255/ for all the links and resources mentioned, as well as the full blog post.  ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially and join in on our live monthly video calls. And thanks so much for listening! ===Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It’s a new month, and a new Slow Experiment. Hooray! For September, Brooke and Ben are playing with Mindful Moments, and invite you to do the same. This is probably the most accessible experiment of all time, and in this episode they share their intentions for the month and explain how you can start to bring more mindfulness into your daily life. For Brooke and Ben, mindfulness is all about paying attention without expectation or judgment. They’re stripping mindfulness back to its essence - it’s not a meditation experiment (although you can meditate if you like!) and doesn’t require any apps or colouring books, but is an exploration of four different mindfulness practices. They’re committing to 5 minutes of mindfulness a day, but you can choose your own adventure. 2 minutes is better than nothing at all - and the busier you are, the more likely you are to benefit from a mindful moment. In this episode they kick off by looking at breathing as a mindfulness practice, specifically deep breathing (or square breathing) and lion’s breath. They break both techniques down, and you can also find links to tutorials in the blog post. The benefits of deep breathing have been proven: it relieves stress and anxiety by impacting the nervous system, as well as positively impacting stress hormones. Plus, stress reduction is the a win for our physical and mental wellbeing. So have a play, see what works for you, and commit to deep breathing every day this week. Let us know how you go - connect on Facebook and Instagram, and be sure to download the Mindful Moments guide over on the website for more ideas and suggestions for the experiment. To read more about the episode, head over to http://slowyourhome.com/254/ for all the links and resources mentioned, as well as the full blog post.  ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially and join in on our live monthly video calls. And thanks so much for listening! ===Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Slow book tour rolls on this week, and in this poggie Brooke sits down to chat with her irrerepressible and inspiring mate Jess Davis - a Brooklyn-dwelling tech ethicist, slow living advocate and founder of Folk Rebellion.  This episode was recorded at Greenlight Bookstore in Brooklyn in August, and during the conversation and Q&A session Brooke and Jess talk through the meaning of slow in a fast-paced city like Brooklyn.  Jess shares some of what inspired her to change from living a constantly connected, burnt out, stress-filled life to now helming an organisation who's main goal is to get people off their screens and out in to life, as well as how she manages her life in both a real and practical sense.  She and Brooke also answer a whole heap of audience questions and generally just have a hell of a time hanging out.   Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week we’re coming to you live from Austin, where Brooke sat down with longtime friend of the show Tsh Oxenreider as part of the Slow Book Tour. It was their second ever IRL meeting, and they dive into all things slow, values, balance and more, as well as answering some thoughtful questions from the readers and listeners at BookPeople. Brooke and Tsh share similar views on how it’s the feeling that matters when it comes to living slowly, not the way it looks, as well as a real wanderlust and curiosity about the world, which made for a really special conversation. Brooke kicks off by asking Tsh to describe what slow or simple living means to her. They talk about the idea of reverse-engineering your life based on your values (or your eulogy, like Brooke did) and how living intentionally is so much more than a checklist of items in your wardrobe. Tsh highlights her family’s mantra of ‘people and experiences over things’, and the way she can apply it to her life almost like a filter to help her make decisions.  They talk about the power of experimentation and baby steps when you first start to make changes in your life, and the value of creating space in your home and space in your day (and how it can lead to space in your mind). Then it’s on to how to stay slow when things get fast, and the prioritisation of the big picture view over the pressure of daily balance. Tsh shares her Think Day concept (which we are VERY here for) and how helpful she finds it to step back and zoom out from her life to see where things are at. Then it’s onto listener questions! They’re a diverse bunch, on everything from decluttering anxiety and how to say no (hot tip: Let me get back to you) to what Brooke would have done differently in her journey to slow. And it’s a wrap! A massive thanks to Tsh for showing up, jet lag and all, as well as all the folks in Austin for their support and brilliant questions. To read more about the episode, head over to http://slowyourhome.com/251/ for all the links and resources mentioned, as well as the full blog post.  Also stay tuned for next month’s Slow Experiment, all about mindfulness! We can’t wait to dig deep into this practice and how it can help you to bring moments of slow to your days. ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially and join in on our live monthly video calls. And thanks so much for listening! ===Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It’s the first live episode from the Slow Book Tour! This week we’re listening to Brooke’s chat with the one and only Courtney Carver, from the King's English bookstore in Salt Lake City. Brooke and Courtney have been working together for many years, and while they’ve exchanged countless emails and Skype chats, this was their first meeting IRL. Their conversation covers what motivated them to start to slow down, what slow looks like now and ideas for how to bring more intention into your life, no matter how fast your days might feel. Courtney shares that her journey to simple began with a wake up call: her diagnosis of MS a few years ago. She decided to eliminate as much stress from her life as possible, and began making changes to her diet and then addressing her debt. It looked like minimalism to begin with, but it wasn’t long before it led to living a life of intention. She tells Brooke how exciting it felt to make these changes, but also how the step-by-step approach was so important. She and Brooke talk about the impact of decluttering, and how it’s about so much more than the stuff (and where it goes!) All this decluttering forced both Brooke and Courtney to ask themselves: if I’m not my stuff, or my success, then who am I? For Courtney, this led to a real evaluation of her values and purpose, and the uncomfortable realisation that she was often distracted from what really mattered to her. Similarly, Brooke faced the same feelings when she sat down to write her eulogy four years ago. The life she was living wasn’t going to get her to the place she wanted to end up. They go on to talk about the value of space and buffer in helping us be less reactive and more mindful, and some of the ways they’ve brought a little more slow to their everyday lives. They then answer some really thoughtful questions from the audience, all about anxiety around expectations of productivity and work, and how to tame the people-pleaser within us when trying to slow down and simplify. Courtney brings such heart and soul into everything she does, and this chat is no exception. We can’t wait to hear what you think - be sure to share your thoughts with us over on Instagram and Facebook. To read more about the episode, head over to http://slowyourhome.com/250/ for all the links and resources mentioned, as well as the full blog post.  ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially and join in on our live monthly video calls. And thanks so much for listening! ===Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Welcome to this week’s fast’n’loose hostful episode. Brooke and Ben get through what must be a record number of your questions, on everything from slow living in fast cities to travelling on a budget. A big thank you to everyone who submitted their thoughtful questions - we’re looking forward to continuing the conversations with you all on social media after listening! Ben kicks off with a question from a listener who lives in Mumbai, asking how they can preserve their energy while living in such a fast-paced place. Brooke talks about the power of mindful micro-moments throughout the day to help you step out of the chaos and into the tiny details, while Ben talks about the replenishing effects of spending time in green spaces in cities, harking back to the nature Slow Experiment of the year. In a similar vein, the next question is about ways to get out of your head (especially when you’re an analytical person *cough Brooke cough*) other than meditation. Brooke shares two of her favourite strategies for this: brain dumping and the body scan. Later in the episode she also shares what she uses to meditate, for anyone searching for an app to use. Then it’s on to a bunch of travel-related questions. Brooke and Ben talk about what they’re cooking and eating on the road (spoiler alert: their meals are “not setting the world on fire”, according to Ben), the oven foods they miss the most (strong contender for question of the episode), how the kids are going with school and being on the move so much and how to travel when you’re on a budget. They finish off with an adorable throwback (how did Brooke and Ben meet?), and then a couple more cracking questions about waste and learning. It’s interesting to hear some of the challenges they’ve faced in their slow travels, as well as what’s firing them up and sparking their interest at the moment. What about you? We’d love to hear your thoughts on the questions asked and answers answered - head over to Facebook and Instagram and give us your two cents’ worth. To read more about the episode, head over to http://slowyourhome.com/249/ for all the links and resources mentioned, as well as the full blog post.  ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ===Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

We’re onto the last of our slow relationships episodes, and this week is all about new friends: where to find them and how to get from barely know each other to BFF, slowly. It’s all about taking the time, being intentional and paying attention, as well as discovering the joy of spending time with people based on what’s important to you rather than the situation you find yourself in (bye awkward office/school drop off chats, hi fellow slow living friends). First up, Ben asks Brooke if, given last week’s episode all about maintaining existing friendships and the time it takes, as well as the effort involved in meeting new people, do we even need any more friends? Brooke says yes, and shares some of her own story and the challenges she has faced around friendships. In case you need convincing, she also highlights some of the benefits of friendships according to science. Including everything from improved self-esteem to reduction in stress and depression, it seems that finding like minded folk to while our days away with is worth the effort. So how do we find these new friends? Brooke considers a few steps, and talks about the importance in shifting your attitude and being open in social situations. Think about the values you’re looking for in a new pal, and find ways to put yourself into a relevant community, whether IRL or online. The guys talk about a few ways to do this, as well as reminding us that not all friendships work out, and that’s OK. Brooke also shares some helpful strategies for introverts when meeting new people. In a beautiful full circle moment, it all comes back to active listening. Which brings us to the end! We’ve loved hearing your thoughts and feedback on Instagram and Facebook about slow and relationships, so keep on sharing. Ben would also love your food recommendations for Dallas and Austin, so feel free to hit us up with those also. To read more about the episode, head over to http://slowyourhome.com/248/ for all the links and resources mentioned, as well as the full blog post.  ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ===Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week we’re continuing the relationships theme, looking at existing friendships: not only how to maintain them, but how to deepen them. There’s no question that as time goes on and big life milestones pass, friendships change and some fade. But one of the biggest things we stand to lose by living a busy, un-intentional life is the relationships that have the potential to be deep and life-long. How do we make sure we give these friendships our time and attention? And how do we talk about slow living with our pals? Let’s dive in. Brooke and Ben kick off by sharing that, like any relationship, friendships are built on trust and time. So how can we ensure we commit to our people, even if we’re operating in different spheres, or don’t necessarily share the same values? They talk about some different ways you can talk to friends about slow living, including how to explain any impacts that the changes you’re making might have on them, and the importance of showing that you’re still there for them. If you value someone, bring them into what you’re doing without being forceful – invite them to where you are, and reciprocate the love and acceptance. When it comes to those deep, true friendships, so many of us ask ourselves how we can take them to the next level, and have the deeper conversations beyond the everyday and superficial. Brooke shares some practical tips, and Ben shares his experience with this as a male. They finish by sharing some different ways you can spend time and build bonds with your buds, highlighting that it doesn’t have to be all deep & meaningful, teary conversations. Joy, creativity, play and shared projects all play a role in strengthening friendships. As does telling your friends that you love them, and that you’re thinking of them. Which is this week’s action – reach out to a friend and tell them you appreciate them, and that they sprung to mind after listening to this episode. Then reach out to us: we’d love to hear your thoughts about this episode. How are you trying to bring more slow, depth and intention to your friendships? Comment on Facebook or Instagram and share the love. To read more about the episode, head over to http://slowyourhome.com/247/ for all the links and resources mentioned, as well as the full blog post. And stay tuned for next week, when we’ll talk about making new friends! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ===Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It’s week two of our month of slow and relationships, and this episode we’re looking at family: kids, parents, siblings, and all those broader relationships (including those friends that feel more like favourite cousins) that make up the family tree. They’re not always neat and tidy, but hopefully there will be something in this episode that resonates with you, whatever your family situation. Brooke and Ben begin by talking kids. We’ve covered slow parenting in many an episode before (links in the show notes), but they share a few important reminders and tools here as well. Kids are not slow, and so living slowly with kids can be difficult to near-impossible. There are tools you can use and boundaries you can set in place (especially around time, technology and presence) to establish some great foundations, but the best advice is to drop the expectations, don’t be afraid to say no and let boredom happen. When it comes to parents and siblings, Brooke highlights that we all crave connection but are often scared of being vulnerable in conversation. She recommends some ways to start those difficult chats, and highlights that time is the real key here. Making and allowing time and creating a safe space for deeper conversations and connections helps to create stronger bonds. They then address what to do when there maybe isn’t as much connection within a family, and Ben comes back to this idea of resilience: being tolerant, open and then resilient enough to always try to end interactions on a positive note. Putting love above differences in opinion isn’t always easy, but it’s a choice we can make. They finish the episode by talking about ways to maintain connection when there’s a great physical distance between family, and then sharing the value of affection within all familial relationships (hugs are always on the cards). This week’s action? Tell someone you love them, every day. And let us know how that feels - get in touch on Facebook or Instagram and share the love. To read more about the episode, head over to http://slowyourhome.com/246/ for all the links and resources mentioned, as well as the full blog post.  ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ===Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Annnnd we’re back. It’s the first week of July, and while we’re due for a Slow Experiment, thanks to book tour commitments and a tight travel schedule, Brooke and Ben are taking the pressure off. Instead, July will be a deep dive into bringing slow to relationships. Romantic, family and friendships old and new, each week the guys will be exploring ways you can create deeper connections with the people around you. We received so much feedback after Ben shared his story in episode 242, as well as a bunch of questions, emails and feedback on the topic, so let’s get to it! This week kicks off looking at bringing more slow to romantic relationships. Brooke and Ben look at their own relationship, and acknowledge up front that their experience of the dating scene goes back a while now (Brooke has never swiped right). However, they talk about the fact that a lot of the technology around dating these days doesn’t necessarily support people looking for a deeper, more meaningful connection. Side note: Brooke did discover a slow dating app, but did not give it a test run (which Ben was grateful for). They talk about the importance of entering into relationships and getting to know people with a focus on intention over the endgame, and how presence and time helps to cement trust. The same principles apply to people already in a long-term relationships. Intention, turning up and building trust are where it’s at. Dropping the distractions and being present with your s/o is so important in building that solid, steady foundation. They bring up some of the challenges they’ve faced in their own relationship, invite us to reframe the way we view relationship milestones (as new understandings rather than specific events) and remind us that romance is constantly evolving. Which is comforting. To finish off, they invite you to be aware this week of your expectations in your relationships, and to explore finding joy and depth in the ordinary, everyday moments. If you have anything to add or that you’d like to share, especially if you have any apps or resources that have helped you slow down the dating scene, feel free to get in touch! Comment on Facebook or Instagram and share the love. To read more about the episode, head over to http://slowyourhome.com/245/ for all the links and resources mentioned, as well as the full blog post.   ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ===  Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Our guest on the podcast this week is Anita Van Dyke: zero waste activist, literal rocket scientist, medical student, author and all-round breath of fresh air. Anita brings a new, more practical perspective to the zero waste lifestyle, and in this episode she and Brooke talk about her journey to living a zero waste life, the impact of her cultural and familial upbringing, tips for helping people get started and so much more. Anita talks about her life a few years ago, as a self-described ‘maximalist’, and how she went from working in corporate engineering at the height of her career to being burnt out, and having to quit her job and step back for six months to think about what she wanted in life. She talks about her cultural background, as her parents immigrated to Australia from China during the communist regime, and how this informed both her value of money, power and status in her early 20s and her work ethic, but also how her upbringing cemented her understanding of living minimally. She talks about her discovery of this very podcast during that six month break, and how this, combined with other resources, volunteering, meditating and economic necessity started her on the journey of simplifying her life and decreasing her waste. Now Anita is studying medicine and has just written a book, called ‘A Zero Waste Life: In 30 Days’. Her scientific background means her approach to zero waste living is incredibly practical, with a creative, problem-solving bent to help you make small changes in your everyday life. Her focus is accessibility, and Brooke loved her three-tiered approach to any issue: dipping your toe in, living low waste and living zero waste. This podcast is full of so many nuggets of wisdom and great ideas for approaching a slower, more simple life. Start where you are, take stock, ask for help and stick to the 80/20 rule are just some of our main takeaways. What about you? Be sure to share your favourite bits with us on Instagram and Facebook. To read more about the episode and Anita, as well as to heck out her book, head over to http://slowyourhome.com/244for all the links and resources mentioned, as well as the full blog post.  ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially and join in on our live monthly video calls. And thanks so much for listening! ===Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The spotlight is on Ben in today’s episode, as Brooke interviews him all about his journey from working a stressful, corporate job to being self-employed, and how he continues to make choices to live a slower life. We’ve had a few listeners ask to hear more about Ben’s story, and we’re sure it will feel relevant to a lot of people. Ben describes himself as a couple of years behind Brooke in his slow living process, and reflects back on what life was like for him eight years ago, when Brooke was diagnosed with postnatal depression and first introduced to the idea of simplifying and slowing down. Ben was on a career trajectory that he valued, and it consumed almost all of him - time, energy and identity. Although he was happy for Brooke as she started to declutter and slow down (despite thinking she had joined some kind of cult), it wasn’t until he suffered from a panic attack on his morning commute that he realised this was what he needed too (the words of his GP telling him the same thing also carried a lot of weight). From there it was a series of deeper conversations that took place over months and years about what they both wanted life to look like, and how they could get there. Ben found himself really questioning his identity, as so much of him was tied up in his job. He talks about the some of the ways he started to slow down even when he was still working in corporate and commuting, which are a great place to start if that’s where you’re at. The process of getting from then to now has been messy and full of learning, stress and joy all rolled into one, and they’re both grateful to have shared it with each other. And it only continues, as Ben shares how he’s finding the year abroad with his work and clients being on a different continent. For him it’s all about presence and flexibility. Thank you for listening to this one - as Brooke and Ben say, it’s a little heavier and raw than the usual, but also really important to share the reality behind the changes they’ve made, their experiences as a couple and the time it has taken for them to get to where they now. To read more about the episode, head over to http://slowyourhome.com/242/ for all the links and resources mentioned, as well as the full blog post. ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ===Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In today’s episode, Brooke sits down for a chat with Rob Greenfield, a self-described ‘dude making a difference’. He’s an activist, environmentalist and legend - a guy who is very good at raising people’s awareness of an issue by doing big, bold things to grab your attention, like collecting the amount of rubbish the average American creates in a month, and strapping it to his body and wearing it like a trash suit. Talk about making a statement! Brooke and Rob talk about how he came to be where he is today, where he started and what’s next on his horizon. 10 years ago Rob was living what he calls a typical American life. He was driven by money and ideas of success, obsessed with his car and didn’t consider the impact of his choices on the planet or the people around him. Things started to shift as he began reading books and watching documentaries about the state of the world, and the more he learned, the more he realised he had to change his life. So he did. Slowly, one step at a time, he made changes. Rob talks about the fact that making positive changes in your life is a has a snowball effect, and he and Brooke agree that this slow steady approach might seem frustrating or overwhelming at first, but it really is the only way to go.  He breaks down the changes he made, and how these fed into his big, bold experiments and projects that he’s become known for. He talks about how he communicates these changes to the people around him, the idea of comfort zones and change and societal norms, as well as the need to practice compassion and get good it at, just like building any other muscle or skill. It’s incredibly inspiring to hear Rob share so honestly about his life, and is a much-needed reminder that we can all make choices in our daily lives to have a more positive impact on the world. We can’t wait to see how Rob goes with his next project - growing or foraging 100% of his food for a whole year. To read more about the episode and Rob, head over to http://slowyourhome.com/241/ for all the links and resources mentioned, as well as the full blog post. ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially and join in on our live monthly video calls. And thanks so much for listening! ===Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In today’s episode, Brooke and Ben sit down to wrap up the May creativity Slow Experiment, sharing what they’ve learned, how they’ve felt, changes they’ve noticed and some eye-opening research they’ve discovered about the benefits of creativity. They go deep and ask the tough questions, and encourage you to do the same if you’re reflecting on your month of creative living. First up they reflect on the week that’s been, with Brooke continuing to lean into playfulness (and challenge) and Ben enjoying shooting and editing and feeling a bit of fear around sharing his work. They talk about something wonderful they’ve noticed in the #slowexperiment posts being shared on Instagram - the idea of creativity as a gift, with so many people getting creative in order to share the outcome with their loved ones, a purpose the guys hadn’t given much consideration before now. They then go on to reflect on the benefits they’ve felt after being creative every day this month. Ben feels like it’s too soon for him to say, but Brooke can already feel a change in her parenting, including increased empathy, more self-awareness, playfulness and spontaneity. For her it’s also tied in closely to courage, and she talks about the prep work she’s been doing in this area in the lead up to the book tour. To wrap up, they touch on some of the research that’s been done around the benefits and impacts of a being creative on physical, emotional and mental well-being, and get excited about continuing to learn more about this life-changing practice. We hope you’ve enjoyed playing along, and don’t forget to keep sharing your creative fun over on Instagram using the hashtag #slowexperiment. We’ll be back next week with a cracking interview with a super inspiring guest, so see you in your ears then. To read more about the episode and the May experiment, head over to http://slowyourhome.com/240/ for all the links and resources mentioned, as well as the full blog post. ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially and join in on our live monthly video calls. And thanks so much for listening! ===  Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It’s the fourth week of the creativity Slow Experiment, and Brooke and Ben are feeling good. Today’s episode is all about play and creativity - forgetting about output and audience, and doing something just for the joy of it. It’s something that Brooke finds particularly challenging, and she and Ben explore why that is, before diving into perfectionism, ideas of worth, courage and more. They also spend some time answering a listener question around kids and creativity. Stick around to the end to hear an update on the North American book release and tour (with a full update coming soon! First up the guys reflect on the week that’s been, before launching into a discussion about the childlike joy of creating playfully. Brooke talks about the idea of rules in creativity - something as simple as lines on a page can hinder her from letting go and creating. She then shares the project she’s been working on, and how she’s brought an element of spontaneity and play into her process this week. Ben shares a question asked by a listener, who was wondering if their kids had been involved in the experiment so far. He and Brooke talk about this, and also bounce around some ideas about how they can be more creative together down the track (especially when they’re on the road for the book tour!) They finish up with a little challenge for the week - if you struggle with playfulness, try setting an alarm and spending 10 minutes doing something fun and playful. Let go of judgment and try to find the joy in the challenge. If you’re playing along at home, don’t forget to use the hashtag #slowexperiment on Instagram if you’d like to share, and stay tuned for next week’s episode wrapping up the experiment. To read more about the episode and the May experiment, head over to http://slowyourhome.com/239/ for all the links and resources mentioned, as well as the full blog post. ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially and join in on our live monthly video calls. And thanks so much for listening! ===  Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Brooke and Ben are knee-deep in the May Slow Experiment, and in this episode they explore what daily creativity has looked like for them so far, ideas around challenge and play, as well as looking more closely at analog and digital when it comes to the creative process. Brooke shares the unexpected impact of the experiment so far - the shift in headspace she’s experienced, which sees her coming at things from a creative problem-solving angle, focusing on the process rather than the output. Questions she’s been pondering for months suddenly have clear solutions, and she’s also found herself being more empathetic in her parenting as her brain “opens up”. Ben’s challenge this week was to do something creative for himself, without an audience, and so he shares how he’s played with skiing switch, and reflects on the joy of truly sucking at something. Ben also identifies some different ways you can categorise creativity: cognitive v emotional, and deliberate v spontaneous. The guys share their experiences of these so far, before diving into the issue of analog v digital. While Brooke was hoping for a unanimous “analog rules” verdict in her research, what she found instead was that there is no right or wrong, that it’s closely tied to how we learn, and that everyone could benefit from dabbling in both means of creative expression. So if you’re getting creative with us this week, why not try mixing it up again? If you’re always in analog-land, why not try creating using digital this week. And vice versa - if you’re a tech-head, why not try something a little more tactile? Don’t forget to use the hashtag #slowexperiment on Instagram if you’d like to share, and stay tuned for next week’s episode all about letting go of ideas of “good” and “perfect” and getting back to creating, just for the sake of creating. To read more about the episode and the May experiment, head over to http://slowyourhome.com/238/ for all the links and resources mentioned, as well as the full blog post. ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially and join in on our live monthly video calls. And thanks so much for listening! ===Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Welcome to the second episode of this month’s Slow Experiment, all about daily creativity. The last week or so has been interesting for Brooke and Ben, and this episode sees them diving into the patterns they’ve noticed emerging and changes they’ve experienced, as well as the question of who we are creating for in our daily practice, and how that impacts the process. Brooke shares that so far the experiment has had more of an impact on her headspace than expected, as it’s opened her up to seeing more creative opportunities in her days. Ben shares an excerpt from an article he read this week that highlights the relationship between creativity and time, and the value of letting problem solving and questions sit in the back of your mind for days, weeks, months or even years until the solution reveals itself to you. A nice reminder that it’s not about the output, but the process. Brooke has been writing every day, but finding the habit of writing for an audience hard to shake as she embarks on this project that is solely for her. On the flip side, Ben has been creating video and writing all for an audience, whether listeners or friends and family. They talk about the challenge they’re both facing - being a creative worker with an audience in mind makes creativity without an agenda much more difficult. Which then brings them to dive in deeper into this question of ‘who are we creating for?’, and to the challenge they share for listeners playing along at home. This week, mix it up. If you’ve been creating just for you, try sharing your work - it doesn’t have to be online either, you can just show a loved one. Or, if you’ve been creating with an audience in mind, this week try doing something just for you. Notice if and how this impacts the process and let us know! Don’t forget to use the hashtag #slowexperiment on Instagram if you’d like to share, and stay tuned for next week’s episode all about analog v digital in creativity. To read more about the episode and the May experiment, head over to http://slowyourhome.com/237/ for all the links and resources mentioned, as well as the full blog post. ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially and join in on our live monthly video calls. And thanks so much for listening! ===Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It’s time for the new #slowexperiment, and for the month of May it’s all about daily creativity. In today’s episode Brooke and Ben spend some time chatting about what creativity means for them, before diving into some ways the experiment might look for you, what their plans are and how they think creativity relates to slow living. To kick off, the guys talk about the relationship between creativity and slow living, and how even though at first glance they might seem unrelated, they actually have so much in common: making time to think and ponder, being intentional, following a process, problem solving. They’re counter-cultural and both tap into mindfulness, paying attention and self-awareness, and work pretty well hand-in-hand. They then dive into the theme for the episode - the difference between creative input and output. If you feel like you don’t have time to be creative, Brooke recommends doing an audit of your daily inputs (e.g. social media, news websites, podcasts etc) and asking yourself if they fuel creativity or not. Then pick one, and swap out the time you’d normally spend doing it with a form of creative output for the month, and see how you go. And now for the “rules” (more like guidelines) for the experiment. If you’re playing along at home, the aim is to do some kind of creative practice every day. It can be a specific creative project, but it doesn’t have to be. It’s more about approaching life through a more creative lens, rather than having an agenda or making anything for a specific audience (more on that next week). It might mean simply approaching an everyday task (like getting dressed or making dinner) as a creative act, rather than a chore. Or it might mean writing, sculpting, knitting, singing - whatever it is, it doesn’t have to look the same every day, it just has to happen. So how will you flex your creative muscle? We can’t wait to see - if you’re playing along and feel like sharing, don’t forget to use the hashtag #slowexperiment on Instagram. To read more about the episode and the May experiment, head over to http://slowyourhome.com/236/ for all the links and resources mentioned, as well as the full blog post. ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially and join in on our live monthly video calls. And thanks so much for listening! ===Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Happy hostful! Today Brooke and Ben sit down to answer your burning questions, as well as update you on what’s been happening in their world, and the plans for the May Slow Experiment! It’s an epic episode, and the guys were excited to have the time to dive into the insightful questions you sent in. First up they reflect on their travels so far, and what they’ve learned about themselves and each other. They also talk about the rhythms that have developed in their day-to-day lives, how they’ve been travelling and what’s up next. Then it’s into the Q&A! It’s a mix of questions around slow living with kids and slow travel. One listener asked about slow living with really young kids, another about kids who always want to be on the go. Another listener asked about slow living when you have a child with special needs, and the wonderful community on Facebook helped out with their answers based on their own experiences. Then there were also questions about slow living when you’re on the road, slow as a counter-cultural decision and how to know what changes to make when you set out to change the pace. And now for the May Slow Experiment - it’s all about daily creativity! Brooke and Ben will be committing to creativity every day in May, and encourage you to play along if you’re keen. It doesn’t have to be the same thing every day, or anything tricky at all. There will be more information over on the blog, but we can’t wait to see what you create. So there you go! As the guys said in the episode, if you’re in the US in one of the states they mention and have a hot lead on a bookshop or venue that might be keen to host a Slow Home Podcast event, please reach out to us at [email protected]. We really appreciate your help and support, and can’t wait to meet as many of you as possible on the tour. To read more about the episode and the May experiment, head over to http://slowyourhome.com/233/ for all the links and resources mentioned, as well as the full blog post. ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially and join in on our live monthly video calls. And thanks so much for listening! ===Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It’s a podcast love-in today, as Brooke sits down with the awesome Jocelyn Glei, creator of the equally awesome podcast Hurry Slowly. Jocelyn’s podcast is also about slow living in a fast-paced world, but her guests tend to work in the extra-speedy realms of tech and entrepreneurialism, so their conversations often take place through the lens of work. This gives their chats a really relatable feel and begins to answer the question so many people ask themselves - “how can I work in my fast-paced industry but still live a slow life?” First up, Brooke asks Jocelyn what slow looks like for her, including her relationship with technology and the boundaries she sets. Jocelyn has actually written a book called Unsubscribe, all about how to manage email and prevent it from becoming all-consuming, so her insights into this and the references she makes are fascinating. Brooke and Jocelyn talk about the pleasure and power of introducing more analog into your life, as well as the relationship between mindfulness and creativity, and the importance of creating space for both rest and boredom. They also discuss the connections between technology and risk-taking and meaningful human connection, the way tech use impacts the way we form memories and more. It’s a really juicy episode, full of insight and interesting ideas to check out. Hungry for more? Head over to http://slowyourhome.com/234/ for all the links and resources mentioned, as well as the full blog post. And as mentioned in the intro, we’re bringing our email newsletter back! Be sure to head to http://slowyourhome.com/slowpost/ to get yourself on the list. We look forward to catching up in your inbox soon! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially and join in on our live monthly video calls. And thanks so much for listening! ===Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Want less mindless, more mindful? Join the club. Today Brooke chats to Dr Elise Bialylew, founder of Mindful in May and author of a brand new book, The Happiness Plan, about all things mindfulness, meditation and the science behind it. Coming from a background in psychiatry, as well as being a parent of a 2 year-old, Elise offers a blend of deep understanding of the science behind why mindfulness works with a real-world approach to practicing it in your daily life. Her passion for the topic shines through this conversation and her work, which is such a delight to hear. Elise talks about how and why she started meditating, and how interaction with scientists like Richie Davidson (doing groundbreaking work on mindfulness and its impact on the brain) as well as her own personal experience at a silence meditation retreat really flicked the switch for her. As a doctor, she felt like mindfulness was the missing piece in the well-being and brain health puzzle, and it’s been her life’s work to educate people about the nature of the mind ever since. She and Brooke go on to talk about her own personal practice (and how that’s changed since becoming a mother), the connection between mindfulness and compassion, the developments in brain science, how much meditation is enough and more. If you’re feeling inspired and excited to try creating (or continuing with) your own meditation or mindfulness practice, be sure to check out Elise’s Mindful in May program. It’s a wonderful way to dip your toe in and start (and stick to) a healthy habit, with a real sense of community, accountability and support as well as inspiration and experimentation. Confusing science is made accessible, and daily emails, guided meditations and interviews with experts will provide you with all the tools you need to find a practice that suits you and your life, as well as an understanding of what’s going on and why it’s so valuable. To read more, head over to http://slowyourhome.com/233/ for all the links and resources mentioned, as well as the full blog post. ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially and join in on our live monthly video calls. And thanks so much for listening! ===Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In the perfect follow-up to March’s Great Outdoors Slow Experiment, today Brooke chats with Florence Williams, author of The Nature Fix. Whether you’ve been reading the book or have never heard of it, you’re in for a treat. Florence is an epic researcher and communicator, and the studies and anecdotes she shares are both informative and inspiring. Kicking off, Florence shares her favourite definition of nature: Oscar Wilde’s generous statement that it is “a place where birds fly around uncooked”. She believes nature doesn’t have to be wild or pristine to have an impact, which makes it much more accessible, especially to urban dwellers. She and Brooke talk about the importance of prioritising and valuing time spent in nature, as well as sharing some concrete tips for engaging in nature once we get there. Then they dive into the benefits. Florence shares what she found while researching and writing the book, from the way spending time in nature makes us feel more connected and be more civic-minded to the impact on creativity, productivity and mood. She also touches on the relationship between nature and technology, encouraging kids to get outside, how she gets her own nature fix, research on the minimum recommended dose of outside time and so much more. This conversation only further convinced Brooke of the importance of spending time in nature – it’s not a ‘nice-to-do’, more a ‘need-to-do’. Let us know if it made you feel the same way! Comment on Instagram or Facebook and share your thoughts. To read more, head over to http://slowyourhome.com/232/ for all the links and resources mentioned, as well as the full blog post. ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially and join in on our live monthly video calls. And thanks so much for listening! ===Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It’s the last episode for the Great Outdoors Slow Experiment, and this week Brooke and Ben look at the mental health benefits of spending time outside, as well as wrapping up the month and reflecting on their own experiences. Hint: Brooke’s mind has been blown, and Ben thinks he’ll stick to the habit. Given her experience with postnatal depression and anxiety in the past, Brooke feels particularly connected to the concept of nature having an positive impact on mental health. It played a major role in her healing journey, and she’s excited to see studies showing its benefits in others with mental health illness. Ben found research that highlighted that everyone’s response to time in nature is different, and that people with a predisposition to mental illness actually feel the benefits more than others. Which leads into a timely reminder to find what works best for you, try it and see and be self-aware as you experiment (and of course, always seek professional help when it’s needed). The guys also talk about the wondrous week in nature they’ve had, filled with birthday hikes, hot springs, natural springs, playtime, skiing and walks. Brooke had the timely reminder to let go of expectations and let nature time happen however it does, even if it’s 5 minutes hanging out the washing and breathing in the fresh air rather than a glorious stroll in the woods. They reflect on the month as a whole, and both agree it’s been a huge shift for them in understanding the importance of getting out into the Great Outdoors, and that it’s something that will stick with them. If you’re playing along, don’t forget to share how you’re going over on Instagram using the hashtag #slowexperiment, or comment on Facebook. We’d love to know what you’ve discovered, or what’s impacted you over the month, and whether you think you’ll keep it up. And also a massive thank you to everyone who’s joined us in the experiment - we’ve loved seeing your posts, and your passion and honesty in sharing has been inspiring. To read more, head over to http://slowyourhome.com/231 for all the links and resources mentioned, as well as the full blog post. Stay tuned in April to find out what the May #slowexperiment will be too! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially and join in on our live monthly video calls. And thanks so much for listening! ===Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Let’s get physical. Yep, we’re in week three of the Great Outdoors Slow Experiment, and this week Brooke and Ben are looking at a bunch of the physical benefits of spending time outside in nature. It’s been a pretty wondrous, awe-inspiring week outside for them, with quiet moments, play, some glorious snow and then even more glorious skiing. This week Brooke has really found herself craving time outside, and Ben noticed the headspace that spending time in nature gives him, setting him straight for the rest of his day. They looked at a bunch of research, and found some really surprising studies and information. Things like how exercising outside makes you want to keep exercising. That if you live in an urban environment but have access to or prioritise time in nature, you can live a longer and more healthful life. Being outside can lower your blood pressure, and make you better at coping with stress. If you do it regularly, it can reduce your stress hormones like adrenaline and cortisol. It impacts inflammation and your immune system, as well as your ability to heal and recover from illnesses. Basically, the long term benefits are many and varied and there is so much interesting work being done in this area. If you were having doubts about this whole nature thing, this episode will definitely put them to bed. Put simply, there is so much to gain by making these changes, and so much to lose if we don’t. And the hack of the week to help you commit? Reduce the scope, stick to the schedule. So get out there! If you’re playing along, don’t forget to share how you’re going over on Instagram using the hashtag #slowexperiment, or comment on Facebook. We’d also love to know if you’ve noticed any physical benefits - from sleep to immunity, let us know how you’re feeling. To read more, head over to http://slowyourhome.com/230 for all the links and resources mentioned, as well as the full blog post. ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially and join in on our live monthly video calls. And thanks so much for listening! ===Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Welcome to episode 229, and to the end of the second week of the Great Outdoors Slow Experiment! In today’s episode Brooke and Ben turn their attention to attention - the benefits of outside time for mental performance. There’s loads of research that shows how time spent in nature helps us concentrate more, be more creative, improve our memory and do better in work and study. Brooke highlights that while for her, she doesn’t need any more convincing to spend time outside, this research is pretty powerful when it comes to showing decision and policy makers of the importance of integrating nature into urban, work and educational environments. Creativity is a theme that comes up, and Brooke says she feels the benefits more in this and problem-solving rather than a more immediate impact on productivity. Ben realises that while he once thought time in nature gave him clarity, he now sees it more as a reset, a time for his brain to rest and heal so he can come back to the clarity that’s already there. This ties into the research about active and passive attention, and the importance of downtime for your brain. At the end of the episode, Brooke shares a bunch of ideas for those living in urban environments who are finding it challenging to get out in nature. These include things like: Take your lunch to a park and eat it there Find a patch of grass and sit on it – take your shoes off and pop your feet on the ground, see what it feels like Make a date with friends/family and go for a picnic Drive out of the city one night and look at the stars Make a date every month and make that your nature day – no phones, just hanging out, outside Buy a couple of house plants Looking at images and listening to sounds of nature Go camping We’d love to hear your suggestions! If you’re playing along, don’t forget to share how you’re going over on Instagram using the hashtag #slowexperiment, or comment on Facebook. We’d also love to know what you’ve found challenging or easy so far, especially if you’re in an urban environment. To read more, head over to http://slowyourhome.com/229/ for all the links and resources mentioned, as well as the full blog post. ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially and join in on our live monthly video calls. And thanks so much for listening! ===Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

We’re one week into the Great Outdoors experiment, and it’s off to an enjoyable start. In today’s episode, Brooke and Ben talk about how they’ve spent the last week getting out in nature, what they’ve noticed, as well as diving into some research around the emotional benefits of spending time outside. This week the guys have spent time outdoors both as a family and solo. It’s been active, but also contemplative, as Brooke shares how she spent one session just sitting by the river watching the water flow - a perfect reminder that sometimes being in nature can just be about being rather than doing. Ben noticed a marked difference in himself between the time spent outside in nature versus the the time spent outside in an urban environment. He shared some research he found that looked at a range of studies where this distinction was made between urban and natural outdoor environments, and the different impacts they had on stress, happiness, creativity, generosity, kindness, attention and the feeling of being alive. No surprises, nature came out ahead. Brooke focused on the sensation of awe that she feels when she spends time in the great outdoors, and was surprised by the amount of research that backed this up scientifically. Studies have found that awe is more important than happiness when it comes to unlocking all the emotional benefits of time spent outside, as it forces us to slow down and be immersed in the thing we are in awe of. Pretty magical stuff, right?  So try to keep that sense of awe and childlike curiosity with you this week as you spend time with nature big and small, and stay tuned for the experiment episodes for the rest of the month, where Brooke and Ben will look at the mental (especially performance) and physical benefits of spending time in nature. If you’re playing along, don’t forget to share how you’re going over on Instagram using the hashtag #slowexperiment, or comment on Facebook. We’d love to know what you’ve found challenging or easy so far, and if you’ve noticed any emotional benefits at all! To read more, head over to http://slowyourhome.com/228/ for all the links and resources mentioned, as well as the full blog post. ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially and join in on our live monthly video calls. And thanks so much for listening! ===Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Let the experimenting begin! Yep, the #slowhomeexperiment is back for 2018, kicking off this month and happening every second month hereafter. March is all about the great outdoors, and the experiment is to prioritise spending time outside every single day. Brooke and Ben are aiming for 60 minutes a day, but if you’d like to play along, find an amount of time that works for you and try sticking to it. The aim is to keep it simple but consistent, and to pop outside time a little higher up your to-do list than normal, even on the days when it seems too hard. We all know at a deep level that spending time in nature is good for us, and Brooke talks about some of the symptoms of “too much inside time” that she notices in her family: irritability, excess energy, feeling cabin fever-y and craving that delicious buzz of tiredness that can only come from spending a day outdoors. Sound familiar? The guys are going in with an open mind as to what they’ll get out of the experiment, but also research shows that spending more time outside in nature has a massive impact of many areas of your life, from mental and physical health to emotional wellbeing, as well as performance in school and work. They talk about some different ways you can try to incorporate outside time, from the big to the small, as well as some ways to feel the benefits even on the days when getting outside is literally impossible.  Stay tuned for the experiment episodes for the rest of the month, where Brooke and Ben will report back on their outside time, as well as diving in deep to some of the benefits and research that’s been done. If you’re playing along, don’t forget to share how you’re going over on Instagram using the hashtag #slowhomeexperiment! To read more, head over to http://slowyourhome.com/227/ for all the links and resources mentioned, as well as the full blog post. ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially and join in on our live monthly video calls. And thanks so much for listening! ===Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In today’s episode Brooke chats to the delightful Kirsty Farrugia, founder of Feels Like Home professional organising, and co-host of the podcast The Art of Decluttering. This conversation put to bed a few misconceptions Brooke had about professional organisers, as Kirsty really brings warmth and vulnerability when talking about her job, and the full spectrum of relationships between stuff and people that she deals with in her daily life. They talk about the misconception of decluttering as the solution to every problem, when really it’s often just the first step in a long process of creating change in your life. Kirsty also talks about how she gets started with her clients, and the questions she invites them to ask as they sit in the mess and start to deal with it. Just like Brooke talks about the importance of knowing your ‘why’, when it comes to decluttering, having a vision for your home and your life in it makes the process much easier. Wonderfully, Kirsty reveals that she is in fact not a naturally organised person, and that it was only after she married an “uber-organised” man that she started to change her ways. This means that she can really connect and empathise with her clients, as she too has felt overwhelmed in her own home and has done the hard work to make changes. She talks about the idea of grace, and of the benefits of letting go and giving yourself permission to live the life you want to live, not a life dictated by the things around you. It’s a big, honest, vulnerable chat that definitely peels back a couple of onion layers around decluttering and professional organising, and we owe a big thanks to Kirsty for sharing so openly. To read more, head over to http://slowyourhome.com/226/ for all the links and resources mentioned, as well as the full blog post. Brooke and Ben also announce the first Slow Experiment of 2018 and encourage you to join in. You can find out more at http://www.slowyourhome.com/nature ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially and join in on our live monthly video calls. And thanks so much for listening! ===Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Three-time guest Rachel Jonat of The Minimalist Mom is back! This week brings some real-talk to the topics of slow living as a family, as we catch up on the changes in Rachel and her family’s life since she was last on the show, as well as talk about her new book, The Joy of Doing Nothing. In episode 30, Rachel and her family had just moved to Vancouver from the Isle of Man, and she and Brooke talked about the ways city living and slow living tied in together. In episode 93, the talk turned more specifically to kids and slow living. In today's episode they flip the script entirely, as Rachel and her family have moved away from the city to a small town to live a life with their priorities at the centre. The decision to sell their condo in Vancouver and buy a house in a small town in the mountains of BC was a well-thought-out one that aligned with the needs of Rachel’s family (and especially her eldest son, who has additional needs), and also her and her husband’s values. She and Brooke talk about the reality of making this decision, what led up to it, and how the change in location has impacted their lives. Rachel talks about the shift in pace from city to small-town living, which, given her new book, The Joy of Doing Nothing, is utterly relevant. She was working on the book right before she and her husband made the decision to leave Vancouver, and felt inspired by what she was writing about to try and find a life that gave her the time and space she wanted. The book is about slowing down and simplifying, but rather than being about stuff, it focuses on simple, actionable ways to create quiet time for yourself to really unplug and just be. It’s not an extreme approach in any sense, but it definitely taps into that fear so many of us have of not being entertained, distracted or scheduled, and encourages us to hit reset a little more often. To read more, head over to http://slowyourhome.com/225/ for all the links and resources mentioned, as well as the full blog post. ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially and join in on our live monthly video calls. And thanks so much for listening! ===Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It’s good to be back! Welcome to the first new show of 2018, a week late and all the better for it (thanks for your patience with and understanding of the delay!). Today’s episode is a hostful, recorded all the way from the Canadian Rocky Mountains, and it sees Brooke and Ben catch up on everything that’s happened since they last recorded a podcast almost 2 months ago. First up they talk about the head, heart and hard work that went into selling their house, moving out, saying goodbye and getting on that plane. The amount of energy and emotion involved caught them by surprise, and at times Ben found himself in a really stressful place, potentially taking tilting a little too far. Luckily, Brooke’s planning and organisation gave this busy time intention and focus, and they got through to the other side.  They then dive in to talk about the specifics of what went down, including the garage giveaway, having a super slow New Year’s Eve, the emotions involved with leaving their house (and garden) for the final time, packing and the difficulty of saying goodbye (especially to their dog). All in all it’s been a big few weeks, but never once have the guys questioned whether they were doing the right thing or not. Two days in to their big adventure and they really are living in the unknown, doing the experiment. Which brings us to the experiment episodes - they’re back! They’ll be happening every second month, and the first one will kick off in March, so stay tuned.  To read more, head over to http://slowyourhome.com/222/ for all the links and resources mentioned, as well as the full blog post. ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially and join in on our live monthly video calls. And thanks so much for listening! ===Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Hello, and welcome to the Slow Home Summer series! For 5 weeks over December and January we’ll be revisiting some of our favourite episodes from 2017, so we can walk the walk and slow down during the Christmas break. Also it turns out podcasts, just like fine wine, really do get better with age. Whether you missed them the first time around, or are having another listen, we hope you enjoy these poggies as much as we did! ==== Today Brooke chats with the wonderful, challenging, inspiring author Sarah Wilson. Sarah is someone Brooke has admired for years - not only for the work she’s done to promote the notion of drastically cutting sugar in our diets, preventing food waste, and her more recent work in mental health awareness - but also the way she goes about that work. She is honest and open, prepared to stand for something regardless of whether people agree with her, and she’s also funny and smart and good at not taking herself too seriously. In this conversation Brooke and Sarah talk about her new book, ‘first we make the beast beautiful: a new story about anxiety’ and dive deep into how Sarah slows down in order to both strengthen herself against anxiety’s harmful side, and simultaneously go deeper into it. They talk about the discomfort of true reflection and Sarah’s growing boredom with shallow conversations and external grasping (and why cocktail parties are the worst example of this!) as well as the idea that it’s not necessary or even helpful to slow down simply for the sake of slowing down, but rather aiming to slow down in order to be or do something meaningful. As an avid bush walker, Sarah talks about why she chooses to head off into the bush every second weekend (more if possible) and what the rhythm and solitude of solo hiking provides her that other exercises can’t. Sarah shares her cure for insomnia and why one of her two major tenets of slow-ness is to simply walk. She also introduces Brooke to the French idea of ‘flâner’, an urban wandering, and why sometimes it’s enough to simply walk through our own neighbourhood, noticing, paying attention, watching people and observing the comings and goings that surround us. They also talk about meditation and why it’s the second key tenet of slow-ness for Sarah, and why it’s not only OK to suck at meditation, but why it’s actually incredibly useful to be bad at it. This is a cracker of an episode, packed with loads of inspiration. Head over to http://www.slowyourhome.com/ss185 for the full blog post, including links to Sarah's books, website and other resources mentioned in today's show, and in the meantime, enjoy! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially and join in on our live monthly video calls. And thanks so much for listening! ===  Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Hello, and welcome to the Slow Home Summer series! For 5 weeks over December and January we’ll be revisiting some of our favourite episodes from 2017, so we can walk the walk and slow down during the Christmas break. Also it turns out podcasts, just like fine wine, really do get better with age. Whether you missed them the first time around, or are having another listen, we hope you enjoy these poggies as much as we did! ==== Tim Silverwood is one of Brooke’s environmental role models. He maintains that he’s just an ordinary guy who somehow found himself at the forefront of environmental activism in Australia, but his passion and knowledge means that while he may be an ordinary guy, the impact he’s having on the growing environmental movement in Australia is anything but ordinary. As one of the founders of Take 3 for the Sea and a powerful voice in the movement away from single-use plastics, Tim is having a massive impact both in Australia and around the world. In today’s episode Tim and Brooke talk about the Plastic-Free July campaign and why it’s so important, but they also go back to the catalyst for Tim’s shift to environmentalism. Perhaps not surprisingly, Tim’s passion for protecting the ocean started in his passion for the waves and like so many people now heavily invested in protecting our wild spaces, Tim was a surfer who used his love of the ocean to drive changes in his own life. They also talk about the importance of small steps, and why Tim believes it’s the only way to convert the apathetic in to the passionate, but also why these small steps are only the first part of creating global change. One of the beautiful themes that keeps emerging in Brooke and Tim’s conversation is the idea of connection - both to each other and the environment we all live in - and Tim specifically talks about the ways in which we’re all connected to the health of the oceans. It’s far too easy to think the issue of plastic pollution isn’t one we’re part of, and Tim gets very passionate as he talks about the different ways our actions can have an impact - both positive and negative. They also talk about the problematic issue of recycling and why so much of what we think of as ‘good recycling’ is actually exacerbating the problem, and why the circular economy and circular design is the way of the future. To read more, head over to http://www.slowyourhome.com/ss184 for all the links and resources mentioned, as well as the full blog post. ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially and join in on our live monthly video calls. And thanks so much for listening! ===Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Hello, and welcome to the Slow Home Summer series! For 5 weeks over December and January we’ll be revisiting some of our favourite episodes from 2017, so we can walk the walk and slow down during the Christmas break. Also it turns out podcasts, just like fine wine, really do get better with age. Whether you missed them the first time around, or are having another listen, we hope you enjoy these poggies as much as we did! ==== In today’s episode Brooke sits down to chat with Rebecca Sullivan - founder of the ‘granny skills’ movement, serial entrepreneur, food lover and sustainability advocate. In what can only be described as an utterly delightful conversation, Brooke and Rebecca talk about traditions, heritage and the importance of intergenerational connection, as well as how to make the perfect blush for less than $1. After coming to the realisation that she was completely removed from the process of creating and growing her own food (something to do with cheese and maggots in a small Italian town) Rebecca began the process of educating herself. From that realisation has grown a career of incredible depth and breadth, covering food, traditional skills, agriculture, creating natural homemade products and recently a pilot program that placed grandparents in local schools. This program saw older people teaching kids traditional skills around cooking and woodworking, which not only had an incredibly positive impact on the kids, but the older teachers as well. Brooke and Rebecca talk about the importance of failure, and the liberation that comes once we accept and even embrace our own screw-ups. As a keen balcony gardener, Rebecca also shares her hottest hits for container growing, including some native edibles that are the most likely to survive some light-to-moderate neglect. To read more, head over to INSERT LINK HERE (NOT SURE WHAT THE URL WILL BE?) for all the links and resources mentioned, as well as the full blog post. ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially and join in on our live monthly video calls. And thanks so much for listening! ===Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Hello, and welcome to the Slow Home Summer series! For 5 weeks over December and January we’ll be revisiting some of our favourite episodes from 2017, so we can walk the walk and slow down during the Christmas break. Also it turns out podcasts, just like fine wine, really do get better with age. Whether you missed them the first time around, or are having another listen, we hope you enjoy these poggies as much as we did! ==== Have you ever had a conversation that changes your entire outlook on the world? One that shifts your worldview in monumental ways? That challenges and invites you to think about your choices in terms that are entirely different? In today's episode, Brooke chats with the utterly wonderful Annie Raser-Rowland, co-author of The Art of Frugal Hedonism and experiences one of those conversations. Annie and Brooke speak about the book and all that it covers: life and pleasure and scarcity and ego and many other things. Nailing the art of frugal hedonism is about considering things, but also feeling them. Life is experienced, explored, meaningful, soaked up and revelled in. The book is full of practical (and more whimsical) ways you can live a joyful, hedonistic life on a low budget, and Annie’s way with words (as evident in the episode) means it’s an absolutely delightful read. This is a super inspiring episode, and we hope after listening you feel excited about experiencing things, paying attention, giving yourself space and time to spend afternoons immersed in cloud-watching or 10 minutes eating an apple in the sun. To read more, head over to http://www.slowyourhome.com/ss182 for all the links and resources mentioned, as well as the full blog post. ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially and join in on our live monthly video calls. And thanks so much for listening! ===Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Hello, and welcome to the Slow Home Summer series! For 5 weeks over December and January we’ll be revisiting some of our favourite episodes from 2017, so we can walk the walk and slow down during the Christmas break. Also it turns out podcasts, just like fine wine, really do get better with age. Whether you missed them the first time around, or are having another listen, we hope you enjoy these poggies as much as we did! ==== In today’s poggie Brooke speaks with Katy Bowman, a biomechanist, founder of Nutritious Movement and all-round activity advocate, about the curse of convenience in modern life and what it is costing us in terms of movement, the food we eat, our health, our relationships and the larger structure of our society in general. They also talk about the infiltration of technology into the lives of both adults and kids, as well as some really practical ways of lessening the impact technology has on our days, and how to deal with the inevitable complaints from kids (and maybe some adults) when they’re forced outside. They also talk about the massive benefits of spending more time outdoors and why Katy is lobbying for outdoor exposure to be classified as a nutrient. Katy shares her family’s journey towards minimalism and why it began with letting go of their couch, and how the root of their simplification lies in a desire for more movement rather than less stuff. Enjoy! To read more, head over to http://www.slowyourhome.com/ss181 for all the links and resources mentioned, as well as the full blog post. ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially and join in on our live monthly video calls. And thanks so much for listening! ===Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It’s the last (new) episode of the year! Today’s hostful was going to be a “year-in-review” type affair, but Brooke is officially sick of talking about their plans, and so instead it’s a wrap up of Brooke and Ben’s favourite things from 2017!  There are mixed emotions in the McAlary house as they finish the school year and start to have that nostalgic appreciation for a place you know you’re going to be leaving soon. So they kick things off light, starting with their favourite TV shows, small details and movies of the year. Brooke and Ben end up sharing the same favourite movie as it was the only time they went to the movies this year - together, without the kids, in the middle of the day. “It felt strangely wrong but awesome at the same time”, said Ben of the experience. They then move onto their favourite new destinations, books (featuring a suspicious amount of Stephen King, no surprises there) and discovery of the year. Then it’s on to favourite album, new podcast, meal and last of all, favourite experience of 2017. They both feel incredibly fortunate for all the great things that have happened this year, and also talk a little bit about the intention or feeling they might like to try and cultivate in the new year. And that is that! Thank you so much for listening this year, buying the books, and supporting us in any way. We truly feel so grateful to be part of this growing slow community. Wishing you all a Merry Christmas and happy holidays, and hope you can soak in the downtime. We’ll be back next week with the summer series, and with new podcasts on the 1st February. Until then, have a great few weeks! To read more, head over to http://slowyourhome.com/221/ for all the links and resources mentioned, as well as the full blog post. ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially and join in on our live monthly video calls. And thanks so much for listening! ===Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Ben loves goals, Brooke doesn’t. Will they be able to find a way around this and continue in life, love and podcasts? You’ll have to listen to find out! Like florals to spring are goals and New Year’s resolutions to the end of the year. Today Brooke and Ben talk about their recent discovery that Ben is way more goal oriented than Brooke. Like a lot more. The nature of Ben’s work is project-based, with distinct start and end dates - he’s used to end-points and moving on to the next thing, both professionally and personally. Whether it’s learning a new song on the guitar or painting the front fence, Ben feels like his life is like this, and Brooke feels like hers is not. Brooke’s natural tendency is not to be goal-oriented at all. While she does need structure and to-do lists to tame her “panster” ways, goals actually make her feel claustrophobic. As soon as a goal is down on paper, no matter how SMART it is, she instantly wants to rebel against it, a habit that’s potentially formed from years of feeling shame around not finishing things that she started. She does semi-regularly sit down and partake in a big-picture brain dump or epic mind-map making session, but even those will be forgotten about and discovered a year later (often, interestingly, with many of the things having taken place, even without the piece of paper in sight!). Unsurprisingly, Brooke is also not a fan of New Year’s resolutions, but more about the actions and the doing. However, both Brooke and Ben agree that one of the downsides of not setting goals is not celebrating success enough. It’s a work in progress for them - actually stopping to take it in, reflect on what you’ve done and celebrate how far you’ve come, and what you’ve achieved. This also ties back to mindfulness for Brooke, who can see that being more present allows her to really pause and soak in the details of things. The key takeaway for this week? It’s ok to not be a goal setter, but maybe try being a little more mindful of what it is you’re working towards. And maybe try experimenting with thinking of a couple of short, medium and long-term goals and writing them down in the Notes app in your phone (Ben’s location of choice). Think about something that extends you personally or professionally, or maybe make a mindmap or do a brain dump, and then look at the end game. What is it that you’re working towards? Once it’s time to turn that bullet point into a satisfying tick, take a moment (or a glass of something bubbly) to celebrate your success. Are you a goal-setter? If so, tell us how you do it, we’d love to hear. Also if anyone really knows what SMART stands for, feel free to get in touch. To read more, head over to http://slowyourhome.com/220/ for all the links and resources mentioned, as well as the full blog post. ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially and join in on our live monthly video calls. And thanks so much for listening! ===Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In today’s episode Brooke talks to the awesome Cait Flanders, mindful money extraordinaire, author and slow living advocate. The last time Cait was on the show was way back in episode 22 in 2015, so the two had a bit to catch up on! Excitingly, Cait’s first book The Year Of Less is about to be released (on 16th January 2018). Brooke has read the book and absolutely loved it. At first glance it might seem to be about a girl who stopped shopping for a year, but it’s actually about so much more. Cait did complete a year-long shopping ban from 2014-2015, and while the book is about that, the ban also provides a framework for her to talk about a lot of other things - drinking, relationships, money (of course) and more. The book is deeply personal and honest, so a lot of excavation was involved in the writing. Cait speaks about the writing process (including self-imposed isolation and extended Airbnb stays) as well as the feeling of finishing her biggest creative project to date. Brooke also asked Cait about the year of slow experiments she’s undertaken in 2017. Cait explained the motivation behind them - that she felt overwhelmed by the classic #newyearnewme self-improvement messages, knowing she’d have a lot of work to do in the new year with her book. But at the same time there were some small changes she wanted to make - things she wanted more or less of in her life. And so the year-long project was born, featuring all the fun of trying something new without the pressure of a challenge. Every month (bar two) had a theme, and rather than setting goals she created intentions, which meant more room for fluidity and flexibility and less feeling bad for not ticking a certain box every day. She kicked off with slow mornings in January, and in a beautiful act of synchronicity, is finishing in December with experimenting with slow evenings. Her favourite experiments were the slow travel and slow food (no surprises there!). Throughout the year Cait realised that anything that makes you stop and think about what it is that you’re doing, in whatever aspect of your life, is a good thing. She and Brooke talk more about that in terms of being overwhelmed with choice, feelings of FOMO, changing slowly, being compassionate and asking for help when we need it. Cait’s overall goal with her book was to encourage people to pause and think about what’s going on when they feel the need to consume more or binge on whatever it is - shopping, drinking, eating, social media etc. And this mindfulness really permeates throughout all her work, and the way she lives her life. Yay for Cait! To read more, head over to http://slowyourhome.com/219/ for all the links and resources mentioned, as well as the full blog post. ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially and join in on our live monthly video calls. And thanks so much for listening! ===Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Slow by name, slow by nature is the topic for this Monday episode. After last week’s Facebook Live hostful and the end of the very first Live Life Simply online retreat, Brooke and Ben felt like they were hearing a lot of people come to the realisation that they’d been trying to rush their way to slow as quickly as possible, and that it wasn’t going to work. So they thought it was time to address this paradoxical approach to slowing down and remind us all (including themselves!) that the only way to do it really is slowly. Slow living has been packaged and sold as a solution to all of the problems we face in our modern world, but people are coming to understand and accept that living a slow life is a slow process, not a quick fix. If you’re living a life of “I’ll be happy when”s (I’ll be happy when I have less stuff, when I’ve paid off my credit card, when I’ve got a weekend with nothing on) it’s hard to appreciate and be present for those moments in between. There’s nothing wrong with having these things in mind to aim for, but it’s important to remember to live life along the way and not get caught up looking at the end goal. It really is all about the journey, not the destination. Brooke and Ben talk about the realisation that working towards slow living doesn’t mean everything is done slowly, but rather understanding that change comes slowly. It also means accepting that backsliding and failure and frustration are all part of the process too, and that actively softening into the things that we’re resisting can help us be present with where we are, let our experiences deepen and allow ourselves a little compassion. The take-away from this week is to ask yourself what is something that is bringing you stress or rigidity in your life right now? Maybe it’s a few things - write them down, then just choose one and ask what would it look like if you softened into the process, understand that changes take time and keep slowly working towards it? Let us know what that looks like for you - we’d love to hear how you’re softening into slow, especially at this time of year. To read more, head over to http://slowyourhome.com/218/ for all the links and resources mentioned, as well as the full blog post. ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially and join in on our live monthly video calls. And thanks so much for listening! ===Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Coming to you live from Facebook, this week’s hostful episode sees Brooke and Ben talk all things life updates, travel, 2018 plans and more. First big piece of news? They’ve sold their house! Exciting times, especially after a hectic few weeks that saw a couple of episodes missed. Brooke and Ben talk about this, and the fact that it really was a time of intense tilting (almost horizontally, according to Ben!), very much a “going fast to go slow” period. Brooke remembers when these times used to make her feel like a “slow imposter”, but now she’s able to recognise and become intentional when life gets hectic, and especially when it returns to a more sustainable pace (January and February are looking super slow for these guys). They come back to the idea of long term balance versus the illusive everyday balance, and working towards the big picture rather than stressing out everyday over the unattainable. Mindset also comes into it, and remembering that you’re choosing to be busy, maybe in order to come back to slow a little later. Plus, Brooke highlights the non-negotiables of sleep, meditation and good food that help her get through more stressful times. As for the pogpast, there are some exciting changes on the horizon for 2018! The last episode of the year will come out on the 21st December, and then from there we’ll move into the Summer Series, which will see the favourite or most popular episodes of the year re-released for 5 weeks throughout January. Then from February, the podcast will go back to being only one episode per week. This reflects Brooke and Ben’s aim to simplify life while they’re on the road, and focusing on doing less, better. 2018 will also see the return of the experiment episodes! Brooke and Ben are excited to be doing these again, and know a lot of listeners have missed them too. At the moment the plan is to alternate between one month of an experiment and then one month of interview episodes, which will also include live recordings and loads of great guests from the book tour happening in mid next year. Apart from these updates, Brooke and Ben also answer live questions around the idea of a slow:fast ratio, how to host guests and still stay slow, balancing home and work life and staying in the present moment, waste and travelling, fears around next year and the plans for the trip so far. To read more, head over to http://slowyourhome.com/217/ for all the links and resources mentioned, as well as the full blog post. ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially and join in on our live monthly video calls. And thanks so much for listening! ===Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It’s the 27th of November, and if anyone listening is already on holidays, Brooke and Ben salute you. It’s one month til Christmas, and the craziness/silliness/festiveness has well and truly begun. This is the last episode in the Slow Holidays Monday series, and in the spirit of trying to find pockets of slow in these full and exciting weeks, today Brooke and Ben talk about the importance of holiday traditions. They both agree that traditions are really important, especially at this time of year. However they acknowledge that traditions change and evolve over time, and that there’s no need to stick to something that doesn’t serve you. Ben challenges Brooke about a couple of their holiday traditions (e.g. getting a real Christmas tree every year and decorating the house with what he terms “clutter”, much to Brooke’s objection) and asks if they still align to their values. Brooke maintains that she still values fun, and that the most important part of these traditions (and this time of year) is spending quality time with friends and family. The joy of hanging out with their kids on the first weekend in December, going to get a tree and then listening to The Beach Boys while decorating is what matters, not necessarily the tree and decorations themselves. It’s testing, but Ben puts it out there that it’s good at this time of year to question why we partake in certain holiday traditions. This week’s action? Look at what you do at this time of year and the traditions you love, and why you love them. See if there are any traditions that need to evolve and start having those conversations. What small shifts can you start to make to ensure your traditions sit comfortably with your values? And most importantly, don’t forget to embrace the fun and soften into the season. Head over to http://slowyourhome.com/216/ for all the links and resources mentioned, as well as the blog post. PS Keep listening all the way to the end for some blooper gold. ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially and join in on our live monthly video calls. And thanks so much for listening! ===Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It’s been a few months since Brooke and Ben shared their 2018 plans with you and thought it was time for an update, because, well, things have changed. Head back to Episode 193 if you’re curious to hear all the previous details, but in a nutshell next year the plan is for Brooke and Ben to pack up their lives in the Blue Mountains and head off on an adventure. First stop will be Canada for a few months before heading to the United States for a book tour to celebrate the release of SLOW. After that, they really don’t know. (And that part, at least, hasn’t changed). Up until recently the plan was to rent out their house, work remotely and home school the kids while attempting to travel in a slow way, living like locals wherever possible. It was going to allow them to travel, experience the world and still have somewhere to come back to at the end of the trip. Now? Some of those plans have changed and some of them have become clearer, and in today’s episode Brooke and Ben give you a big old run-down of what they're doing instead. They talk about why they've decided to sell their house, why they're giving away all their stuff, and why 2018 is all about experimentation. This is a loose conversation, mostly because Brooke and Ben are feeling pretty nervous/daunted/excited about it all. So enjoy!  ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially and join in on our live monthly video calls. And thanks so much for listening! ===Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Continuing the Slow Holidays theme, in today’s episode Brooke and Ben talk about valuing presence over presents as the year comes to an end. This chat follows on nicely from episode 210, which was all about clutter-free gifts, but goes a step further to really question why it is that we choose to show our love through the giving of stuff. Brooke and Ben talk about the emotional connection we feel to giving things, and the fact that it can sometimes come down to feelings of guilt or obligation. If you haven’t been there for a loved one throughout the year, you might feel the pressure to give them a whizz-bang gift come Christmas time to show them you care. But if you flip it and reverse it, and start with time, maybe there’s another way. For Brooke, slow living means more time for the people in her life, and investing in relationships. The reason we give gifts is to show love, but what other ways can you show love? Giving presence is giving time and energy and turning up for people throughout the entire year. Maybe consider setting up rituals with people that you love, like you’re gifting a year-long subscription to you. Feel free to share your thoughts with us over on the blog, or Facebook or Instagram - we’d love to hear how you think you could incorporate this into your holiday season, and the rest of your year, and whether it’s shifted your perspective on gift-giving at all! Head over to http://slowyourhome.com/214/ for all the links and resources mentioned, as well as the blog post. ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially and join in on our live monthly video calls. And thanks so much for listening! ===Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this episode Brooke sat down to chat with mindfulness expert and advocate for awareness of postnatal depression Chelsea Pottenger. Chelsea works with organisations to develop mindfulness and wellbeing programs for their staff, is studying to be a clinical psychologist, and works as an ambassador for R U OK? and the Gidget Foundation, an incredible organisation that offers a range of services for new mums who are experiencing (or think they might experience) postnatal depression. This week is actually Postnatal Depression Awareness Week, so it’s a perfect time for an honest, very open chat about this often-hidden disease. Chelsea and Brooke have had parallel experiences into new parenthood, both of them suffering from postnatal depression and then using it as a vehicle to improve their mental health across the board, as well as their lives and work. Soon after her daughter Clara was born Chelsea started to experience symptoms of postnatal depression (including anxiety, insomnia, hypersensitivity to sound, shame and guilt) but like so many of us do, she put up a front and pretended that everything was fine. She eventually got to a breaking point, and after opening up to her husband was admitted to a postnatal depression ward in hospital the next day. During her time in hospital she worked with an amazing psychiatrist who introduced her to mindfulness from a clinical perspective. Chelsea became curious about neuroplasticity, felt the benefits of meditation throughout her stay and when leaving the hospital, decided to study to become a clinical psychologist herself. Now her life’s work is twofold: to bring awareness to postnatal depression as an ambassador for R U OK? and the Gidget Foundation and to share what she’s learned about mindfulness and its benefits in the corporate environment. She now spends part of her time helping people in big organisations like Ebay and Uber learn healthy coping tools under the umbrella of mindfulness. Her programs cover everything from self-care and productivity to gut health and meditation, all of it backed by science. Chelsea’s life is full and mindful, and at the end of the podcast she shares some of the tools she uses to stay grounded and productive, while fiercely protecting her time as well as being selective about the people you spend your time with. There are some great tricks and tools here for anyone wanting to get better at saying no, like the 2am appointment time! Head over to http://slowyourhome.com/213/ for all the links and resources mentioned, as well as the blog post. ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially and join in on our live monthly video calls. And thanks so much for listening! ===Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This Slow Holidays episode is all about The Pre-Holiday Catch Up, and includes complimentary Christmas puns, now even earlier in the year! We all know the drill: “Oh, we must catch up before Christmas”, says your well-meaning long-lost friend/colleague/distant cousin/neighbour. Text messages are flying back and forth, and everyone you run into makes the same suggestion. Sometimes you even find the dreaded words coming out of your own mouth. Work winds down and our social lives ramp up at this time of year. But the reality is, we put so much pressure on ourselves to commit to all these social engagements in such a short window of time that it can make this period a lot more frantic than it needs to be. Of course there will be end-of-year concerts, assemblies and catch-ups that we have to (and want to) commit to, but now is a great time to start to alleviate the pressure on ourselves before the silly season starts. Brooke and Ben outline some great steps to take to start to make changes: Accept that it will be a busier time, no matter what steps we take Remember that it’s fun! Enjoy it for what it is Think about what you did last year and will have on this year, write it all down and see if you can combine events or postpone them to the New Year Acknowledge that you can’t do it all and give other people permission to feel the same way Be honest when responding to invitations - say how you feel! Look at your energy requirements and question how much of your energy you want to commit to social events at this time of year The action for this week is step 3 - write down everything you think you’ll have on this year and start think about ways you can simplify before the time comes. Prepare to be the person in your social group driving change in order a create a slower holiday season for you and your family. Head over to http://slowyourhome.com/212/ for all the links and resources mentioned, as well as the blog post. ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially and join in on our live monthly video calls. And thanks so much for listening! ===Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

They’re happy, they’re delighted, they’re back. This week Brooke chats with the founder of Folk Rebellion, AKA Chief Rebel Jess Davis. Jess is an unapologetic advocate for getting the hell off our devices and getting into life. This episode follows on nicely from the recent Monday series about social media and is a continuation of the theme of the relationship between technology and distraction. Folk Rebellion is a call to arms for all of us to get off our phones, look people in the eye when we talk to them and live an analog life; do things with our hands, go hiking, start making, listen to a whole album on vinyl. While working as a digital brand strategist, Jess started to realise the impact her tech dependent life was having on her brain. She found herself losing focus, struggling with memory and feeling disassociated, and went to see doctors about these issues. After a tech intervention by her husband on a holiday to Hawaii, she felt a shift. Eight days of no technology meant she started to feel like her old self again, and this triggered a series of massive shifts and changes Jess has since made to her life. In this episode, Brooke chats with Jess about about how to get people on board with changes, thoughts on digital detox, insight into Jess’ daily routine with technology, changing expectations around technology and availability as well as slow living in the city.  There’s also talk of an exciting new Folk Rebellion project; the launch of an IRL, old-school, paper newspaper called Rebel Times. Delivered to your door, featuring long form pieces and a throwback to the funny pages, this monthly publication is coming out in January 2018. Check out @folkrebellion on Instagram or go to folkrebellion.com to stay posted or find out how to get involved. Head over to http://slowyourhome.com/211/ for all the links and resources mentioned, as well as the blog post. ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially and join in on our live monthly video calls. And thanks so much for listening! ===Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It’s the most wonderful (exhausting?) time of the year… and it’s almost upon us. Considering we’re now well in to November, Ben and Brooke wanted to spend the next few weeks talking about how you may be able to reduce the stress, overwhelm, expense, clutter and expectations we all feel when the silly season arrives, and today they begin by going to the heart of the matter - gifts.   In this episode they offer you a few ways of changing your mindset when it comes to gifts and showing love, but also share a whole heap of practical and interesting gifts that won’t add to the endless clutter that comes with the seemingly endless gift giving.   Plus, they also talk about the benefit of experiences over things, homemade and consumable gifts and one of Brooke’s favourites - giving the gift of time and skills.   They also talk about the fact that, yes, Ben and Brooke do give Christmas gifts to their kids, and that rather than get lost in the Toy of the Year debacle, buying whatever plastic piece of junk is on the Must Have List for all girls and boys, they stick to a simple set of guidelines.   Brooke and Ben then list some of their favourite clutter-free gift ideas for a variety of ages, including, as well as a list of experiences or activities that would appeal to people of all ages.   Head over to http://www.slowyourhome.com/210 for the full blog post and a link to Brooke’s Clutter-Free Gift Guide.   Enjoy!     ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially and join in on our live monthly video calls. And thanks so much for listening! ===Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Today's episode is such a treat. Courtney Carver, one the first ever guests on the show (Episode 10!) returns to chat with Brooke about her story of simplicity, and how the changes were born of an incredibly difficult time.  So often the idea of simplifying life is presented in a fairly dogmatic, unemotional way. Initially the focus is on stuff and the process of letting it go, then the focus moves to habit changes or health or food, and then it shifts to mental wellbeing or enviromental awareness. Very rarely does it begin with soul, and hardly ever is it shaped (in the beginning at least) by love.  But in this conversation and in Courtney's wonderful new book, Soulful Simplicity, love is everywhere. It's sprinkled throughout each story and lesson learnt, and it's love that Courtney returns to every time.  Soulful Simplicity is not your standard decluttering book. There is heart and soul and passion and vulnerability on the pages, and Brooke and Courtney go deep in to what it means to share fully and honestly some of their hardest lessons learnt throughout the simplifying process, and the impact of a gradual and concerted effort to strip back the layers.  They speak about the discovery of self throughout the process, and the re-making of self as part of that, as well as the actual head and heart work that's involved.  Courtney also talks specifically of her must-haves when it comes to living a simple, mindful, soulful life. This is such a love-filled, soul-centred conversation. Enjoy!  ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially and join in on our live monthly video calls. And thanks so much for listening! ===Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Over the past few weeks Ben and Brooke have been talking about social media and how they utilise it while still maintaining a slow(er) paced life.  They spoke about Instagram, Twitter and Facebook and finished last Monday's episode with a challenge - to delete social media apps of our phones for the next month.  That was supposed to be the end of the discussion, but then Brooke read an article on The Guardian that was so fascinating that they wanted to talk it over on today's show.  The article examines the 'attention economy' and the impact that social media platforms and, specifically the design of their apps, are having on the way we live, work, learn, vote, communicate and view ourselves and the world at large.  It is an article absolutely worth reading, and the link to it can be found in the show notes over at http://www.slowyourhome.com/208  Brooke and Ben also talk about some of the strategies and specific tools they use to combat the worst of these effects, and also what the result has been for them so far, as they removed the social media apps from their phones.  Enjoy! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially and join in on our live monthly video calls. And thanks so much for listening! ===Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Brooke's book tour has given her the opportunity to speak with hundreds of people over the past few months at libraries and bookstores around the state, and the experience has been brilliant. Not only has she been able to talk about the process of writing SLOW, but she's also been able to meet so many poggie listeners and get a real sense of the questions and struggles people face as they undertake their own slow journey.  So today's episode is a live recording from the recent book talk Brooke gave at the State Library of NSW, where Ben first interviewed Brooke about SLOW and then they both answered audience questions. As always, the questions were fantastic and covered a wide range of topics, including:  finding your purpose or Why encouraging friends and family to slow down with you how to keep extra-curricular activities to a manageable level  how to balance your needs with those of others in your home  It was a fun event to record and Brooke and Ben are excited to bring the tour to Canada and the US next year. If you've got suggestions on where they should visit, feel free to leave them in a comment over at http://www.slowyourhome.com/207 or on the Facebook page.  Enjoy!  ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially and join in on our live monthly video calls. And thanks so much for listening! ===  Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this final episode of the social media series, Brooke and Ben talk about the behemoth that is Facebook. Ben’s only just returned to Facebook after many years away, and is keeping it at arm’s length, only using the platform to help Brooke run the pages for the podcast and the online retreat. Brooke, on the other hand, has been using Facebook for more than 10 years and has a distinct love/hate relationship with it. It allows her to build a wonderful community of podcast listeners, but the immersive, all-consuming nature of Facebook means she barely uses it personally. Today she and Ben talk through some of the strategies they’ve employed over the past year or so, to try and maintain a balanced approach to Facebook. Brooke talks about the decision she made a few years ago to only accept friend requests from people she knows in person, and that, paired with her decision to keep their kids and personal lives off Facebook means that it’s largely not a privacy issue any more. It’s just a time issue, which is largely managed by the fact that she doesn’t really use it a lot. When it comes to work however, Facebook is by far the biggest consideration. It’s where the majority of the podcast audience spends time, so it’s important that Brooke and Ben show up. Brooke talks through some of the strategies she’s instigated over the past couple of years, and the pros and cons of each of them. Head over to http://www.slowyourhome.com/206 for the full blog post and links to any of the resources mentioned in today’s show. Enjoy! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially and join in on our live monthly video calls. And thanks so much for listening! ===Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In today's poggie, Ben sits down to chat with Dr Monty Badami, who has what can only be described as the most varied and fascinating resume ever!  Monty is an: Anthropolgist Civil Marriage Celebrant Justice of the Peace Jazz Singer English Teacher Tai Chi Instructor Youth Worker Bouncer… and is training to become an officer in the Australia Reserve! To say that Monty leads a busy life is an understatement. Ben first met Monty at Dr Arne Rubenstein's leadership camp back in July, and today they chat about the importance of community and what it means on a very fundamental level to be part of a community. Monty shares a beautiful story about his research travels in South India where he visited the Paniya, a marginalised indigenous ethnic group, who were slaves until quite recently and what that taught him about being accepted and valued in a community. In a very articulate way, Monty also challenges the concept of the ‘broken community’ in Western culture and what he believes we need to do to better connect with like-minded people (*hint: it’s pretty simple!) This is an extremely enlightening conversation that is designed to spark conversation (and many more questions!) rather than provide the answers. Head over to http://www.slowyourhome.com/205 for the link to Monty's new podcast, Ben's episode with Dr Arne Rubinstein and all the information about the upcoming Live Life Simply Online Retreat.  Enjoy! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially and join in on our live monthly video calls. And thanks so much for listening! ===Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this second episode in the social media series, Brooke and Ben take on Instagram (Ben’s favourite social media channel!), and talk about how they make it work for them in their business as well as personally, while still living slowly . First up they talk about the expectation that when you have a business online, you’re always accessible. Being mindful of social media use and setting boundaries around the amount of time spent on social media can feel like the opposite of all the business advice you read and hear. And that’s OK! They discuss the evolving strategy for The Slow Home Podcast, with a dedicated Instagram on its way as their team grows. Brooke also shares some tips that she uses for managing her Instagram while still being present in everyday life. She rarely posts in real-time, and doesn’t post everyday (mainly because she thinks her life is too boring!). She also recommends that businesses prepare and schedule content where they can. As a self-employed person, it’s important to remember that social media is part of the job, and so it can be labelled as work and only done during work hours. Lastly, Brooke and Ben talk about the dreaded comparisons that can happen when scrolling through Instagram. They challenge listeners to unfollow anyone that gives them that sinking feeling and see what happens. Instead, follow people who inspire and educate you, and who make you laugh (and keep an eye out for The Slow Home Instagram coming soon!). Head over to http://www.slowyourhome.com/204 for links to the previous social media episode and for the full blog.    ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially and join in on our live monthly video calls. And thanks so much for listening! ===Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Last week Brooke and Ben attempted to answer a listener question about dealing with eco-anxiety. That is, the pressure or frustration we feel when even our best intentions to minimise waste and tread lightly on the earth are thwarted by an errant plastic bag or forgetting to ask for no straw. In today’s episode Brooke chats with Erin Rhoads, who is undoubtedly more qualified to answer this question, as a zero-waste advocate and creator of The Rogue Ginger - a website that has both the coolest name and the most accessible and practical tips on living a zero-waste (or low-waste) life. Brooke and Erin go back to the moment (the movie, actually) that changed Erin from a mindless consumer to conscious advocate and why her journey towards zero waste began with very small and gradual changes (and why she believes yours should too). Erin answers a few questions that Brooke is consistently asked when it comes to living plastic-free, specifically: How can we avoid plastic wrapping when buying cheese? Is there an alternative for lunch wraps that doesn't require us to cook our own? How can we open up the low-waste conversation with suppliers, family and friends without making people feel judged? They also talk about the one simple change you can make today - regardless of where you are in your journey towards living plastic-free - as well as offering an encouragement to act rather than get angry. Head over to http://www.slowyourhome.com/203 for all the links to Erin’s website and social media, as well as all the resources mentioned in today’s episode. Erin is also part of the upcoming Live Life Simply Online Retreat and will be taking all attendees through the essentials of zero-waste living. Registration is open now so be sure to secure your place before October 22, 2017. The retreat opens its doors on October 23 and Brooke, Erin and co can’t wait to have you! Head over to https://livelifesimplyretreat.com/ for all the details. Enjoy! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially and join in on our live monthly video calls. And thanks so much for listening! ===Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Quite often Brooke and Ben are asked about social media and slow living. That is, how have they managed to build a business that relies of social media to spread the word and build a community (namely Facebook, Twitter IG) without letting it encroach on their time.  So rather than try to cram a lot of information in to one hostful answer they've decided to spend the next few Mondays talking through the various social media platforms they use, and the strategies they employ for each of them.  Today it's Twitter, which has shifted a lot over the past couple of years. While both Brooke and Ben still use it personally and often rely on Twitter to keep on top of the news, it's become less central to their business.  Twitter itself is now a bit of a "let's shout our opinions at each other" space and that's made it a far less enjoyable way to communicate with people. Plus, the changing vibe of Twitter means a lot of slow living folk are no longer hanging out there anyway, so letting it dry up has been a pretty easy choice for Brooke to make.  They talk about the scheduling vs real-time posting question too, and why Twitter is the most political of the social media platforms for both Brooke and Ben.  In short, it's not what it used to be over in Twitter Land, but if you're looking to follow interesting people, activists, news organisations etc, it can be a valuable place to spend time (maybe a limited time though?) Head over to http://www.slowyourhome.com/202 for all the links mentioned in today's episode and for the full blog post.  Enjoy!  ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially and join in on our live monthly video calls. And thanks so much for listening! ===Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It's hostful time again, and this week Brooke and Ben answer three very different listener questions and launch the big, exciting project they've been working on for the past few months. It's a good day all round! First up, Rachael asks about coping with eco-anxiety - a great term which encapsulates the frustration that results when we try to make positive changes to our home and the waste we create, only to be constantly reminded by how imperfect our efforts are. It's an obstacle that many people come across and Brooke and Ben give their insights in to how to let go of the perfectionism and embrace smaller, more consistent changes.  Brooke then puts on her ranty pants as she and Ben discuss the inanity of tit-for-tat holiday gift giving. You know the gifts for the extended family and friends, the office Christmas party, the neighbourhood get-together? Those ones really grind Brooke's gears and today she and Ben talk about how to best opt out of those gift giving arrangements if at all possible, and what crap-free options are available for the situations where a gift is still appropriate. It's a good time of year to start considering the impact of all these novelty gifts, as we edge closer to the holidays.  Finally, Kerry asks Brooke and Ben what's most recently made them laugh uncontrollably. Brooke's answers are absurd and Ben's are a little closer to home!  Months ago Brooke and Ben mentioned a new project they were working on in response to the recent listener survey results, and today they're finally ready to put it out in to the world! The Live Life Simply Online Retreat is the first of its kind and brings together the wisdom and expertise of 13 mindfulness, simplicity and slow living experts into one blissful six-week online retreat.  The retreat is super practical and designed to help you learn at your own pace, in your own home. You can practice yoga and meditation, uncover your purpose, learn the essentials of low tox and zero waste living, dive deep in to mindfulness, slow money, creating a rhythm that works for your daily life, plus loads more - all at a time and pace that works for you.  Join Brooke and Ben, plus previous podcast guests, Jessica Murnane, Rachael Kable, Alexx Stuart, Kelly Exeter, Janell Burley Hoffman, Carolyn Tate, Kevin Janks and Dr Sarah McKay, as well as Erin Rhoads, Sam Doove and Lauren Verona from Zenko Yoga.  The line-up is incredible and we can't wait to see you there! Head over to https://livelifesimplyretreat.com/  for all the details and to secure your place.  For more info on today's episode, head over to the blog at http://www.slowyourhome.com/201.  Enjoy! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially and join in on our live monthly video calls. And thanks so much for listening! ===Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Happy 200th! The Slow Home Poggie is now 200 episodes old and in today’s show Brooke and Ben talk through some of the lessons they’ve learnt over the past two and a half years. Interestingly, the biggest lesson has directly impacted today’s episode, which was going to be a big, spectacular, complex show. Brooke and Ben wanted to do something significant to celebrate and thought that needed to be different to the normal poggie, but the past couple of weeks travelling and the previous two months of book promotional touring has taught them the importance of flexibility and fluidity in their expectations. And there-in lies the lesson. We need to let go of the self-imposed expectations and pressures. We need to simplify rather than complicate. And we need to understand that while there are things (many, many things) out of our control, there are also many other things we can control, to say no to, to let go of. So instead of featuring voicemails and call-ins and loads of interesting insights from their wonderful community, this episode goes deep in to this big lesson. Brooke and Ben also talk about their recent road trip and the unexpected pace of what they assumed would be a slow travel experience, as well as the pros and cons of camper van life. It’s been a fun double century - here’s to another 200! Head over to http://www.slowyourhome.com/200 for the full post and links mentioned in today’s episode. Enjoy! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially and join in on our live monthly video calls. And thanks so much for listening! ===Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Last episode Brooke and Ben went deep in to the idea of mindfulness - what it is, what it's not and how we can create opportunity for living more mindfully without having to add ever more tasks to our endless to-do lists.  It makes perfect sense then, that in this episode Brooke sits down to chat with the utterly delightful Rachael Kable, creator and host of one of the most uplifting mindfulness podcasts in the world, The Mindful Kind.  Brooke and Rachael chat about the meaning of mindfulness and the genesis of Rachael's personal discover of mindfulness. We also talk about mindful living and teenagers, a topic I'm asked a lot about, and Rach has some excellent tips on how to bring mindfulness in to the lives of a stressed out, highly connected teenager.  They also look at the intersection of mindfulness and kindness, which is evident as soon as you begin to listen to the way Rachael encourages not only self-compassion but also the multitude of ways she personally serves others. It's a really interesting part of the wider mindfulness conversation, because so often self-care is aligned with being selfish, but Rachael believes that it's vital to fill ourselves up with kindness and compassion in order to turn around and pass it down the line to others.  Head over to http://www.slowyourhome.com/199 for links to all the resources Brooke and Rachael discussed as well as Rachael's podcast and social media accounts.  Enjoy!  ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially and join in on our live monthly video calls. And thanks so much for listening! ===Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Over the past few weeks Ben and Brooke have been looking at some of their favourite ideas from SLOW, and have left one of the biggest for last. Mindfulness. Interestingly, mindfulness is facing a bit of an over-saturation backlash these days, as Brooke discovered in the writing of SLOW. And while she was at first surprised that an idea as gentle as mindfulness could ever be sneered at, she also hadn’t realised just how over complicated the idea of mindfulness had become and how the meaning of mindfulness has been diluted and lost in a sea of products, apps and programs. Brooke, however, is a huge advocate for mindfulness, knowing that it has changed her life in a multitude of big and tiny ways. Not because of a specific app or a mindfulness colouring book, but because it has taught her to pay attention. So how do we bring mindfulness to our daily lives without over-complicating it? What does that look like? And how do we find the time for it when life is already full and busy? In this poggie Ben and Brooke talk through the ways they both add mindfulness to their days. For Brooke it includes both traditional practices such as meditation, yoga, deep breathing or body scans, as well as things that may not immediately strike you as mindful. Ben also talks about golf as mindfulness and why traditional practices like meditation haven’t worked for him. Head over to http://www.slowyourhome.com/198 for the full blog post and excerpt from SLOW, and enjoy! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially and join in on our live monthly video calls. And thanks so much for listening! ===Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Today’s episode is a little different. It’s hosted not by Brooke, and it’s not hosted by Ben either. It’s hosted by their mate Mike Campbell from Live Immediately, and in a strange turn of events, he actually interviews Brooke. Mike and Brooke have a fantastic conversation about life at the moment, and how Brooke is dealing with the wobbly balance between the busy-ness of launching a book and the importance of maintaining a slower pace of life over all. They also talk about the messy and imperfect process of learning to be emotionally available, why it was so stunningly uncomfortable to do so, and the impact Brooke has felt on her relationships, self-worth and the direction her life has taken since. They talk about softening in to the unknown, and the importance of allowing ourselves time to come to decisions. Mike also talks about some big possibilities he and Inga are weighing up at the moment as well as his (very sensible) approach to making those big decisions. That is, once a choice has been made, it’s made, but until then it’s OK to not know. It’s OK to revisit and marinate in the possibilities because that’s a necessary part of the process. Brooke and Mike also chat about our upcoming Newcastle event on September 27 and Brooke is super excited to talk some more about their travel plans for 2018 (Mike and Inga were a huge influence on Brooke and Ben taking the plunge in 2018). They look at the logistics, the planning and the not planning! Head over to http://www.slowyourhome.com/197 for the full blog post, plus links to Mike’s podcast, the Newcastle event details and all the links and resources mentioned in today’s episode. Enjoy! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially and join in on our live monthly video calls. And thanks so much for listening! ===Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Technology is an inevitable part of even the slowest of modern lives. This podcast, news sites, social media, blogs, forums, videos… even if you’re being intentional it can (and will) be overwhelming at times. This week Ben and Brooke talk about what we all stand to gain by disconnecting regularly and why it’s so important to reconnect with what matters, without the distracting blare of notifications and devices vying for our attention. The biggest question we face though, is how? How do we learn to untether ourselves from our devices when the expectation is that we are always on call? Brooke talks about the important first step of understanding what we stand to gain by having more in-person connection (things like time, humanity, action and peace) as well as the boundaries she and Ben have established at home. Some of the simple boundaries they talk about include: screen-free bedrooms no screens at the table pockets of screen-free time every day (the first and last hours of the day, for example) Head over to http://www.slowyourhome.com/196 for the full blog post and excerpt from SLOW. Enjoy! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially and join in on our live monthly video calls. And thanks so much for listening! ===Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A few weeks ago Ben and Brooke flew over to LA to speak at a podcasting event. And while they figured they’d probably meet some interesting podcasty folks, they had no idea that in a random session they’d sit down next to a slow travelling couple from Canmore, who’d turn out to be today’s guests. Ryan and Amanda are the World Wanderers and they love slow travel. In today’s episode Ben chats with them about their travel philosophy, why they like to travel slowly and what drove them to give up their 9-5 jobs to live and work around the world. They discuss managing the expectations of family, friends and colleagues as they continue to travel, and how to convince people that full-time travel is a valid lifestyle rather than just a “bug”. They also chat about when to pull the pin on a trip and how to make the re-entry less difficult, as well as some of the lessons they’ve learnt about themselves (and each other) over the past few years. It’s a really fun, slow travel themed episode that leaves Brooke and Ben doubly inspired for their own year of adventure in 2018! Head over to http://www.slowyourhome.com/195 for the full blog post and links to everything mentioned in today’s episode. Enjoy! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially and join in on our live monthly video calls. And thanks so much for listening! ====  Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Brooke first discovered the idea of deowning via Joshua Becker and initially found it quite challenging to understand. Surely isn't decluttering the same as deowning? Letting go of the excess is the same as no longer needing to own them, right? Not quite. Turns out it’s more about letting go of the need to own things at all. And tied up in that idea are things like ego and convenience, expectations and habits, boredom and discontent, advertising and status. In this episode Brooke and Ben talk about their own realisation that decluttering and deowning are related and yet quite different, as well as some of the ways they’re learning to deown even now.  This includes sharing, hiring and borrowing things, and thinking outside the box when it comes to needs versus convenience. Head over to http://www.slowyourhome.com/194 for the full blog post and excerpt from SLOW. Enjoy! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially and join in on our live monthly video calls. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It’s been a couple of months since Brooke and Ben announced their plans to head off in to the wild and spend 2018 travelling, and quite a lot has happened since then. So they decided (somewhat foolishly, perhaps) to sit down, hit record, and just… talk. No notes. No plans. No idea. In a looser, more conversational episode, Brooke and Ben share a clear insight into life at the moment, including the preparations for their upcoming trip (or rather, their lack of preparations) as well as the first couple of weeks of book launch life. Brooke talks about the vulnerability hangover of the book’s release and the beautiful (and not quite as enthusiastic) feedback she’s been receiving over the past couple of weeks. They also talk about the importance of creating and honouring their personal boundaries at the moment, and Brooke’s ongoing project of learning to say no more often. Ben thinks this is the loosest poggie they’ve recorded in a while, and isn’t sure whether that’s a good or bad thing… Head over to http://www.slowyourhome.com/193 for the full blog post and to let Brooke and Ben know if you like these off the cuff check ins, or…not. Enjoy! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially and join in on our live monthly video calls. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

To celebrate the release of SLOW in Australia and New Zealand this month, Brooke and Ben are spending the next few Mondays diving in to four central ideas in the book. It’s a way to share some of their favourite parts of SLOW with you, but also a way to say thank you for all your support over the past few years. In today’s episode Ben and Brooke talk about the importance of caring more and caring less. It can be really easy to become overwhelmed as we begin to walk the path of slowing down, with every blog, every podcast, every book telling us different things we need to focus on in order to do life right. And the hard part is that none of them is necessarily wrong. The key is to figure out what matters to you, and what doesn’t, then spend time learning how to care more about the former and less about the latter. Ben and Brooke talk about their personal take on this duality of caring, and what Brooke calls her Barometer of Caring. They also talk about how you can learn to care less about the things that don’t matter but that might take up an inordinate amount of time. You can do this by monitoring your inputs. That is, look at the utter BS stories we’re sold via media, social media, TV, shoulds and expectations of others, and ask yourself how you would feel if you cared a little less about those stories. Head over to http://www.slowyourhome.com/192 for the full blog post as well as the Barometer of Caring illustration from the book. Enjoy! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially and join in on our live monthly video calls. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Today’s guest is Guido Verbist from The Bower Reuse and Repair Centre, and he is on a mission to make buying second hand normal. If you watched War on Waste, the recent series on the ABC, you may have met Guido already. He’s the Co-op Manager of The Bower, and he’s been doing a huge amount of work over the past few years to reframe the way we think about second hand stuff, as well as empowering each of us to take control of repairing the things we do own. Brooke sat down to chat with Guido in the workshop room of The Bower’s new Reuse and Repair Centre in Parramatta, and they got to talking about convenience, the stigma of buying pre-owned things, and the lost art of repair. The Bower aims to help minimise the amount of stuff going to landfill (and to date have stopped more than 1.3 million kilograms of stuff from ending up in the ground) and they do this by: reselling unwanted goods to people who need them fixing items and reselling them to people who need them testing and tagging unwanted electrical items and reselling to people who need them teaching people how to repair their own belongings at regular repair cafes and various workshops working with local councils and encouraging residents to use their services working with refugee and domestic violence services to help those in need establish a new home This is an organisation making a huge difference across Sydney, and Guido talks openly and honestly about the benefits and challenges of being at the forefront of the reuse and repair movement in Australia, as well as his advice for people who want to set up similar services in their local community. Head over to http://www.slowyourhome.com/191 for the full blog post and links to resources mentioned in today’s episode. Enjoy! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially and join in on our live monthly video calls. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This is the last one of the slow learning poggies, and this week it’s all about informal learning. If you’re someone who will spend a long time researching online or taking informal courses this is probably something you can identify a lot with. An informal learner sees learning everywhere. They like to do it anywhere and at anytime and they’re often heavily focused on using technology as a tool in order for that to happen. There usually isn’t any kind of qualification at the end of this kind of learning, and more often than not it leads the learner in to further research, deeper thinking, or a new direction. For example, when Brooke first started learning about simplifying life, this was her go-to learning mode. She read endless blogs, books and articles on minimalism, simplicity and the myriad ways to adopt it. She took courses, enrolled in membership programs and listened to podcasts. What she didn’t always do though, was act on that information. And, much like the overwhelm we can often feel when learning collaboratively (as Ben and Brooke chatted about last week) this is the biggest drawback of informal learning - lots of information but very little action. That’s not to say it’s not valuable, because the opposite is true. More and more of us are working in areas where formal qualifications are no longer relevant (or at least as relevant as they used to be) but passion and ambition and skill take precedence. Similarly, this is one of the most accessible ways to learn about non-work related topics, ideas and skills and processes that we use outside of our work, that impact how we live, what we do with our time, our hobbies, our energies. Head over to http://www.slowyourhome.com/190 for the key takeaways from this four-part series, as well as a heads-up on what’s coming next week. Enjoy! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially and join in on our live monthly video calls. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

If you enjoy gardening (or perusing gardening photos on social media!!) permaculture is a term you may have heard bandied around. It’s most commonly attached the food production, and is a philosophy that results in better soil, better food production and higher yield. What is less often mentioned is that permaculture doesn’t stop at food production. In fact, much like slow living, the permaculture philosophy extends to community, connection, family, relationships, business and how we view the world at large. It can impact on where we live and how we live there, as well as the things we own, the money we earn and the way we interact with those around us. In today’s episode Brooke chats with Robyn Rosenfeldt, the founder and editor of Pip Magazine - a magazine dedicated to spreading the ideas of permaculture far and wide. Pip is released three times a year and is packed full of both inspirational articles that dive deep in to permaculture, as well as the super practical information that will help you turn that inspiration in to action. Brooke and Robyn chat about the similarities between slow living and permaculture, as well as self-sufficiency, and why permaculture isn’t necessarily going to allow us to be individually self-sufficient, but rather encourages the creation of self-sufficient communities. The conversation also looks at what community means and why we sometimes may need to look beyond our neighbourhood to find a tribe of like-minded people. Robyn has some fantastic suggestions for those of us who want to start on the path to permaculture but don’t have a lot of time, and one of those suggestions is to let go of perfection. Another of her other suggestions is to begin to educate ourselves on our food - where it comes from, what time of year we should be seeing it in supermarkets (and what times of year we shouldn’t - AHEM, nectarines in July!). It’s from this basis of knowledge that we can begin making small, consistent changes and from there springs real and lasting change. Enjoy! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially and be part of our monthly live calls.  And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week Brooke and Ben continue their look into the different types of learning and how understanding personal learning styles will help us develop ways to adopt even more slow-ness and mindfulness to our lives. Today’s poggie is all about collaboration - probably the most well-known type of learning. Brooke identifies a lot with this kind of learning (though during today’s episode she does start to wonder whether it’s the most helpful for her!) and a lot of you will likely identify with this mode as well. Collaborative learning is all about collective intelligence. This podcast is a great example of collaborative learning, or learning from one another in order to benefit the whole. There are so many ways to tap in to collaborative learning when it comes to slow and simple living: Online forums, chat rooms Facebook groups Mentoring groups (like the one Ben is involved in at the moment) Live calls (like the monthly Patreon catch-ups) The key here though, is that if you identify with this type of learning it’s important to acknowledge its limitations. Often we find ourselves getting overwhelmed by the sheer volume of information available, as well as the breadth of opinions and advice. It can feel completely defeating when there is literally an opinion for every option, so the key is to also apply a little discernment. Find an entry point that works for you and only go looking for additional information as and when you need it, rather than bathing in the infinite pools of opinions online! Head over to http://www.slowyourhome.com/188 for the full blog post and to share your thoughts on today’s poggie. Enjoy! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially and join us for our monthly live chats. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In today’s poggie Brooke speaks with Katy Bowman, a biomechanist, founder of Nutritious Movement and all-round activity advocate, about the curse of convenience in modern life and what it is costing us in terms of movement, the food we eat, our health, our relationships and the larger structure of our society in general. They also talk about the infiltration of technology into the lives of both adults and kids, as well as some really practical ways of lessening the impact technology has on our days, and how to deal with the inevitable complaints from kids (and maybe some adults) when they’re forced outside. They also talk about the massive benefits of spending more time outdoors and why Katy is lobbying for outdoor exposure to be classified as a nutrient. Katy shares her family’s journey towards minimalism and why it began with letting go of their couch, and how the root of their simplification lies in a desire for more movement rather than less stuff. Enjoy! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially and join in our monthly live video calls. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Brooke and Ben have taken a bit of a departure for these current Monday episodes, as they’re talking about learning - a topic that sits more at the periphery of slow living rather than the centre of it. Last week they began by talking about how we learn and the impact it has on how well we make changes to our lives, and this week they begin looking at the specific modes of learning and why some are more beneficial than others when it comes to making big shifts in life, such as learning to slow down and simplify. This week is all about the personalised learner. Someone who is the champion of their own destiny. They are highly individualised in the way they like to learn, preferring one-on-one coaching or tailored courses set up to deliver learning expectations that are unique to their own needs and circumstances. They don’t often thrive in communal learning situations or online courses aimed at a broad range of people, instead preferring their learning to be, well, personalised. For example, Ben has struggled a lot with developing a meditation practice, and he thinks it’s partly to do with the fact that he can’t find a program or app that is specific to his needs. He would be better off working one-on-one with a coach for a few weeks, get the specific information he needs, and then using that to establish his practice. Brooke and Ben talk about the pros and cons of this mode of learning in today’s episode, and Brooke realises that she probably need to do a little more of this kind of learning, rather than continue to fall in to the well-worn grooves of past behaviour. Ben, on the other hand, can recognise that by only learning in this way, he’s missing out on a huge range of benefits. Head over to http://www.slowyourhome.com/186 for all the details from today’s episode and the full blog post. Enjoy! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Today Brooke chats with Justin Morrissey, the founder of Toolo, the Blue Mountains’ first tool library and co-op. As you probably know, a huge part of slow living is based in both community and environmental stewardship, and tool libraries are a big step in the right direction. In this episode Justin and Brooke get really practical, as he explains how he began the library (and what drove him to do so in the first place) as well as his advice for people who may want to start a library in their own community. They also look at how the organisation is structured and the work that went in to it before launching, as well as the vital role that volunteers play in its ongoing success. Brooke and Justin also talk about the issue of convenience, and why our mindset needs to shift from one of immediacy to one of preparation (we can’t expect these resources to operate in the same way as the local Bunnings or big box store) and how learning to let go of the ego of ownership is a big part in the change too. If you listen to today’s episode and want to know more about starting or running a tool library yourself, head over to http://www.slowyourhome.com/185 and click the link to get in touch with the team at Toolo, as they’re a wealth of expertise and are happy to work with other communities looking to make the change. And if you live in the Blue Mountains, sign up and support Toolo! They need to make it to 150 members by 2018 in order to keep running and that means it’s on the community to support them. Enjoy! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

We’ve got something a little different lined up for the next four weeks, and while at first glance it might not seem to be too closely related to the practicalities of slow living, Brooke and Ben think that anyone currently struggling with certain areas of slow living is going to benefit from it a lot. The next few weeks they're going to explore slow learning. Why?   One of the common obstacles people face in learning to slow down and simplify is the one-step-forward, two-steps-back dance that often accompanies it. There is so much information available for us as we try to establish what approach works, and often we simply immerse ourselves in as much of it as possible. The problems arise when either we don’t spend our time in the doing, or when we try to learn in a way that doesn’t work for us personally. Today Ben explains the three different types of learner and how we can harness the strengths and limitations of them, and why it matters. The full blog post is over at http://www.slowyourhome.com/184 Enjoy! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially and join us for our live monthly calls.  And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This will probably come as a surprise to exactly no-one, but Brooke used to really over-complicate things (and sometimes still does). She would over-engineer solutions and spend huge amounts of time trying to get right down deep in to the specific thoughts, behaviours or actions that were causing problems. And while she believes we sometimes need to ruminate on things for a while before clarity comes knocking, other times we just need to simplify. In today’s poggie Brooke finds herself coming back to the same handful of answers time and time again. They’re ideas she refers to in her own quest to slow down and simplify life, and they apply to all of the questions in today’s hostful episode. As always, the questions are insightful and challenging, and Ben and Brooke try their best to answer them: How do you manage different personality types within a family (introvert v extrovert, the needs of solitude v constant companionship, etc)? How do you adjust to things being out of control / out of what you had planned? And how do you regain calm / slow when life takes over? What to do when one of your kids is a hoarder and leaves their many belongings all over the house? What do you grow in your garden and what are your best tips for a serial plant killer? What sorts of mindful exercise do you enjoy (aside from yoga and hiking?) What are you reading/listening to? And what do you enjoy reading aloud to your children? The full blog post is over at http://www.slowyourhome.com/183 as well as links to pre-order Brooke’s books and to learn more about next month’s Patreon live call. Enjoy! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This is a bit of a departure from the usual themes of the Monday shows, but Brooke was involved in a fascinating Twitter conversation a few weeks ago that got her thinking about simplicity writers, their gender and why the most popular ones are overwhelmingly male. Brooke and Ben talk through the genesis of the conversation, as well as the fact that Brooke has noticed this trend for quite some time and believes it’s in part due to the fact that men and women (broadly speaking, of course) deal with problems differently. Neither approach is right or wrong, and neither can effectively solve every problem without dipping in to the other approach occasionally, but it does beg the question of why one approach seems to be more popular than the other (at least in terms of Amazon best-selling lists, anyway). Brooke thinks at least part of it has to do with confidence and fear of being judged (that’s definitely been a personal obstacle for her) and the impact this has on the directness of her writing. But there’s also the different ways of teaching and learning, and the different ways men and women approach problems. It’s a really interesting conversation, and the full blog post is over at http://www.slowyourhome.com/182. Head over there and let Brooke and Ben know your thoughts on this one. Enjoy! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Tim Silverwood is one of Brooke’s environmental role models. He maintains that he’s just an ordinary guy who somehow found himself at the forefront of environmental activism in Australia, but his passion and knowledge means that while he may be an ordinary guy, the impact he’s having on the growing environmental movement in Australia is anything but ordinary. As one of the founders of Take 3 for the Sea and a powerful voice in the movement away from single-use plastics, Tim is having a massive impact both in Australia and around the world. In today’s episode Tim and Brooke talk about the Plastic-Free July campaign and why it’s so important, but they also go back to the catalyst for Tim’s shift to environmentalism. Perhaps not surprisingly, Tim’s passion for protecting the ocean started in his passion for the waves and like so many people now heavily invested in protecting our wild spaces, Tim was a surfer who used his love of the ocean to drive changes in his own life. They also talk about the importance of small steps, and why Tim believes it’s the only way to convert the apathetic in to the passionate, but also why these small steps are only the first part of creating global change. One of the beautiful themes that keeps emerging in Brooke and Tim’s conversation is the idea of connection - both to each other and the environment we all live in - and Tim specifically talks about the ways in which we’re all connected to the health of the oceans. It’s far too easy to think the issue of plastic pollution isn’t one we’re part of, and Tim gets very passionate as he talks about the different ways our actions can have an impact - both positive and negative. They also talk about the problematic issue of recycling and why so much of what we think of as ‘good recycling’ is actually exacerbating the problem, and why the circular economy and circular design is the way of the future. Head over to http://www.slowyourhome.com/181 for links to Tim’s online store, website and other links we discussed in today’s episode. Enjoy! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Most of us have heard of (and experienced) FOMO at some point. FOMO is the Fear of Missing Out and it strikes at the heart of modern life. We do things, attend things or buy things in order to avoid it, but there will always be things we miss out on. So why do we struggle with it so much? A couple of weeks ago a friend of the show (Mr Andy McLean - you may know him from such programs as Episode 124 of The Slow Home Podcast) sent Brooke and Ben a photo of a Leunig poem about JOMO, and they thought it would be a great topic to chat about on today’s poggie. JOMO is the Joy of Missing Out and the antidote to FOMO. It’s the utter delight that is saying no and doing less and choosing to not compete in the Busy Olympics. JOMO is a breath of fresh air when it feels like we’re choking on the idea that in order to be successful we need to be constantly in motion, striving and chasing the life that will make others envious. JOMO comes from a place of abundance (everything, right now, is enough) while FOMO comes from a place of scarcity (I’m scared that this will never be enough) and Brooke and Ben talk about the many different ways to apply it in life. JOMO can apply to our stuff, busy-ness, excess, social media, comparisons, keeping up with the Joneses… In all of those areas of life we can joyfully choose to see that we have enough, after which saying no becomes a relief. Head over to http://www.slowyourhome.com/180 for the full Leunig poem and the complete blog post. Enjoy! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The lovely Linda Esposito, Brooke’s favourite psychotherapist, returns to the poggie today! Linda can always be relied on to cut through the BS that occasionally attaches itself to conversations about health, mindfulness and wellness, and today’s conversation is no different. Recently Linda posted on Instagram about the overcomplification of mindfulness and why we need to bring it back to its simplest form, and she and Brooke talk about that idea in today’s episode. They also talk about the importance of boredom and the benefits and value in simply not doing. Brooke also asks Linda a very common question: As we begin to make positive changes in our lives, as we begin to live more mindfully, why do we so often find ourselves feeling better in some ways but actually worse in others? Why do we feel more aware of the discomfort and overwhelm in our lives when we’re actively trying to reduce these things? And, importantly, what can we do about it? Head over to http://www.slowyourhome.com/179 for links to Linda’s website and social media, as well as more info on our upcoming Patreon-exclusive video call. Enjoy! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On last Thursday's poggie Brooke and Ben went deep in to some upcoming changes in their life and have been completely blown away by your support and generosity as a result. From emails and travel suggestions to guest introductions and offers of accomodation, it's been incredible.  In today's show they talk briefly about that support, as well as the underlying thought that has been part of many of these changes - that we can't wait for things to be perfect before we act. The time is now.  Brooke recently shared one such thought over on Instagram, and uses it as the basis of today's poggie.  In it she wrote about embracing the moment, not being overly concerned with the aesthetics and not becoming trapped by the imperfections. She wrote specifically about swimming with the kids at the beach on a recent holiday and how the Brooke of a year ago would have sat it out, watching from afar. Instead, she raced down the sand and jumped in the surf alongside her family, and was rewarded ten-fold with laughter and play and joy.  In today's Brooke shares how she arrived at that place of embracing the imperfect moment, and not suprisingly, it all stems back to her eulogy. Who does she want to look back and see? The person who sat it out or the person who was gleefully splashing in the water?  Turns out this idea of legacy is central to so many of the shifts Brooke and Ben are currently in the process of making, and to wind up today's episode they encourage you to start tapping in to your legacy whenever you're faced with the tension of who you want to be versus where you feel most unchallenged.  Head over to http://www.slowyourhome.com/178 to read the full Instagram caption, to check out the links for info on Brooke’s books and to find out more about the live video call later this month. Enjoy! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Today’s poggie is a hostful with a difference. This week it’s all about Brooke and Ben and the challenges they’ve been facing over the past few months, the changes they're making, what they mean for the show and what life is going to look like for them over the coming months. Ben and Brooke share that they’ve both been struggling, feeling overwhelmed and lost as they realised they needed to revisit their Why. A recent camping trip gave them the space and time to do that deep thinking, and today they share the decisions they came to and why they’re so excited about the next chapter. To get all the juicy details you’ll need to listen to the show, but essentially Ben and Brooke are going through another radical simplification. As part of that they’ve decided to dissolve Jackrabbit.FM and help each of the shows on the network to exist independently instead. Brooke will be focusing more on her writing (lots of news on that front in today’s show too) and, very excitingly, they’re heading off on a big adventure next year! They also talk about all the release dates for Brooke’s new book and where to pre-order your copy, as well as the upcoming live video call for Patreon supporters. There’s a lot to cover, and Brooke and Ben were both quite nervous as they shared everything in this show, but hopefully you enjoy it. Head over to http://www.slowyourhome.com/177 to share your suggestions for the trip next year and to check out the links for info on Brooke’s books and the live video call later this month. Enjoy! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In today's poggie, Carolyn Tate returns to talk about purpose. And while the current iteration of "purpose" seems to involve quitting your job, becoming a digital nomad and freelancing your way through life (all of which are valid choices!) Carolyn is here to talk about finding purpose in your current work.  So often the conversation about purpose revolves around huge changes, or the fact that big corporations simply aren't interested in creating workplaces of purpose or intention, but as someone who has worked for 15 years in the corporate sector and the past 10 years in small business, Carolyn believes that there are opportunities for purposeful work and living, regardless of vocation.  This is such an interesting conversation, and as always Carolyn has so many beautiful insights to share.  Head over to http://www.slowyourhome.com/175 for the full blog post and links to Carolyn's new book.  Enjoy!  ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It’s been a while since Brooke has had a listener chat on the poggie and today’s episode is a gem. Brooke chats with Louisa from Western Australia about her personal journey from a hectic suburban existence to a life lived in a slow-paced coastal town. They talk about Lou’s experience of overwhelm and anxiety, as well as her post natal depression and eventual bipolar diagnosis, and how managing these issues and getting treatment for them has led her to a place of letting go. Not just letting go of stuff (that actually came later) but letting go of her plans, expectations, ideas and self-imposed obligations, and trusting that on the other side would be acceptance or peace or simplicity, or maybe even all three. In the end it was an unexpected job loss and a few months spent living in a camper trailer on the remote coast of Western Australia that delivered Lou to stillness, and she and Brooke explore what it looks like to pack up a big family house and go adventuring with no particular outcome in mind. They also talk about Lou’s life now, after her family made a sea-change late last year. It’s interesting to hear her experience of the sea-change expectations vs reality, and how moving to a slower-paced community doesn’t necessarily mean that life gets slower by itself. W’re sold the idea of sea-change (or tree-change or moving to a farm or insert your grass is greener solution here) as a one-size-fits-all fix for a busy modern life, and Lou’s honesty here as well as throughout the entire conversation is a breath of fresh air. Head over to http://www.slowyourhome.com/173 for the full post and a list of resources mentioned in today’s show. Enjoy! This poggie is sponsored by ettitude - makers of ethical, organic bamboo bed linen (and now pyjamas!). Head over to http://www.ettitude.com.au/slowhome and use the offer code "sleepbetter" to get 10% off your first order. ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Ben and Brooke have spent the past few weeks discussing ways to reduce our plastics consumption. They've looked at doing away with single use plastics, talking to providers about non-plastic options and taking three for the sea every time we're out in nature. This week they round out this mini-series by encouraging you to re-think your purchases based on packaging.  Often we can find a similar product in non-plastic packaging, and the premise of this episode is very simple: buy the alternatives and avoid the plastic where possible.  They also encourage you to be vocal about your changes, letting brands know why you're no longer supporting them and what it would take for you to come back. Companies do pay attention to feedback from their customers - particularly if those customers begin to take their custom elsewhere - and it's by engaging in these conversations that we're going to see change not only at the grassroots level but also from the top levels of organisations.  Hopefully this series has been inspiring to you, and head over to http://www.slowyourhome.com/176 for the full blog post and to leave a comment, sharing the changes you've made this month.  Enjoy! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this week’s plastics episode, Ben and Brooke take their inspiration directly from an organisation they're very very fond of: Take 3 for the Sea. Founded by surfing enthusiast, Amanda Marechal, marine ecologist, Roberta Dixon-Valk and environmentalist, Tim Silverwood, Take 3 is based on the very simple idea that small actions can have a big impact. And considering Plastic-Free July has begun, Ben and Brooke figured this would be a great time to talk about this very simple idea that lies at the heart of Take 3: Simply Take 3 pieces of rubbish with you when you leave the beach, waterway or… anywhere. Every time you go out in to nature - be it the beach, a bushwalk, the park or river - pick up three pieces of rubbish and put them in the bin. It’s that simple.   Head over to http://www.slowyourhome.com/174 for the full post and a list of resources mentioned in today’s show. Enjoy! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Last week Ben and Brooke introduced a new four-part Monday series dealing with plastics. Specifically, how to use less of them in day to day life. They covered the Big 4 - straws, drink bottles, takeaway coffee cups and plastic shopping bags - and offered a whole heap of solutions to help you live a Plastic Free July (and August, and September and so on…)  This week they’re encouraging you to get a little awkward. When Brooke and Ben first started to make a concerted effort to reduce their plastic use it became clear quite quickly that it wasn’t going to simply happen. Providers weren’t going to read their minds, they weren’t going to offer plastic-free alternatives without any prompting, and they certainly weren’t going to know alternatives were desired at all unless people started the conversation. What they’ve learnt over the past 12 months of cutting back is that in order to see change, people need to be willing to make change. And sometimes that means being the weird one, having the awkward conversation, bringing your own bag to the bakery, explaining that you’re doing an experiment - whatever needs doing to gently start the movement. Head over to http://www.slowyourhome.com/172 for the full blog post, resource list and this week’s action. Enjoy! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In today’s episode Brooke sits down to chat with Rebecca Sullivan - founder of the ‘granny skills’ movement, serial entrepreneur, food lover and sustainability advocate. In what can only be described as an utterly delightful conversation, Brooke and Rebecca talk about traditions, heritage and the importance of intergenerational connection, as well as how to make the perfect blush for less than $1. After coming to the realisation that she was completely removed from the process of creating and growing her own food (something to do with cheese and maggots in a small Italian town) Rebecca began the process of educating herself. From that realisation has grown a career of incredible depth and breadth, covering food, traditional skills, agriculture, creating natural homemade products and recently a pilot program that placed grandparents in local schools. This program saw older people teaching kids traditional skills around cooking and woodworking, which not only had an incredibly positive impact on the kids, but the older teachers as well. Brooke and Rebecca talk about the importance of failure, and the liberation that comes once we accept and even embrace our own screw-ups. As a keen balcony gardener, Rebecca also shares her hottest hits for container growing, including some native edibles that are the most likely to survive some light-to-moderate neglect. Head over to http://www.slowyourhome.com/171 for the full blog post as well as a list of links and resources mentioned in today’s episode. Enjoy! This poggie is sponsored by ettitude - makers of ethical, organic bamboo bed linen (and now pyjamas!). Head over to http://www.ettitude.com.au/slowhome and use the offer code "sleepbetter" to get 10% off your first order. ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Last year Ben and Brooke tried their hand at Plastic Free July. They tried to cut their use of plastics to zero for a full month, alongside tens of thousands of other counter-cultural, environmentally-minded souls. And… it was a bit of a bust. The truth is that they were vastly unprepared. They hadn’t really thought through their daily needs or systems, and hadn’t gathered the required replacements for many of their plastics, which meant they were left high and dry when time came to go food shopping. Or buying takeaway. Or grabbing a coffee. Or living, really. Over the next four Mondays they’re going to take a deep dive in to the issue of excessive plastic use and what small changes you can make - starting today - to reduce plastic use over time. In part this series is timed to coincide with Plastic Free July, but also because there is an emerging desire for change that wasn’t apparent even this time last year. Mostly people are just overwhelmed and confused by where to begin, and that’s where this series comes in. Today Ben and Brooke offer you some simple ideas to stop using the Big 4 single use plastics altogether, with just a few easy swaps and a couple of habit changes. This includes saying no to: drinking straws takeaway coffee cups plastic water bottles plastic shopping bags In today’s show they offer reusable solutions to each of these products, as well as ideas on how to re-train your brain to remember to use them! There’s a great list of resources and links over at http://www.slowyourhome.com/170 as well as the full blog post so be sure to head over there. Enjoy! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Just so you know straight off the bat, today’s episode is BIG. It’s packed full of practical tips and it moves prettttty fast. But it’s valuable, practical and, even better, it’s going to help you have a positive impact on the planet and your bank balance. Big talk, eh? But this is a big show. In a little under an hour Ben and Brooke offer you 50 ways to reduce food waste in your own home, and it’s quite literally packed full of things you can do today. OK, probably not all of them today, but there is at least one idea in this episode for you to apply today. Guaranteed. And there’s no purchase of backyard chickens necessary. Ben’s got some astonishing stats to share in this episode, but needless to say, the level of food waste in Australia alone is eye-wateringly high. And given what we know about food security in the developing world, and even many communities in our own backyard, it’s truly devastating to think about. And while some of this waste is a result of systems put in place by massive supermarket chains both in Australia and globally, a lot of it is not. Much of the food we waste in Australia is wasted in our own homes, and it’s this waste that we want to focus on in this big ol’ pogpast episode. So dive in to the collective, crowdsourced wisdom of this episode, and head over to http://www.slowyourhome.com/169 for the full list of tips Ben and Brooke cover today, as well as a list of resources and links that might be helpful in your own experiments in cutting back on food waste. Enjoy! This poggie is sponsored by ettitude - makers of ethical, organic bamboo bed linen (and now pyjamas!). Head over to http://www.ettitude.com.au/slowhome and use the offer code "sleepbetter" to get 10% off your first order. ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====  Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Today is the third and final episode in our meditation basics series and Kevin Janks is back for one final, insightful meditation mini-workshop. In today’s workshop Kevin talks us through the notion of present moment awareness. That is, what it looks like to practice living specifically and solely in the present moment, by training ourselves to pay attention to each of our senses, one at a time. He talks us through the following ideas and then leads you through a brief guided meditation where you’ll have the opportunity to practice what you’ve learnt: This practise is all about being in the moment, simply because our senses are only ever in the moment (you can't be touching something yesterday). By noticing what’s actually happening in our lives right now, we can liberate ourselves from the state of constant 'rehearse and replay' that at times dominates our lives. With practice, it quickly becomes quite easy to draw joy and love from even the most basic of events, like feeling the sun against your skin or observing a bird flying through the sky. Take time each day to simply observe your senses. Noticing sights and sounds are great to do whilst walking or commuting. Really observe the tastes of the food you are eating and begin exploring the depth of senses that surround us at any given time. Enjoy today’s final workshop from Kevin, and if you’d like to download the meditation-only playlist from the last three weeks you can head over to http://www.slowyourhome.com/168 and listen any time you’d like! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this episode Brooke chats with Helen Hayward - an author, freelance writer and psychotherapist who lives on a beautiful old property in Hobart and embraces a slow family life in almost every way. And while Helen’s most recent book, ‘A Slow Childhood: Notes on Thoughtful Parenting’ is, obviously, about parenting and raising a family, so much of what Helen and Brooke speak about in today’s poggie applies well beyond motherhood and parenting. They talk a lot about what it means to live an examined life, and why, as they’ve both discovered over the past years, the little things really are the big things. And they also talk about the realities of encouraging (or keeping) older kids engaged with the idea of a slower, simpler life, as well as the benefits of boredom (or non-stimulation, as Helen calls it).  Brooke also raises one of her favourite bug-bears: the myth of work-life balance and Helen discusses why she’s not even sure long-term balance is a possibility. It's an unusually disarming and honest conversation that will give you lots to think about - parent or not.  Head over to http://www.slowyourhome.com/167 for the full blog post and links to all the resources mentioned in today's episode.  Enjoy!  This poggie is sponsored by ettitude - makers of ethical, organic bamboo bed linen (and now pyjamas!). Head over to http://www.ettitude.com.au/slowhome and use the offer code "sleepbetter" to get 10% off your first order. ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Kevin Janks is back this week with the second mini-meditation workshop, and this week he’s helping you focusing on your emotions. In today’s mini workshop, Kevin he talks through the physical sensations of our emotions - where we feel things like love or anger or anxiety in our bodies - and how to begin to notice the thought commentary that comes along with those feelings, as being distinct from the sensations themselves. He also talks about the following ideas: Just like we are not our thoughts, we are also not our emotions Emotions (feelings) are made up of bodily sensations and usually accompanied by thought patterns/stories By distinguishing between the sensations (emotion) and thoughts, and observing 'us' as distinct from it all, our lives can change as we begin to take apart their power over us. No longer will we identify with "being an angry/sad/frustrated/etc person Rather, we can simply observe these emotions as they pass through us. In everyday life, begin to observe the emotions that pass through you. Start to identify the inevitable patterns that they follow, and again practice seeing them as transient. Take a listen to the episode below and I’d love to encourage you to practice this brief guided meditation every day this week before we move on to explore the idea of present moment awareness next Monday. Head over to http://www.slowyourhome.com/166 for the full blog post, and enjoy!   ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

When Brooke and Ben had a last minute interview cancellation earlier this week, they thought it might be a good opportunity to do another hostful, but this time spend it digging a little deeper in to the parts of them you may not know about. Parts that might surprise you (or not) and parts they’re a little hesitant to share. They talk about secret habits and vain concerns. They dive in to little-shared talents and personality traits. They disclose some rather embarrassing admissions about farm-based gaming apps and also share their thoughts and reasons for using social media the way they do (and the way they don’t). So take a listen as Ben and Brooke reveal 10 things you may not know about them, including… What’s Ben’s dirty little secret? Which of them was addicted to My Little Pony - Friendship is Magic? Just how successful is Jackrabbit.FM? Has Brooke or Ben has recorded an album? Head over to http://www.slowyourhome.com/165 for the full post, and enjoy! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Brooke has invited Kevin Janks from Centred Meditation back for the next three Monday shows, and together they’ve designed three mini-meditation workshops for you. These workshops go back to the basics of meditation, with each episode focusing on one key topic, that, over time, will allow you to create a well-rounded meditation practice. The three weeks will cover: thoughts emotions present moment awareness Each episode will begin with a brief introduction from Kevin on the topic we’re exploring, followed by a short guided meditation centred on the week’s topic, allowing you to put in to practice what you’ve learnt. The focus of this week’s workshop is thoughts and these are the key takeaways from today’s mini-meditation lesson: We are not our thoughts, even though we’re the ones who make them up (which is really more reason not to take them too seriously!). We have a choice as to how we interact with our thoughts. In everyday life, start to notice the thoughts passing through your mind, without trying to change or wish them away. Just notice their transient nature and how they are not you. Head over to http://www.slowyourhome.com/164 for the full blog post, and enjoy!    ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The last time Tsh Oxenreider appeared on the poggie, she and her family had just returned to the States after a year-long, round-the-world adventure. In the 18 months since, Tsh has turned her family’s adventure in to a beautiful new book called ‘At Home in the World’ where she talks about the paradox of being a wandering homebody - someone who feels at home on the road but also yearns for the deep roots of community. In today’s episode Brooke and Tsh talk about that tension, and the freedom she discovered when she embraced both sides of her personality - the homebody and the wanderer - and why she is now happy to be deep in a home phase of life as she and her husband renovate an old house in a small Texas town. They also talk about community and what it means to Tsh. Her definition, “A place where we know, and are known,” leads them to the topic of finding community in a new place. How can you cultivate community in a place you’re new to? And also, how can you feel part of a community if you’re only going to be there for a few weeks? Brooke also takes the opportunity to ask Tsh one of the questions she’s asked most commonly: how to encourage older kids (tweens and teens, specifically) to embrace a simpler way of life. Tsh’s eldest daughter is now 12, so it’s helpful to hear her views on how best to encourage simplicity in kids that age, while also accepting that there will be tension on occasion. Such a great, wide-ranging conversation that may have you both yearning for adventure and completely content with life at home.    Head over to http://www.slowyourhome.com/163 for the full blog post, and enjoy!    ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A couple of weeks ago Brooke came across an article on parent.co talking about the benefits of starting a day with gentleness and decided that she really wanted to talk about it on the poggie. And while she is a big advocate for a little bit of slow in the morning, knows that many other people - both parents and non-parents alike - find the advice frustrating. There’s already so much to do in the mornings, so many pieces of the puzzle to fit together, that adding “start the day with gentleness” often feels a stretch too far. What the article suggests, and what Brooke has found to be true time and time again, is that if we think we don’t have time for a moment of slow in the morning, then we really don’t have time for a meltdown. Taking even just a few minutes to greet our kids with a cuddle, asking how they slept, letting them wake at the pace they need, means they’re far more likely to start the day feeling secure and happy, and less likely to feel overwhelmed or overstimulated right off the bat. Brooke and Ben also talk about the different things you can do for yourself in order to start the day a little slower, and why it so often leads us to be more efficient, more pleasant to be around and more positive in general. Ben also tells Brooke that he’d prefer she didn’t actually talk to him in the morning, so that’s a nice thing to learn on a podcast. Head over to http://www.slowyourhome.com/162 for the full blog post, links to the articles and this week’s take away action. Enjoy!Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It's hostful time again on the podcast and this time (as always) the questions are SOLID.  Brooke and Ben have fun answering your questions, including these gems: I’d love to hear your thoughts on how you think the role of your job/career fits into ones life, if it doesn't link specifically with your 'why'. What are some strategies to manage the paper that builds up so that it does not become overwhelming clutter? How do you manage filing things that need to be kept, and dealing with the rest? What advice would you give your 18 year old self? How do I throw away gifts without the giftee noticing next time they visit?! Brooke has a lot of fun answering the 18 year old question (pink hair?!) and there's a good mix of practical and heart-felt advice to be had.  Head over to http://www.slowyourhome.com/161 for links and the full blog post, and in the meantime - ENJOY! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Ben and Brooke are back with another simple experiment for you this week, and it’s all about empty space. Emptiness gets a pretty bad reputation. Seen as a negative trait, a lack of personality, a boring experience for a boring person. But Brooke is a big fan of emptiness and this week she and Ben talk about the fact that there is something wonderful to be gained by embracing a little empty space in your home, your days, your head… It’s not necessarily about convincing you that emptiness is something you should like. In fact, you may discover that you really miss the photos, the books, the cushion or the vases that you pack away, which is great. What this very simple experiment is doing is asking you to pay attention, to be intentional, to tap back in to your reasons for having things, rather than operating on auto-pilot. So while it might look like an experiment about stuff or space, it’s actually a reminder to notice more. Of course you may also realise (much like Ben and Brooke did when they removed all the artwork from their walls) that you enjoy the added space, and that’s awesome too. Head over to http://www.slowyourhome.com/160 for the full blog post and to share what part of your home you decided to empty this week. ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

After her blog post, 'Top 5 Regrets of the Dying' went viral in 2009, Bronnie Ware was catapulted in to the limelight. Her words impacted countless people as she laid bare those regrets faced by so many of her elderly patients as they faced the end of their lives.  (If you haven't read it you can find a link to the full post over on http://www.slowyourhome.com/159).  Today, however, Brooke and Bronnie sit down to talk about what has come since that post went berserk on the internet. And it turns out it's been an incredible ride, full of unexpected growth and pain and discomfort and beauty. Today Bronnie shares her personal journey and insights with Brooke as they talk about what it means to live a regret-free life and why it's so often incredibly painful to do so.  They talk about why discomfort is the way through and how learning to soften in to it is vital in finding acceptance and gentleness in life, as well as the role of simplicity and meditation in unlocking that acceptance and gentleness.  Bronnie is a deep thinker, a modern philosopher, and there is so much goodness to unpack in this episode that it might just require a second (or third! or fourth!) listen.  Enjoy!  You'll also hear a sneak peek of our newest show - Sampled Conversations with Seamus McAlary at the end of this week's episode. Once you've listened to Bronnie go check it out and subscribe at http://jackrabbit.fm/sampled-conversations/)  ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In a recent New York Times article, journalist Karen Rinaldi ruminated on the benefits of sucking at things: “The notion of sucking at something flies in the face of the overhyped notion of perfectionism. The lie of perfectionism goes something like this: “If I fail, it’s only because I seek perfection.” Or “I can never finish anything because I’m a perfectionist.” Since the perfectionist will settle for nothing less, she is left with nothing… “By taking off the pressure of having to excel at or master an activity, we allow ourselves to live in the moment.” In this episode Ben and Brooke dive in to the idea of being OK with not being good at something, and why there is a freedom in accepting that they may never move beyond the mediocre. Brooke talks about the fact that she enjoys things a lot more (like snowboarding, for example) when she lets go of the need to ride like a boss and that there is a lightness and a fun that exists in doing something for the pure joy rather than striving for constant improvement. They also talk about meditation and why it’s actually incredibly beneficial to not be good at it, as well as the joy and delight that lies in allowing ourselves to be beginners, forever learning. Head over to http://www.slowyourhome.com/158 for the full blog post and this week’s takeaway. And enjoy! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Today Brooke chats with the wonderful, challenging, inspiring author Sarah Wilson. Sarah is someone Brooke has admired for years - not only for the work she’s done to promote the notion of drastically cutting sugar in our diets, preventing food waste, and her more recent work in mental health awareness - but also the way she goes about that work. She is honest and open, prepared to stand for something regardless of whether people agree with her, and she’s also funny and smart and good at not taking herself too seriously. In this conversation Brooke and Sarah talk about her new book, ‘first we make the beast beautiful: a new story about anxiety’ and dive deep in to how Sarah slows down in order to both strengthen herself against anxiety’s harmful side, and simultaneously go deeper in to it. They talk about the discomfort of true reflection and Sarah’s growing boredom with shallow conversations and external grasping (and why cocktail parties are the worst example of this!) as well as the idea that it’s not necessary or even helpful to slow down simply for the sake of slowing down, but rather aiming to slow down in order to be or do something meaningful. As an avid bush walker, Sarah talks about why she chooses to head off in to the bush every second weekend (more if possible) and what the rhythm and solitude of solo hiking provides her that other exercises can’t. Sarah shares her cure for insomnia and why one of her two major tenets of slow-ness is to simply walk. She also introduces Brooke to the French idea of ‘flâner’, an urban wandering, and why sometimes it’s enough to simply walk through our own neighbourhood, noticing, paying attention, watching people and observing the comings and goings that surround us. They also talk about meditation and why it’s the second key tenet of slow-ness for Sarah, and why it’s not only OK to suck at meditation, but why it’s actually incredibly useful to be bad at it. This is a cracker of an episode, packed with loads of inspiration. Head over to http://www.slowyourhome.com/157 for the full blog post, including links to Sarah's books, website and other resources mentioned in today's show, and in the meantime, enjoy! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Today marks the final episode of Ben and Brooke’s series on uncovering and harnessing your Why.   As Brooke mentioned last week, she’s sometimes struggled to take her personal Why and use it to help steer her in the smaller, more everyday decisions, which is why she distilled her big picture Why (her eulogy) in to a list of personal values. It’s these values that they talk about today, and more specifically, how to apply them in the everyday.  Brooke shares how she puts some of her decisions on a values scale and asks herself, “On a scale of 1-10, with 1 being least compassionate and 10 being most, where does this choice lie?” The helpful thing with doing it this way is that she can see that not everything is going to be a 10. In fact, most things aren’t going to be a 10. But aiming for more compassion over less is a good place to work towards regardless. Head over to http://www.slowyourhome.com/156 for the full blog post and this week’s simple task, and in the meantime, enjoy! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It’s hostful time again and the questions Brooke and Ben answer today are, as always, complete crackers. Do you have any tips on managing email and the impact it’s having on my life, both personal and professional? How can I deal with kids clothes? We’re constantly receiving hand-me-downs and the sheer volume is making things difficult. Any tips on keeping it manageable? Has there ever been a point in the beginning of your journey where you felt stuck? Perhaps lost momentum? I'm feeling a little frustrated at the moment, but I'm a long way away from where I've come. What can I do to move past this? Do you meal plan for lunches and breakfasts as well as dinners? How does this work? What's your favorite choice of beer?! And what do you like to throw on the grill?! I'm trying to slow things down here and implement "Sunday Fun days" at my house. Would love to hear your take on slow, fun days at home. As you can see, a varied offering of questions and lots of fun was had in the answering. You can head over to http://www.slowyourhome.com/155 for all the details from today’s show plus the recipe for Brooke’s black bean and sweet potato patties. ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Last week Ben and Brooke both went fairly deep in to the idea of legacy. Brooke spoke about her eulogy and Ben spoke about the things that drive him in a big picture, high level way. They spoke about the kind of life they want to live in order for those legacies to come to fruition, and the jarring realisation that they often miss the mark. The only problem Brooke has ever had with the idea of eulogy is that there was always a certain level of specificity missing, so in today’s episode they look at the next level of intention - values - what they are, what theirs are, and how they use them in addition to their Why to determine their choices and actions on the day to day level. Brooke picks apart her eulogy from last week and extracts three key values on which she can essentially make any decision, and Ben does the same with his. Next week, as they wrap up this series, they’re going to look at how to use these values as a framework on which to base decisions and take action. Head over to http://www.slowyourhome.com/154 to read about this week’s task and to dive deep in to Brooke and Ben’s values. ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

When is a hostful not actually a hostful? When it's a WIP! (Otherwise known as a Work In Progress).  In this episode Brooke and Ben talk about the one thing they do every week which allows them to work together, be productive and actually like each other at the end of (almost) every day. Their Monday morning WIP is the cornerstone of their working week and in today's poggie they look at how it works and the structure it takes now that they're 18 months into the self-employment adventure. They also use this as a springboard to discuss the bigger issue of living a less-than-slow life right now, and how they find balance between building a business and maintaining a certain level of slow-ness in home and family life. It's not an easy one to strike and Brooke admits to the toll it can take when advocating for slow while not being able to live it. But on the flipside, she also talks about how she's turned that from a guilt-ridden experience to one of learning and a deeper understanding of what the mindset of slow living looks like - even when it's not slow-paced.  Ben and Brooke also talk about some of the changes they're currently making in their work and how they imagine it's going to impact the podcast and the ways in which they can help people live a slower, simpler life themselves.  This is very much a Work In Progress poggie, with plenty of honesty from all corners. Enjoy!  And thanks to today's sponsor - Pocketbook. To download the free Pocketbook app and take control of your finances today, head to http://www.getpocketbook.com/slowhome ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Last week Brooke and Ben spoke about the idea of developing your Why - specifically, what it is and why it’s important. Today they continue that same conversation, focusing on how to uncover your Why. Brooke has spoken about it on the podcast before, but it was an eulogy writing exercise that helped her uncover her personal Why, so in this episode she reads that eulogy aloud and talks about the impact it’s had on the years since. Ben also digs in to the idea of legacy for the first time, and they both discuss how important it is to have this big-picture notion of what will remain once they're gone.  It can seem like a very heavy thing to consider, but Brooke and Ben both agree that doing the work to uncover these big Whys, and the smaller ones over the following couple of weeks, is one of the most informative things we can do in creating a life we're proud of.  Head over to http://www.slowyourhome.com/152 for this week's action and to answer some questions designed to help you tap in to your own Why.  ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Have you ever had a conversation that changes your entire outlook on the world? One that shifts your worldview in monumental ways? That challenges and invites you to think about your choices in terms that are entirely different? In today's episode, Brooke chats with the utterly wonderful Annie Raser-Rowland, co-author of The Art of Frugal Hedonism and experiences one of those conversations...  Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This year our Monday shows are focused on small, bite-sized actions you can take that will help you move towards living a slower, simpler life. The past few episodes were about the very practical tasks of green cleaning, so the next few weeks are going to look at things from a very different, bigger picture perspective. Brooke and Ben are going to do a deep dive on one of the topics Brooke speaks about a lot - finding your Why. It's something she's asked about frequently - not only how to uncover it, but what to do with your Why once it's been uncovered - so she and Ben have decided to spend the next few weeks exploring the idea of Why, and why it's so important in creating a simpler, slower, more values-based life.  In today's show, Brooke looks at two main topics: what is a Why, and why is it important to have one? She and Ben talk about the ways in which their personal Why is at the centre of everything they do, how it adds clarity and confidence to their decisions and how it helps them to stay on track when things get difficult. They also talk about the fact that your Why can (and will) change over time, which is OK, and also have a simple action for you to try this week as you begin to explore the question of your own Why. Head over to http://www.slowyourhome.com/150 for the full blog post and to see what this week's action is.  Enjoy!  ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A few weeks ago Brooke sat down to chat all things meditation with Kevin Janks - founder of Centred Meditation in Sydney. It was a fascinating look into Kevin’s journey from skeptic to practitioner and the benefits of meditation he’s experienced personally, as well as those he sees daily in his clients and students at the studio. What Brooke failed to do though, was ask him how to actually meditate. (Quite the oversight, really!) When she started getting lots of questions wanting to know more about meditation, she knew she needed to sit down with Kevin again, but this time go back to basics. In today’s poggie Brooke and Kevin talk about his definition of meditation and why it can be much simpler than we expect and he takes us through the simple process they teach at Centred Meditation. Brooke also asks him how long we need to meditate in order to start feeling the benefits and what kind of words or visualisations we need to practice. Brooke also asks Kevin some of the most common questions she’s received over the past few weeks, including: What equipment do I need to start meditating? What apps does he recommend in order to learn meditation? How can I avoid falling asleep when I start meditating? Is there ever any reason to not meditate? How can I maintain a regular practice of meditation? Then, blissfully, Kevin closes today’s episode with a simple guided meditation. Head over to the blog at  http://www.slowyourhome.com/149 for links to all of the apps and resources Kevin mentions in today's show, as well as the full blog post. ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In the final cleaning related episode (many of you have found these really helpful, which is awesome, but truth be told, Brooke is looking forward to not thinking quite so much about cleaning as of next week!) Ben and Brooke look at their rhythms. Specifically the rhythms they’ve developed at home that allow them to stay on top of the home maintenance and ensure things never get overwhelming. It might seem like over-engineering, but this is the rhythm that Brooke has been using in some version or another for years, and while it’s changed as circumstances have shifted and the kids have gotten older, it’s served her well and means they can minimise: the amount of time they spend thinking about cleaning the overwhelm that strikes when there’s a build-up of jobs that haven’t been done frequently enough. (A bathroom left for a month takes much longer to clean than a bathroom that’s cleaned once a week, for example) the stress and willpower factors involved in cleaning - there’s no need to think too much about housework at all, but simply go through the rhythm that’s in place the chance of things ever getting truly out of hand which in turn means cleaning takes less time, less energy, less product, less of everything. In order to work out a rhythm, Brooke simply wrote down all the weekly housework tasks and split them up over the days of the week that make sense (for their home). For you it might be a matter of doing all the housework on a Saturday morning or a Thursday afternoon because your schedule doesn’t allow for it to be split over days. Whatever works is the order of the day here! If you head over to the blog at http://www.slowyourhome.com/147 there is a simplified version of Ben and Brooke’s rhythm outlined there, as well as links to the other episodes in this mini series. Enjoy! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It’s that time of the month again! Where Ben and Brooke sit down and answer some of your questions about all things slow living, and try to keep the stupid jokes to a minimum. (In today’s episode they succeed in at least one of these areas). This month the show opens with a question from Sharni about camping, which is super fun and timely as Brooke and Ben are currently waiting for the soaking wet Sydney March to end so they can spend some time in the national park down south. Sharni asked specifically for a list of the bare essentials when it comes to camping, which you can find over on the blog at http://www.slowyourhome.com/147. Keep in mind, much of what is suggested in the list can be borrowed rather than bought (particularly if you’re just starting out with your camping adventures and aren’t sure of your style yet) and it’s definitely worthwhile taking a few exploratory trips before committing to one kind of set up. Aside from camping, Brooke and Ben also answer questions about phone use and the arguments it can cause, as well as how to deal with the guilt that arises from even necessary purchases, learning to adopt ‘holiday slow’ in to daily life, and what to do when people aren’t down with the changes you’re making in life. Enjoy! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

One of the biggest changes Brooke and Ben have made in cleaning their house over the past few years (aside from their love of vinegar and citric acid!) is to really think about the materials they use, and to start looking at ways of reducing waste. When she realised the dishcloths they used at home were made from plastic and would spend hundreds of years in landfill, Brooke decided to make a simple change and started using compostable kitchen cloths instead. Over the years, she has developed a life cycle of products at home that makes the most of upcycling and re-using products, making a big difference to their waste output. In today’s poggie Ben and Brooke talk about what that lifecycle looks like and how you can start making simple changes at home too. Head over to http://www.slowyourhome.com/146 for all the details and links to some of the products Brooke and Ben use at home. Enjoy! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

As someone who espouses simplicity and buying only what we need, Brooke has an uneasy relationship with the idea of capitalism. But as a business-owner, a traveller and someone who does indeed purchase things on occasion, she recognises that this means she takes part in a capitalist society every day. During a conversation with Carolyn Tate back in September last year, Brooke was introduced to the idea of conscious capitalism,  in which for-profit organisations are making capitalism stand for something good - for people, for the environment or for social change. It was also through Carolyn that Brooke was introduced to her guest today - Dane O’Shanassy of Patagonia. If you’ve listened to the poggie for any length of time, you’ve probably heard Ben and Brooke talk about Patagonia and how impressed they are with their commitment to ethical manufacturing and the environment. Founded by hardcore climbers, surfers, skiiers, mountaineers and explorers, Patagonia is a company that loves nature and wants to protect it. They actively discourage people from buying new clothes unless they’re needed, and have in-store repair stations where you can have your Patagonia gear fixed for free. They distribute 1% of sales (not profits) every year in to grass-roots campaigns, and are highly engaged both as a company and individuals in environmental activism. They’re currently transitioning to 100% Fair Trade and are incredibly transparent - both in terms of supply chain and business management. In fact, founder Yvon Chouinard’s book ‘Let My People Go Surfing’ is basically the blueprint on which Ben and Brooke are trying to build their own business. Ben and Brooke recently travelled down to Torquay to chat with Dane, and while they do talk about the work Patagonia is doing both here in Australia and globally, they also focus on his personal journey towards a more sustainable, simple life. As a surfer, Dane loves being outdoors, and he and Brooke share a similar philosophy on the best way to get people to actually care about the environment: spend time in it. This is a great conversation that doesn’t shy away from the tension that exists between environmental protection and manufacturing, and also left Brooke feeling hopeful for the possibilities that come when people turn their passion in to action (and activism!) Head over to http://www.slowyourhome.com/145 for links to everything mentioned in today’s episode and to enter the giveaway to win a pack of three Patagonia books (entries close 23:59 March 30, 2017). Enjoy! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Honestly, Brooke and Ben thought they might be testing the friendship by having a series of shows about cleaning, but it turns out many of you are keen on learning more about how they’ve shifted to sustainable products over the past few years.  Today they go a little further than last week (where they extolled the significant virtues of white vinegar) by looking at a handful of additional products that when combined with vinegar and a little elbow grease, will help you clean virtually every surface in your house. As mentioned last week, making these really simple changes helps you to: save money keep it simple, as most products have many uses minimise harmful chemicals or harsh commercial cleaners used in your home protect yourself and the environment And by using bicarb soda, citric acid and a couple of different essential oils you can greatly increase the range of your green cleaning products. They also talk about the commercial products they do still use, and why, as well as offering another simple action to try this week. Head over to http://www.slowyourhome.com/144 for all the details. In the meantime, enjoy your week! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Dr Justin Coulson is one of Australia's leading parenting experts - a father of six, a doctor of psychology and a passionate advocate for intentional relationships - and in today's episode he and Brooke sit down to discuss the importance of turning up for the people we love.  Intention is the cornerstone of slow living, which is one of the key reasons Brooke wanted to chat with Justin, and they talk about the impact it has not only on parent-child relationships, but the way we use technology, the way we allocate our time, and the way we choose our priorities.  Justin and Brooke also talk about the immense pressure we put on ourselves by trying to be everything to everyone, and how the resulting comparisons leave us exhausted and feeling like a failure. One of the best parts of this conversation is that Justin not only talks about the problem, but offers practical solutions too.  Recently Brooke also asked for topic and guest suggestions on Facebook and she asks Justin to help offer answers to some of the parenting questions she received there.  Justin has two super generous offers for listeners of the poggie today, and you can find details of them, as well as Justin's website and social media links over at http://www.slowyourhome.com/143. Enjoy!  ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Brooke and Ben often talk about the idea of creating a home that works for you, and how that will look different to each of us, depending on lifestyle, circumstance and priorities. But, practically speaking, what can we do to create a home that actually does work for us? Enter Amelia Lee!  Amelia Lee is an architect based in the beautiful Byron Bay hinterland, who helps people create homes that support the life they want to live, rather than create houses that require a life-support in order to exist. Today she and Brooke talk about the philosophy of Slow Home design and why mindfulness and intention should be the cornerstones of the home we create.  They talk about Amelia's personal journey towards intentional living and how a trip to Uganda proved the pivotal point for her in recognising the excess in her own life and in our society in general, as well as what that meant for her fast-growing architecture firm.  The idea of a Slow Home - one that is simple to live in and light on the environment - is something Amelia and Brooke discuss in depth, including ways you can incorporate the idea of a slow home in to both your current or any future home.  Head over to http://www.slowyourhome.com/141 for links to loads of resources mentioned in today's episode as well as Amelia's podcast, blog and social media.  Enjoy!   Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Let us give you fair warning: the next few Monday shows are all about cleaning your home BUT BEFORE YOU GO AWAY BECAUSE THAT SOUNDS INSANELY BORING just know that the info Ben and Brooke are going to share is actually interesting and relevant and designed to help you: save money use fewer toxic chemicals in your home simplify your cleaning routine minimise waste keep the same level of cleanliness as commercial cleaners And while not everyone wants to spend ten minutes a week listening to people talk about cleaning, the fact is, each and every one of us needs to clean in some capacity, so why not make it simple and sustainable? Today Brooke and Ben talk about the hero of green cleaning - bog-standard white vinegar. It’s what they use most in cleaning their house, and they talk about how they use it to clean the: kitchen tiles bench tops cupboard doors, handles and interiors fridge - inside and out stovetop oven microwave - inside and out pantry shelves mirrors shower glass bathroom tiles vanity top and cupboards wooden floors tile floors They discuss whether it actually cleans as well as the commercial products, if it’s as hygienic as bleach, and whether they’ve noticed any difference since adopting green cleaning a few years ago. They also talk about the practicalities - how to use it, what equipment you need, and if there are any downsides. Head over to http://www.slowyourhome.com/142 for links to some articles and resources mentioned in today's show.  ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In today’s episode Brooke and Ben are wrapping up the simple rituals series with a poggie all about gratitude. Brooke believes that gratitude gets a bit of a bad wrap, because we see it as an attempt to Pollyanna ourselves out of challenging situations, or to avoid dealing with negative feelings. But she’s a convert to the power of gratitude, and today she and Ben talk about how making it part of your day can not only help you see the positive in your day-to-day life, but also shift your mindset into one of contentment and peace. They talk about their own approaches to gratitude, as well as some other, practical, non-bragging ways of practising gratitude, including: taking photos documenting on Instagram journalling Liz Gilbert’s Happiness Jar nightly ritual of gratitude at the dinner table thanking your self or your body during meditation, prayer, yoga, exercise This week’s action is very simple: commit to a daily practise of gratitude. It doesn’t need to be over the top or public, but just take a moment to recognise the wonderful things that have been part of your day - big or small, it doesn’t matter - and then reflect on it. Head over to http://www.slowyourhome.com/140 for a full blog post and show notes, and have a great week! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It’s Hostful time! And, like every single month, in today’s episode Ben and Brooke answer some super insightful listener questions: What impact did slow living have on your finances? How do you judge if something is necessary and "valuable" enough to warrant purchase? As your items start to get a bit tatty, when do you replace them? Or do you keep repairing or mending instead? How does one re-learn oneself? Other than decluttering, what aspect of slow living do you feel has made the most difference in your family's life? Some of these topics Ben and Brooke feel relatively confident on, but there are a whole heap of links over at http://www.slowyourhome.com/139 that will point you in the direction of the experts. ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In today's episode, Brooke and Ben talk through the 'three things' idea. That is, limiting our to-do lists to three main tasks every day, rather than the dozens of items we often put on our lists, despite knowing we will not be able to get them done.  Brooke used to be a big list maker, overwhelming herself with far too many tasks every day, leaving her feeling defeated before beginning, and like a failure when she finished a day having left most of her tasks unfinished. When she made the change to a to-do list of three things only, a few things happened:  She became more productive  She felt less anxious and overwhelmed She was able to move ahead on more projects because she was committed to taking steps every day, rather than only occasionally  In this poggie Ben and Brooke talk through why they prefer this approach, but also how to try it yourself. You can combine last week's ritual of the Brain Dump with this one, to create a powerhouse ritual of productivity every day!  Head over to http://www.slowyourhome.com/138 for a full blog post and show notes, and have a great week! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A few years ago Jessica Murnane was on the verge of major surgery, a last resort to help manage her endometriosis. After a friend recommended her trying a plant-based diet to alleviate some of the pain, Jessica figured she had nothing to lose. Weeks later she was already feeling better than she’d felt for years and the surgery was put on the back burner. Over the past few years Jessica has taught herself how to cook (her diet previously consisted of “Sour Patch Kids, Diet Coke, and whatever Lean Cuisine had cheese”) and began to figure out how to navigate the massive changes to her lifestyle without alienating herself or her friends and family. In this episode Brooke and Jessica talk about the One Part philosophy and how small, incremental changes can lead to enormous shifts over time, but also the importance of being patient with ourselves as these changes settle in. They also talk about the challenges Jessica faced in changing her lifestyle, the benefits of those changes (she still hasn’t had that surgery) and also the recent move from Chicago to Charlston and how a slower paced city has impacted family life. There’s also a really interesting chat about trends, and how to avoid becoming that annoying person when your lifestyle or passion has its 15 minutes of fame, and Jessica has some brilliant points to make about basically ignoring the BS and doing what feels right for you, regardless of trends. Head over to http://www.slowyourhome.com/137 to see where you can grab a copy of Jessica's new book - One Part Plant! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

You know those days where there are too many thoughts, too many ideas and too many tasks zooming around the confines of your brain, all wanting your attention but never sticking around for long enough to be acted upon? Those days where the competing thoughts, ideas, projects, problems, grocery items, packing lists never stop rolling around your head, leaving you tired and prone to procrastination? In today’s episode Brooke and Ben discuss the Brain Dump. A simple ritual designed to help you get all that low-level anxiety out on to the page, find some mental clarity and use it to move forward in your day. The Brain Dump is a ritual Brooke uses regularly whenever she’s feeling a little overwhelmed, and in today’s episode her and Ben talk through exactly how she uses it and how it helps her to calm down, find clarity, get mindful and start getting things done. Head over to http://www.slowyourhome.com/136 for a full blog post and show notes, and have a great week! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In May 2016 Ben and Brooke completed a month-long daily meditation experiment, which proved to be one of the most positive changes Brooke made last year. She’s still an (almost) daily meditator and will talk to anyone and everyone about the massive benefits to be gained from making it a regular part of their day. But she finds there is a handful of common reasons why people don’t want to try meditation: they’re skeptical of its usefuness they dislike the religious or spiritual connotations of the practice they don’t have time to meditate daily they’re scientifically minded and want proof of its effectiveness After meeting Kevin Janks at an event recently and hearing his story, she knew he would be an amazing guest who could help dispel many of these obstacles - because in the past he's used them all himself. Kevin used to struggle with anxiety as a result of a fast-paced, hectic, successful life, and was introduced to meditation by his partner. Initially very (very) skeptical, Kevin eventually conducted his own meditation experiment and couldn’t deny the positive benefits after only a day or two. Since then he’s travelled to India to study many elements of meditation, and in 2015 opened Centred Meditation - Sydney’s first drop-in meditation centre, right in the CBD. He now spends his days helping stressed, overwhelmed professionals learn the process of meditation, and sees daily examples of the power of simply being present. This is such an open, honest conversation and Kevin and Brooke speak about their entry points to meditation, the benefits Kevin has experienced as well as the changes he sees in clients who practice at the studio. They talk about the difference between cynicism and skepticism when it comes to meditation, the value of mindfulness techniques in addition to (or instead of) a formal practise, and the way meditation has impacted both his relationships with others and himself. Head over to http://www.slowyourhome.com/135 for a full blog post, links to lots of meditation resources and show notes, and have a great week! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In today’s episode Ben and Brooke look at a very simple daily ritual that can help you break the habit of constant connection. Learning to unplug regularly not only breaks the social media/procrastination loop, but it also turns our attention elsewhere - to the people nearby, the conversations, the trees, the light, the breeze, the feelings, the sensations. It can also help us sleep more soundly, wake up more refreshed and minimise the lost moments in the morning where we accidentally check every news website and email account before jumping in the shower. They talk about the benefits of having a screen-free bedroom, as well as how you can actually harness technology to help you become more mindful. They also look at the one simple, daily action you can try this week to help you disconnect, unwind from the day and prepare yourself for a good night’s rest. Head over to http://www.slowyourhome.com/134 for a full blog post and show notes, and have a great week! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Since launching the podcast almost two years ago the hostful Q&As have grown to be one of the most popular each month. Not only does it give you the chance to ask us questions about slowing down, or getting us to dig deeper in to a topic we’ve covered before, but it also gives Brooke and Ben a chance to explore ideas or perspectives they’ve not considered before. Today is the first hostful Q&A of the year and, as always, there are incredibly insightful questions to answer: Do you find you are more sensitive to others people’s cluttered homes now you have simplified yourself? Any tips for dealing with clutter intolerance in other people's homes and even our own homes at times? As I search for my first job after college, I'm noticing most companies lack a work-life balance. Taking care of myself and living a slow life is important to me. Do you have any advice about maintaining a slow living value while searching for a job in a world that operates at a very high speed? Does slow living apply to how you eat? Do you eat simple meals? Any tips? I own my own business and your vacation sounded so relaxing. How do you just unplug or set those boundaries to spend time with family without thinking if someone needs something with your business? I love the sound of your holiday in Japan, and my husband and kids would have an absolute ball. I'd love a lot of it too, but I'd end up spending most of it alone as I have adrenal fatigue. How would you approach this challenge? My ideal holiday right now would involve long, lazy days and plenty of rest, but the kids (7,10 & 11) would be bored silly. How do you think we could find adventurous and fun ways to spend time together that suit all of us? Brooke and Ben had a lot of fun answering these, and it gave them the chance to talk through topics we’ve not really discussed on the poggie before. To everyone who submitted a question - thank you! Head over to http://www.slowyourhome.com/133 for a full post and links on how to submit your own question for an upcoming hostful episode. ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Welcome to the first Monday show of the year! As Brooke and Ben mentioned last week, these Monday episodes are going to be a little different in 2017. Instead of running one slow living experiment each month, they will be introducing one simple, easy, accessible slow living idea every week. The hope is that it will either give you something to do or something to think about in the days after. In today’s show they talk about the idea of single-tasking, one of Brooke’s favourite ways to introduce productive mindfulness to people who are too busy to meditate or take time for quiet reflection. It can allow us to keep doing, albeit in a much more mindful way than the overwhelming approach that is multi-tasking, and it often means we do a better job at the same time. They also talk about why single-tasking is necessary, how to practice it, and what the takeaway action is for the week ahead. Head over to http://www.slowyourhome.com/132 for a full blog post and show notes, and have a great week! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

We’re baaa-aaaack! After taking some much-needed time off to disconnect/reconnect after a busy 2016 though, Brooke and Ben are back in the pogpasting chair and ready for a cracking 2017. In the first new poggie of the year, they talk about their recent trip to Japan and the unexpected lessons they received in the art of slow living. In this chatty, light-hearted poggie Brooke and Ben talk about what some of those lessons looked like and how they’re already having an impact at home. They also talk about the beautiful ritual of onsen bathing, the benefits of sleeping on traditional Japanese futons and tatami mats and the incredible food they ate. Head over to http://www.slowyourhome.com/131 for all the links, resources and websites they used when planning and researching their trip, as well as the full blog post.  ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

WELCOME TO THE SLOW HOME SUMMER SERIES! BROOKE AND BEN ARE TAKING A BREAK OVER JANUARY, SO WE'RE WE REVISITING SOME OF THE BEST EPISODES OF THE PAST TWO YEARS. James Wallman is an ex-adman and trend forecaster - which doesn’t necessarily sound like Brooke’s typical guest - but when you learn he is also the author of Stuffocation and the person who coined the phrase ‘experientialism’ it starts to make a lot of sense. Brooke and James talk about minimalism’s branding issue and why he thinks that experientialism is the way to make a life of less stuff more appealing to the mainstream. They also look at the overwhelming number of choices we all face each day and why experiences will almost always trump stuff. James also had some ridiculously straightforward advice for Brooke when she admits she sometimes feels so defeated by the rampant consumerism happening across the globe. Such a thought-provoking conversation, sure to raise as many questions as it answers. Enjoy! Head over to the blog for a full list of links and books mentioned in today's show.Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

WELCOME TO THE SLOW HOME SUMMER SERIES! BROOKE AND BEN ARE TAKING A BREAK OVER JANUARY, SO WE'RE WE REVISITING SOME OF THE BEST EPISODES OF THE PAST TWO YEARS. In this super enlightening episode, Brooke chats with Gretchen Rubin, the New York Times best-selling author of Better Than Before, The Happiness Project and Happier at Home. This show starts out as any other - a regular conversation - in this instance, about happiness and habits and the changes Gretchen is most proud of in her own life. But somewhere around the middle it shifts into something different… A personalised habits counselling session, as Gretchen digs into why Brooke is inclined to take on too many projects and burn out in a big way. They also discuss the Four Tendencies of Habits, and why that means Brooke is less likely to do a morning yoga class by herself, but more likely to turn up if Ben joins her. This is such a fun conversation with plenty of insight into why we do and do not find making changes easy. And for anyone looking to make a shift towards a slower, simpler life, there are plenty of tips and tricks from Gretchen to help you make those changes as seamlessly as possible.     Head over to the blog for links to everything discussed in today's episode.Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

WELCOME TO THE SLOW HOME SUMMER SERIES! BROOKE AND BEN ARE TAKING A BREAK OVER JANUARY, SO WE'RE WE REVISITING SOME OF THE BEST EPISODES OF 2016. Brooke is a long-time reader of Paul Jarvis’ Sunday Dispatches and long-time listener of his Invisible Office Hours podcast, so she was super delighted to sit and chat with him about simplicity, writing our wills, Netflix and priorities. They also spend quite a bit of time talking about the importance of being our true self online, and the BIG difference between that and sharing things we haven’t actually processed yet. Paul has written a lot about comparison and the myth that everyone else is living more interesting, photogenic lives that us, so we dive in to that too. Paul also talks about his lack of routine, why busy-ness is a crutch we lean on to avoid feeling our feelings, and what his most recent purchase was. For notes and links to everything mentioned in today's episode, head over to the blog. Enjoy!Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

WELCOME TO THE SLOW HOME SUMMER SERIES! BROOKE AND BEN ARE TAKING A BREAK OVER JANUARY, SO WE'RE WE REVISITING SOME OF THE BEST EPISODES OF 2016. In Episode 108 Brooke and Ben answered some excellent listener questions about birthday presents, advice for their 20-year-old selves, and how they manage to balance home duties while also working from home. But the question that got the most feedback was one about zombies. As big fans of The Walking Dead and other zombie/apocalyptic TV and movies, Brooke and Ben had a lot of fun briefly discussing their chances of survival in a post-apocalyptic zombie world, as well as establishing which weapons they’d be most likely to pick up if the undead came for them. But it also got them thinking about the different ways slow living could actually impact your ability to survive (and perhaps even thrive?) in the apocalypse, and in a discussion over on Facebook earlier this week, a lot of people weighed in on the question: “What is it about slow living that would prepare you for a zombie apocalypse?” So here it is - a possibly-slightly-ridiculous but-very-well-researched episode that addresses the incredibly serious issue of how slow living could save your life if ever you find yourself living through a zombie apocalypse. Enjoy! For links to movies and TV shows mentioned in today’s episode head over to the blog.Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

WELCOME TO THE SLOW HOME SUMMER SERIES! BROOKE AND BEN ARE TAKING A BREAK OVER JANUARY, SO WE'RE WE REVISITING SOME OF THE BEST EPISODES OF 2016. In today's episode, Brooke sits down with Jonathan Fields - founder and host of The Good Life Project, author, father, life-long learner and all-round wonderful human. Brooke and Jonathan talk about what it means to live a good life, why the power of choice is a game-changer in how we choose to spend our days, and the hugely traumatic event that led Jonathan to question his definition of 'a good life'. They also chat about the delicious irony of advocating a slower, simpler way of life when in the midst of a busy season (Jonathan is in the midst of launching his new book and all the work that entails) but also why it's not necessarily a bad thing to experience the busy-ness some times. Jonathan explains the difference between mindful living and practicing mindfulness, and has some incredibly practical tips on using technology to live more intentionally - flipping on its head the idea that technology is only good for distraction and faux-connection. Such a wide-ranging and beautiful conversation, that is certain to leave you feeling inspired and motivated to continue the quest for your own version of a 'good life'. Head over to the blog for links to Jonathan's manifesto, his new book and The Good Life Project, as well as links to A Simple Year registration.Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

For years people would ask Brooke what her biggest decluttering regret was and she never had a good answer because she genuinely couldn’t think of anything that she missed. That was, until the day she realised her beloved Hobbit poem (a reimagining of Tolkien’s epic tale that Brooke wrote as an 11-year-old and was ridiculously, if somewhat unfoundedly proud of) had been accidentally decluttered. Not a big deal, sure. But at least it gave her an interesting story to tell people when the inevitable question arose. A few weeks ago, as she was looking for some paperwork, she found her poem tucked in a folder of academic transcripts. As an end of year treat (for Brooke and Ben, anyway!) and as a thank you to this amazing community of Slow Home listeners and readers, here is a live Boxing Day reading of this previously lost masterpiece. Happy Holidays!Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In today’s poggie, a special ‘year in review’ kind of hostful, Brooke and Ben talk about the good, the bad and the ugly of 2016. They look at the Slow Home Experiments - which ones have stuck, which ones have fallen by the wayside - and which ones they’ve learnt the most from. They also talk more about the year that was, their personal highlights, the biggest challenges they faced and the toughest lessons they each learnt, as well as the things they’ll be doing more and less of in the year ahead. Inspired by Kelly Exeter, both Brooke and Ben have decided on guiding words for the year ahead and they reveal what they are (and why) in this episode as well. They wrap up with some talk about the poggie in 2017 - they’re taking a break from today through to early February, but will be hosting a Summer Series every Thursday to give you a chance to revisit some of their favourite episodes of the past two years. There’s also a special, silly treat for you next Monday, so be sure to check it out. From Brooke and Ben: We just want to say an enormous thank you to everyone who has listened, shared, reviewed, laughed at, or enjoyed one of our shows this year. We wouldn’t be anything without the amazing people who listen, ask questions or appear as guests and we want you to know just how much we love and appreciate you all. Knowledge Nugs for all these holidays! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This is the final Slow Home Experiment episode of 2016 (next Monday is Boxing Day and there’s something a little special planned for you!) and Ben and Brooke take the opportunity to wrap up their Slow December experiment. They’ve taken December super easy by adding little pockets of peace and slow to their days and in today’s episode they talk about the different things they’ve tried this week, and the slowing down techniques they’ve got in mind for the last working week of 2016. Brooke talks about yin yoga (a slower type yoga where you hold poses for up to three minutes, and focus on softening in to the pose, rather than moving quickly in to another) and finding something beautiful to focus on every day. Her and Ben also talk about the parallel idea of softening in to stress and problems, as opposed to meeting them with resistance and tension, which has been really helpful over the past few days as they’ve put in a lot of hours in the hope of taking a full break over January. Ben talks about his efforts to say no more this month, and how it’s been more difficult but also more rewarding than he thought it would be, and why this is going to be a focus for both he and Brooke in 2017. Enjoy! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In today’s episode - the last non-hostful conversation of the year - Brooke has the pleasure of chatting with Caro Ryan, whose story is an amazing reminder that there is always choice and always another way, we just need to be ready to see it. Having recently moved from a hectic, fast-paced life in Sydney to a much more intentionally paced life in the Blue Mountains, Caro talks about the catalyst for change and why getting her hands dirty and growing some veggies was one of the most important changes she’s ever made. Caro and Brooke also talk about the challenges she’s faced as she decided to make the move to the mountains, as well as the benefits and confidence that have come from becoming part of a new community. The second part of the conversation is centred on Caro’s big passion of bushwalking, and her and Brooke talk at length about learning to love and treasure something (in this case, nature) by spending time immersed in it. As an avid multi-day hiker Caro also talks about the mental health benefits of bushwalking and why one of her favourite things to do is go off-trail and walk in silence. Head over to the blog for links to Caro's websites and social media profiles, and enjoy this inspiring, uplifting episode.  ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

After the slightly hectic end to November, Ben and Brooke decided to make their final Slow Home Experiment of the year a simple one - to make time for slow every day. They probably took the theme a litte too far last week when they completely forgot to record a Monday episode, but the experiment remains nonetheless! Today they look at the different ways they've uncovered pockets of slow (most) days, and the impact it's been having on their December - a typically busy month. Ben talks through the successes and failures he's felt, and Brooke gives a list of the strategies she's been using. Head over to the blog for a list of suggestions for finding moments of slow in the busy season of the holidays, and in the meantime, enjoy your week! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/au/podcast/slow-home-podcast-brooke-mcalary/id985005895?mt=2 or head over to the Patreon page http://www.patreon.com/slow to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Yes, it’s the most wonderful time of the…month. It’s hostful pogpast time, and as is now customary, Brooke and Ben answer some incredibly insightful and wide-ranging listener questions in today’s hostful, that cover questions like: How do you view the relationship between creativity and stuff? That is, how does simplifying impact a creative person’s ability or desire to surround themselves with beautiful, inspirational things? What’s your plan of action when you fall off the slow living wagon? (This is very timely for us but also lots of others feeling the pinch of a busy end of year period). Much of the advice on minimalism forums centres on simply ‘getting rid of excess’ or throwing it in the bin. What can we do with our unwanted items before the last resort of throwing them away, and how can we begin to educate others on the different options available to us? How can I get back to living in alignment with my why when I’m tired or completely unmotivated? See? The best questions. Enjoy! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

One of the things you requested from our recent listener survey was that Ben take the reigns and do more poggies featuring conversations with other men.  The good news is, you’ve spoken and we’ve listened!  Following his chat with Dr Arne Rubinstein earlier in the year, this week Ben sits down to have a chat with freelance content creator, ocean swimmer, meditator, Dad, Shakespearian tragic and business magazine publisher Andy McLean.  Ben has known Andy for eight years first as a co-worker and have since become great friends. In this pogpast Ben and Andy talk about the similar trajectories their lives have taken them over the best part of a decade with Andy too taking the leap and starting his own business this year.  Andy and Ben talk about the themes of mentoring, balance, mindfulness, feminism and the importance of passion projects as well as their love of pogpasts (Ben and Andy were trailblazers having recorded their first podcast together close to seven years ago). It’s not often men get to talk about such themes in such a public way and hopefully you will get a lot from the discussion. Head over to http://www.slowyourhome.com/124 for links and resources mentioned in today's episode. ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This has been an unexpectedly challenging experiment for Brooke, and while she and Ben originally chose the theme of ‘play’ as a respite from the previous month’s decluttering work, this one has proven to be much more taxing in ways they hadn’t expected. Brooke, admittedly, has been feeling the pinch of some big deadlines, and getting sick mid-month certainly didn’t help matters, but as she discussed in this week’s episode, having the idea of playfulness in the back of her mind over the past few weeks has seen some really simple, beautiful changes in her daily actions. Things like giving a funny reply to her kids when it would otherwise have been neutral, dancing around the kitchen, listening to music in the car and having a ready laugh have all helped in small but significant ways. They also talk about the final experiment of the year, and why they changed it at the last minute - given how overwhelmed they were feeling at the mere thought of another thing to do at what is one of the busiest times of the year. Truth be told, it seems like the end of year shenanigans are starting to take their toll on Brooke and Ben (in a good way!) Head over to the blog for a list of suggestions for finding moments of slow in the busy season of the holidays, and in the meantime, enjoy your week! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Bele Masterman returns for her fourth appearance on the poggie, and this week she and Brooke sit down face-to-face and talk about the realities a very big tree-change.  Having recently moved from a large family home in the inner-city to a tiny cabin on riverfront acreage, Bele talks about the process of moving, the challenges and pushback she's had to overcome, and the surprising benefits she's discovered as her family has settled in to what is a very different life.  They also discuss the pros and cons of documenting such a big life change on social media, and why it so often feels like the documenting of life is actually the robbing of presence.  As has been a theme lately, both Brooke and Bele talk about their personal Whys and how knowing their priorities in life helps them avoid slipping in to comparisonitis (too often).  Such a great chat. Head over to the blog to find Bele's earlier episodes and social media links. Enjoy! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Three weeks in to this month's play-centred Slow Home Experiment, and yet again, Brooke and Ben get a little emotional. Brooke has had a tough couple of weeks and talks a little about the reasons she's feeling burnt out, as well as the realisations she's arrived at during this month's experiment. Ironically, it's turned out to be one of the most challenging they've ever done, when it was initially chosen as a light and easy reprieve after last month's decluttering experiment. After watching the 1991 classic film Hook (well, classic to them, anyway) both Ben and Brooke also reflect on the lessons they learnt about people, priorities and happy thoughts. BANGARANG!  And enjoy!  ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It might have been the after effects of a tumultuous, emotional week or possibly the fact that they had to record this episode twice (no word on whose fault that is, Brooke) but this hostful gets a little emotional.  As usual, Brooke and Ben answer some listener questions about various elements of slow living, but considering the events of the past week and the subsequent media frenzy, this hostful comes at a super opportune time as Brooke and Ben talk about the role of social media and news in a slower paced life. They also talk specifically on how to avoid overwhelm when faced with an excess of opinions dressed as news, and the different strategies they each use to keep oversaturation of 'current affairs' to a minimum.  The conversation get quite emotional when answering a question about their personal Whys, as both Brooke and Ben examine the reasons for change and what they each stand to gain by choosing to slow down and simplify.  Thankfully, there are also some less emotional questions regarding books (which Brooke is delighted about!) recovering from a busy or stressful period, and the negatives to slow living.  As always, these questions get the brain juices flowing, and hopefully some of the answers and strategies in today's pogpast will be helpful to you as you continue to slow down and simplify.  Enjoy! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====  Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This is the second full week of the November Slow Home Experiment of daily play, and in today’s episode Ben and Brooke talk about their progress. Brooke’s been feeling a little insecure in her attempts this week as she’s not naturally as playful as Ben and has been wondering if she’s doing it ‘right’. Her and Ben talk about the things they have been doing, including more play with the kids, choosing to laugh and joke more freely, listening to funny things instead of serious things, hunting for rainbows and throwing the ball around. But what Brooke can’t really shake is the feeling that this is a job. They chat about habit change and whether the ‘job’ feeling is part of making a lasting change, as well as the problem with comparisons. This is another experiment that’s open to everyone, and it’s never too late to join in. Feel free to tag your social media posts with #slowhomeexperiment and have a cracker of a week. Enjoy! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In another deep-dive episode, Brooke chats with Mel Tually, the co-ordinator of Fashion Revolution in Australia and NZ.  Fashion Revolution was started in response to the 2013 collapse of the Rana Plaza factory building in Bangladesh, where more than 1,100 garment workers perished. The tragedy shone a bright light on the garment industry and the substandard conditions many of them are forced to endure, in the name of cheap, fast fashion. In this episode Mel and Brooke talk about the importance of ethical fashion and the transparency that is starting to appear in many well-known labels around the world. But they also talk about the importance of being intentional with the choices we make, opting for quality over quantity (or brand name, for that matter) and simply buying less fashion. Mel also has some fantastic advice for those of us who feel completely overwhelmed by the problems facing the fashion industry, and the inevitable paralysis by analysis when we begin to look a little deeper into the clothes we wear.  There are some amazing listener questions featured in this episode and Mel lists whole heap of resources to help you learn more about the people behind the clothes. Head over to http://www.slowyourhome.com/118 for a full list.  Enjoy! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====  Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A new month rings in a new Slow Home Experiment, and after the fairly heavy workload of last month’s decluttering experiment, in November Brooke and Ben have decided to go for something more playful. In fact, as they explained in last week’s episode, they’re experimenting with daily play! (Or random silliness, playfulness, wonder, non-task-oriented things, call it what you will.) Unsurprisingly, they’ve both had lots of fun this week, but Ben and Brooke talk about the fact that he is much more naturally playful than she is, and that this week has been more challenging than Brooke expected. They look at why that might be, plus how Brooke is choosing to remind herself to lighten up every day and rediscover her inner child. One thing they both wanted to make clear is that this experiment is definitely not just for those with kids at home. Everyone has the opportunity to be more playful, and while kids perhaps make it more obvious that play is available at every turn, play can be anything that’s just for fun. There are so many ways we can re-engage that sense of child-like wonder in our days, and Ben and Brooke talk through some of them in today’s poggie. Head over to http://www.slowyourhome.com/117 for a full list of play ideas. This is another experiment that’s open to everyone, and it’s never too late to join in. Feel free to tag your social media posts with #slowhomeexperiment and have a cracker of a week. Enjoy! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In today’s episode Brooke chats with Jaimee Edwards, who, as a professional fermenter, has one of the coolest job titles ever. Fermenting is having quite the resurgence in popular culture now - think kombucha, miso, kim-chi and sauerkraut - but in today’s chat Jaimee and Brooke talk about food trends and why some disappear while others grow and shift, becoming movements that appeal to a far greater audience than just the French-basket wielding, farmer’s market crew. Jaimee talks about her experience in bottling 100 kilograms (yes, kilograms!) of tomatoes one afternoon and how it proved to be a turning point in not only her career, but also her relationship with food. She and Brooke also talk at length about what life is like when lived elbow-deep in good bacteria. Head over to the blog for links to Cornersmith and the books Jaimee recommends in this poggie.  Enjoy! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Today marks the final day of the October Slow Home Experiment of daily decluttering, and the big question is - how did they go after last week? Brooke and Ben talk about their final efforts, what clutter they let go of and whether they made the #minsgame total of 497 items each.  They also talk about the upcoming November experiment of playfulness, and why they decided to go with something that felt a lot less like work. Enjoy! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week's episode is such a treat, as Brooke sits down with Jonathan Fields - founder and host of The Good Life Project, author, father, life-long learner and all-round wonderful human.  Brooke and Jonathan talk about what it means to live a good life, why the power of choice is a game-changer in how we choose to spend our days, and the hugely traumatic event that led Jonathan to question his definition of 'a good life'.  They also chat about the delicious irony of advocating a slower, simpler way of life when in the midst of a busy season (Jonathan is in the midst of launching his new book and all the work that entails) but also why it's not necessarily a bad thing to experience the busy-ness some times.  Jonathan explains the difference between mindful living and practicing mindfulness, and has some incredibly practical tips on using technology to live more intentionally - flipping on its head the idea that technology is only good for distraction and faux-connection.  Such a wide-ranging and beautiful conversation, that is certain to leave you feeling inspired and motivated to continue the quest for your own version of a 'good life'.  Head over to the blog for links to Jonathan's manifesto, his new book and The Good Life Project.  Enjoy! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This month’s Slow Home Experiment is proving to be quite the emotional roller coaster for Ben and Brooke! After a strong start and a shaky Week 2, last week felt good, while this past week has been a real stretch. Brooke tries to talk Ben down from his decluttering-related tantrum while remaining stoically upbeat, but even she has to admit this week has been tough. It’s also important to Brooke that this doesn’t become a different kind of obsession with stuff (the letting go as opposed to the holding on) as Ben shares the fact that he’s actually feeling unpleasantly obsessed with decluttering at the moment. It’s not all bad news though, as they have some big areas to tackle during the final week of the experiment (and Ben has some “Trump decluttering” to do) which will offer up clutter they haven’t considered yet, but it’s certainly going to be an interesting time as they try to make the total of 500 items by October 31. Head over to the blog for a full run down of the week’s efforts and a hilarious journey through the month so far (in gif form!) Enjoy! It’s never too late to join in on this month’s experiment, so feel free to tag your social media posts with both #minsgame and #slowhomeexperiment and play along. Enjoy! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Brooke chats with the wonderful Kyrstie Barcak - a passionate gardener and educator - about the slow living benefits of growing even one edible plant, and why her personal goal is to see every home growing one thing they can incorporate in to their cooking. Kyrstie and Brooke talk about information overwhelm, garden comparisons, time and the steep learning curve of growing your own food, and why starting small is the best way to slowly find a level that works for you. Brooke talks about her own experiences with gardening, and how, even though she didn’t realise it at the time, it was actually a practice in mindfulness which helped her recover from post natal depression. Kyrstie also has some great advice for people who want to grow just one thing but don’t know where to start - including some suggestions for hard-to-kill starter plants and her never fail tips on caring for your plant once you’ve got it in the ground. Head over to http://www.slowyourhome.com/112 for links to the awesome resources mentioned in today’s episode, as well as links to Kyrstie’s blog and book. Enjoy! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In last week’s episode Ben and Brooke spoke about how tough they’d been finding this month’s decluttering experiment, and how they’d gone from confident to concerned in the space of a few days. This week sees them back in confident mode after a significant shift in their attitude towards their stuff. Brooke realised she’d been making a lot of assumptions about the things they’d held on to over the years, but as she started viewing their stuff with a more dispassionate eye this week, it became clear that they really were just assumptions and there was a lot they could let go of. They also talk about the areas they decluttered this week, Ben talks about his trump card for the final few days of the experiment, and the absolute glut of clutter they uncovered in the office. Head over to the blog for photos of everything they let go of this week, as well as links to some relevant decluttering posts. This month is already proving to be a really fun experiment that lots of you are joining in on, so please feel free to play along (it’s never too late to start!) and tag your social media posts with both #minsgame and #slowhomeexperiment. Enjoy! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In last week’s hostful, Brooke and Ben answered some excellent listener questions about birthday presents, advice for their 20-year-old selves, and how they manage to balance home duties while also working from home. But the question that got the most feedback was one about zombies. As big fans of The Walking Dead and other zombie/apocalyptic TV and movies, Brooke and Ben had a lot of fun briefly discussing their chances of survival in a post-apocalyptic zombie world, as well as establishing which weapons they’d be most likely to pick up if the undead came for them. But it also got them thinking about the different ways slow living could actually impact your ability to survive (and perhaps even thrive?) in the apocalypse, and in a discussion over on Facebook earlier this week, a lot of people weighed in on the question: “What is it about slow living that would prepare you for a zombie apocalypse?” So here it is - a possibly-slightly-ridiculous but-very-well-researched episode that addresses the incredibly serious issue of how slow living could save your life if ever you find yourself living through a zombie apocalypse. Enjoy! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Brooke was feeling quite optimistic at the beginning of this month’s decluttering experiment, certain she could find 500 items to let go of between the beginning and end of October… Turns out she might have been a tad over-confident. Ben and Brooke talk through the past week and their efforts in continuing the Slow Home Experiment, and while so far so good, they’re both concerned at what the latter part of the month will look like. It’s proving more difficult than expected for two reasons. Firstly, they don’t have as much stuff to let go of as they used to, and secondly is the stop-start nature of the experiment. Needing to shift in to a daily practice of letting go is proving a challenge, but definitely a positive one that will see both Brooke and Ben let go of sticky, sentimental or invisible clutter as the month goes on. For links and resources mentioned in today’s episode head over to the blog http://www.slowyourhome.com/109. This month is already proving to be a really fun experiment that lots of you are joining in on, so please feel free to play along (it’s never too late to start!) and tag your social media posts with both #minsgame and #slowhomeexperiment. Enjoy! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Today is another hostful episode and Brooke and Ben try their best to answer some cracking good questions. Including: I'm a 20 year old university student and a big advocate of slow living, but I feel like a lot of the content out there is targeted towards a different age group. What advice would you give to your 20 year old selves regarding slow living and what would you have done differently at that age if you'd been introduced to this idea sooner? Can you talk about school holidays and your thoughts on structured activities for your kids versus encouraging them to find their own fun? How do you navigate birthday parties? With sport friends, school friends, parent friends with their kids .... it can turn into a party every weekend! Kids love parties and being invited so much so that I think saying a flat out 'no' is almost cruel. And if you go and celebrate one child's birthday, then isn't it nasty to say no to another child? I’d also love to hear your thoughts on actually hosting a party and the gifts and the lolly bags etc. I am working from home and find myself distracted by laundry and dishes...I'd love to hear details about how you get work done. Specifically, your daily rhythm, how you set boundaries around work/home management etc. If the world were presented with a zombie apocalypse, do you think it would still be necessary to live a slow life? How well do you suppose you both might fare in that situation? Turns out Brooke has some very real thoughts about birthday parties and zombies (not necessarily together) and Ben has some really excellent insights into how he breaks his work days in to chunks that allow him to get a lot of work done without getting overwhelmed or becoming distracted. For resources and links mentioned in today’s episode, head over to the blog. Enjoy! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes: or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It's the beginning of a new month, which means the start of a new Slow Home Experiment. In today's episode Brooke and Ben talk about their decluttering experiment, why they wanted to go back to their simple living roots, and the rules of the #minsgame they're following this month, as a motivator to let go of some of the clutter that's crept in over the past year. Essentially though, they're letting go of clutter every day. October 1, they each let go of one thing. October 2, two things. October 3, three things, and so on, all the way to the end of the month. Ben does some impressive arithmetic to work out how many items that is, but suffice to say, it's going to be a challenge!  Both Brooke and Ben talk through their first three days worth of clutter, the strange emotional attachment we form with things - particulalrly when they're tied to important moments in life - and the freedom and lightness that comes with letting go.  Brooke talks about the importance of simplifying and the impact decluttering the family home had on her recovery from post-natal depression, as well as the massive ongoing benefits that letting go of the excess has provided over the past few years.  For links and resources mentioned in today’s episode head over to http://www.slowyourhome.com/107 It's going to be a really fun experiment that anyone can join in on, so please feel free to play along, and tag your social media posts with both #minsgame and #slowhomeexperiment. In the meantime, have a cracking week! Enjoy! Enjoy! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/au/podcast/slow-home-podcast-brooke-mcalary/id985005895?mt=2 or head over to the Patreon page www.patreon.com/slow to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Last week you heard the first part of Brooke’s chat with Carolyn Tate - founder of The Slow School of Business and founding member of Conscious Capitalism Australia - and today she returns for Part 2! In this episode they go deep into the issue of hyper-consumerism and whether Carolyn feels a sense of ownership of it - considering her background as a marketer. This leads into a really interesting conversation on conscious consumption, what it looks like and how to know if a brand we’re supporting really is ethical, as well as the important accompaniment to conscious consumption, which is conscious capitalism. Brooke and Carolyn also share a whole heap of resources so head over to http://www.slowyourhome.com/106 for all the links. Enjoy! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes: (https://itunes.apple.com/au/podcast/slow-home-podcast-brooke-mcalary/id985005895?mt=2) or head over to the Patreon page (www.patreon.com/slow) to help support the show financially.   And thanks so much for listening!   ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

“You will never regret being kind.” Turns out, not only is this an internet-friendly quote thrown around online a great deal, but it’s also actually true! This month’s random acts of kindness experiment has been both eye and heart-opening for Brooke and Ben, and this week they talk through some of their favourite moments. They also talk about the vulnerability of kindness, and how much easier it’s started to come, the more they’ve practised. As this is the last Monday show for September, it’s also time to reveal next month’s Slow Home Experiment, and in October Brooke and Ben are going back to their decluttering roots and playing the Minimalists Game. In this episode they explain exactly what that means and why they’ve decided to spend October letting go of some of the excess stuff that’s accrued over the past 6 months, as well as how you can join them. It starts easily enough, with decluttering one item on Day 1 of the month, and two items on Day 2. It starts to get a little tougher as the month wears on though, and you’re letting go of 10, 15, 20 items a day. So while this is going to be a challenge, it would be a fun one to join in on too. Head over to http://www.slowyourhome.com/105 for the details, feel free to play along, and tag your social media posts with #minsgame and #slowhomeexperiment. In the meantime, have a great week! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes: (https://itunes.apple.com/au/podcast/slow-home-podcast-brooke-mcalary/id985005895?mt=2) or head over to the Patreon page (www.patreon.com/slow) to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====  Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Today Brooke chats with Carolyn Tate, co-founder of The Slow School of Business and Conscious Capitalism Australia. She’s an ex-marketing executive who ‘flicked on the slow switch’ in 2010, after a massive realisation about the life she’d been living. Brooke and Carolyn talk a lot about her personal journey, what changes she’s made over the past 6 years, what she’s still working on and how her life is different now. Carolyn is also a massive advocate for living a purpose-driven life, and they talk a lot about the idea of finding your Why and using it to inform the choices you make and the life you create. They also talk about the problem with work/life balance as one of the core reasons for Carolyn to start The Slow School of Business, and she has some golden tips on how to start affecting change from within an organisation rather than seeing the only solution as finding a new job or starting your own business. There is so much to learn from Carolyn’s personal story, including what happens when we have the courage to listen to that little voice in our heads that’s telling us something isn’t right, that we couldn’t actually fit it all in to one conversation, so stay tuned next week for part two! But in the meantime, don’t forget to head over to http://www.slowyourhome.com/104 for links to books, blog posts and resources mentioned in today’s episode. Enjoy! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes: (https://itunes.apple.com/au/podcast/slow-home-podcast-brooke-mcalary/id985005895?mt=2) or head over to the Patreon page (www.patreon.com/slow) to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

More than halfway through this month’s Slow Home Experiment and Brooke is discovering that the impact a random act of kindness can have stretches further than only the receiver, and even beyond the giver, to sometimes impact the people who simply witness it. And while it wasn’t necessarily the intention when they began, her and Ben have realised that putting kindness into the world in this way, on a regular basis, is such a rewarding thing to do. This week Ben and Brooke talk about the good parts of the experiment, as well as some of the things they’ve been struggling with personally, and Brooke shares a particularly funny internal reaction to her buying coffee for a stranger. They also walk through some of the kind things they’ve done for others this week, and will be posting some ideas for kindness acts over on Facebook over the coming days. None of them are big, and most don’t cost anything other than time and attention, but the benefits are much more wide-reaching than either Brooke or Ben had expected, and for that they’re grateful. For the full blog post and links to resources mentioned in today’s poggie, head over to http://www.slowyourhome.com/103 Enjoy the pogpast! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes: (https://itunes.apple.com/au/podcast/slow-home-podcast-brooke-mcalary/id985005895?mt=2) or head over to the Patreon page (www.patreon.com/slow) to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It’s time for another listener chat on the pogpast, and Brooke’s guest Joshua is a warm and generous delight of a person whose openness left both Brooke and Ben feeling incredibly inspired.  When she first heard his story in the Straight and Curly Facebook group a few weeks ago, Brooke knew she needed to talk to Joshua about his journey back from overwhelm, and how he and his family have learnt to value time and experiences over the trappings of ‘success’. Joshua is so open and generous in the things he shares, as he talks about the moment it became clear that things weren’t OK and goes deep in to the ways he and his husband have worked together to find a balance. Joshua also talks about the really simple shifts he’s made at home in order to start living more sustainably, as well as what he’s doing with the space letting go has opened up. The audio in this conversation isn’t great unfortunately, but the wisdom Joshua drops is way too good not to share so please forgive it. Enjoy! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/au/podcast/slow-home-podcast-brooke-mcalary/id985005895?mt=2 or head over to the Patreon page at www.patreon.com/slow to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Brooke and Ben knew that the Random Acts of Kindness experiment would shift the way they viewed the world, but what they didn’t expect was the huge levels of support from all of you! Today they talk about why it’s struck such a chord with people, as well as the different ways they’ve both tried to spread kindness over the past week. This experiment isn’t about big, audacious gifts or flashy examples of financial generosity (although they’re amazing too) but rather showing kindness where we might not have previously - opening a door, smiling at a stranger, letting someone know you’re thinking about them or that you can even see them, acting on the impulse to be kind where we otherwise might not have - and today both Ben and Brooke share why that’s been an incredible, and slightly unnerving shift to make. For the full blog post and links to resources mentioned in today’s poggie, head over to http://www.slowyourhome.com/101 Enjoy the pogpast! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes: (https://itunes.apple.com/au/podcast/slow-home-podcast-brooke-mcalary/id985005895?mt=2) or head over to the Patreon page (www.patreon.com/slow) to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

When they started The Slow Home Podcast 18 months ago, Brooke and Ben had no idea it would work out the way it has. More than 1.2 million downloads, named one of the best shows of 2015 by iTunes, and an amazing community of like-minded people has them routinely shaking their heads in wonderment. Today marks the 100th episode of the poggie and it’s a fun one. Brooke opened up an AMA (ask me anything) on Facebook last week and got some great questions, so today they do their best to answer a whole heap of them.They talk about TV and books, the things they miss about pre-slow life and where they’d spend 24 child-free hours anywhere in the world. They also share some of their favourite music, areas of life that challenge them to live slow and the pretty mundane story of how they met. It’s a celebration of the past 100 episodes, peppered with lots of chat about slowing down and more than a couple of inside jokes. Enjoy! And thank you for being part of it. For the full blog post and links to websites and resources mentioned in today’s poggie, head over to http://www.slowyourhome.com/100 ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes: (https://itunes.apple.com/au/podcast/slow-home-podcast-brooke-mcalary/id985005895?mt=2) or head over to the Patreon page (www.patreon.com/slow) to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This month’s Slow Home Experiment is only a few days old and Brooke and Ben are super excited to see how many people have decided to join in on the daily kindness experiment. In today’s episode they talk about how they’re feeling a few days in to this experiment, what’s been challenging, what’s been surprising, and what small acts of kindness they’ve undertaken over the first few days. When this experiment was first announced there were two questions that kept coming up, so they spend a little time today unpacking their thoughts on each of them. Firstly, what constitutes an act of kindness? Does it count if we’re kind to ourselves? The second question related to money, and the cost of many popular random acts of kindness. The oft-quoted ideas of buying a coffee for the person behind you at the coffee shop, or buying flowers or a meal for someone - while lovely, thoughtful ideas - are out of the financial realm for most of us. So Ben and Brooke also spend some time working through a list of non-financial ideas that will hopefully encourage even more people to spread kindness this month. There is a long list of ideas over on the blog and you can find the show notes at http://www.slowyourhome.com/99 Enjoy! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes: (https://itunes.apple.com/au/podcast/slow-home-podcast-brooke-mcalary/id985005895?mt=2) or head over to the Patreon page (www.patreon.com/slow) to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

As Brooke and Ben prepare for the 100th pogpast episode next week, they thought it would be fun to take a look back at the very beginning. Not for the awkwardness (although it IS awkward) and not for the laughs (although it IS cringeingly funny) but so you can see how much things have changed over the past 18 months. One of the things Brooke is most passionate about in advocating for a slower way of living is the idea that there is no 'right way'. There isn't a perfect road map to simplicity or a step-by-step guidebook that will take you to the best version of your best life. It's messy and real and sometimes frustrating, and it almost certainly involves a lot of questioning and evolution and iteration.  By going back in time Brooke and Ben can see just how much they've changed and how much more aligned they are with their Why, but also just how important those earlier stages have been in creating the life they're living today. Here's to awkward conversation and a wonderful day! Enjoy!   ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes: (https://itunes.apple.com/au/podcast/slow-home-podcast-brooke-mcalary/id985005895?mt=2) or head over to the Patreon page (www.patreon.com/slow) to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The end of the month is near which means it’s time to wrap up the August Slow Home Experiment and introduce a new one for September. This month’s screen-free bedroom experiment has been one of the simplest and most effective changes Brooke and Ben have made all year, and in today’s episode they talk about its challenges and benefits, as well as some of the reasons people didn’t or couldn’t join in, alongside possible solutions for the most common of those. When it comes to the September experiment, Brooke and Ben were inspired by her recent conversation with Jono Fisher, and have decided to commit one random act of kindness every day for the entire month. As Brooke reveals in this conversation - she’s actually pretty nervous about this one! She and Ben talk about potential acts of kindness they could try, as well as some of the options that aren’t going to cost money every day. For links and resources mentioned in today’s episode head over to http://www.slowyourhome.com/98 This is another experiment anyone can join in on, so please feel free to play along, and tag your social media posts with #slowhomeexperiment. In the meantime, have a cracking week! Enjoy! Enjoy! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes: (https://itunes.apple.com/au/podcast/slow-home-podcast-brooke-mcalary/id985005895?mt=2) or head over to the Patreon page (www.patreon.com/slow) to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In today’s episode Brooke chats with the utterly lovely Margy Heuschele - a teacher-librarian from Toowoomba in Queensland - who has gradually shifted her life from one of stress and overwhelm and perfectionism and control, to one of slowness, contentment, simplicity and joy in the tiny moments. There are so many things to love in this episode (not least Margy’s amazing book recommendations!) but one of the most striking things is the contentment Margy exudes and the way she describes the tiny, beautiful moments in her life as the turning point in living a slower, more mindful life. There wasn’t a huge traumatic experience or a momentous realisation that brought her to slow living, but rather taking the time for little, mundane moments of beauty in her every day. She and Brooke also talk about the impact simplifying had on her now-grown kids, why it’s so important to teach people (both the young and not-so-young) foundational skills such as sewing and gardening, and why she and her husband started a simple living organisation in their community. For links to all of Margy’s book recommendations and other resources mentioned in today’s episode, head over to http://www.slowyourhome.com/97 Enjoy! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes: (https://itunes.apple.com/au/podcast/slow-home-podcast-brooke-mcalary/id985005895?mt=2) or head over to the Patreon page (www.patreon.com/slow) to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

As they roll into the fourth week of their screen-free bedroom experiment, Brooke and Ben talk about this week's challenges as well as some of the self-sabotage they've been partaking in. Brooke also talks about blue light and her recent discovery that it's present in far more than just our phones, computers and tablet screens.  They also talk about September’s experiment (which both Brooke and Ben are feeling a little nervous about) and what you can do to get involved. For links to everything mentioned in today's episode (including Alexx Stuart's sleep-themed episode of Low Tox Life, and Cybele and Brooke's Simply Calmer challenge) head over to http://www.slowyourhome.com/96.  Enjoy! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes: (https://itunes.apple.com/au/podcast/slow-home-podcast-brooke-mcalary/id985005895?mt=2) or head over to the Patreon page (www.patreon.com/slow) to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week Brooke chats with listener Colleen Valles, who has managed to slow down and simplify her life to amazing lengths, despite a full and busy life as a single mum working a full-time (and then some!) job.  Colleen has so much to offer and goes deep into how she uncovered her priorities and slowly changed her job, her schedule and her home to live a life more aligned to those priorities.  She's now building a tiny home in one of the most expensive areas in the US, and her and Brooke talk about how she plans to combine households with her non-minimalist partner too!  For show notes, and links to Colleen's blog and social media head over to http://www.slowyourhome.com/95 Enjoy!  ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes: (https://itunes.apple.com/au/podcast/slow-home-podcast-brooke-mcalary/id985005895?mt=2) or head over to the Patreon page (www.patreon.com/slow) to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====  Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this week's episode, Brooke and Ben talk some more about their current Slow Home Experiment - creating a screen-free bedroom - and the surprising impact it's had on not only their sleep, but a whole heap of other areas too.  Better quality sleep is the one area they expected to improve, but better and more conversations, higher productivity, better mornings, happier days... It's been a revelation! They also have some suggestions on the best way to adopt a screen-free experiment into your own life, and some options for those living in small spaces. For links and resources mentioned in today’s episode head over to http://www.slowyourhome.com/94 Enjoy! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes: (https://itunes.apple.com/au/podcast/slow-home-podcast-brooke-mcalary/id985005895?mt=2) or head over to the Patreon page (www.patreon.com/slow) to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Rachel Jonat is back for her second visit to the pogpast and, as always, it’s such a great conversation. Last they spoke, Rachel and her family had recently moved back to Vancouver from the Isle of Man and were finding their feet and discovering what it meant to keep a slow and simple pace in a busy city. Today they talk about the move, and the unintentional decluttering that came when a lot of their possessions were ruined in transit. Rachel and Brooke also talk about her new book and what it looks like to live a minimalist life with three young boys - particularly the baby years. They talk about creating a home that’s flexible enough to change as your family grows, and Brooke decides that their families should house-swap very soon - whether Rachel wants to or not. For links and resources mentioned in today’s episode head to http://www.slowyourhome.com/93 Today’s episode was brought to you by Ettitude. For 10% off your first order of ethical, environmentally-friendly, sustainable, bamboo lyocell bed linen, visit http://www.ettitude.com.au/slowhome and use the code: sleephealthy Enjoy! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes: (https://itunes.apple.com/au/podcast/slow-home-podcast-brooke-mcalary/id985005895?mt=2) or head over to the Patreon page (www.patreon.com/slow) to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Ben and Brooke are in to the second week of their screen-free bedroom experiment and enjoying it SO MUCH. As Brooke mentioned in last week’s episode there’d been some backsliding in allowing phones in to the bedroom and this past week has been such a great reminder of how much there is to gain when we lose the tech. Brooke is feeling far more relaxed in the morning, while Ben loves the fact that he’s reading more. One of the interesting things to note has been “the twitch” that Anthony Ongaro spoke about back in Episode 54 of the poggie. Brooke particularly  has found it amazing to see just how often she goes to reach for her phone and this experiment is making it easier to break the twitch - even outside the bedroom. This is a really easy experiment to join in, so feel free to play along, and tag your social media posts with #slowhomeexperiment. Ben and Brooke also talk a little more about the launch of the Jackrabbit.FM app, where you can find it and why they’re so excited about it! For links and resources mentioned in today’s episode head over to http://www.slowyourhome.com/92 Enjoy! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes: (https://itunes.apple.com/au/podcast/slow-home-podcast-brooke-mcalary/id985005895?mt=2) or head over to the Patreon page (www.patreon.com/slow) to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Today’s episode is the first to feature Ben behind the microphone, as he interviews the inspiring Dr Arne Rubinstein - a doctor, counsellor and mentor who has had a profound impact on Ben this year, as well as the lives of many young men throughout the world. Arne is an expert in adolescent development who had a life-changing experience 20 years ago while on a rite of passage camp. In this episode he and Ben talk through his personal enlightenment and what it felt like to shed his safe, well respected job for the unknown, as well as his thoughts on living intuitively and aligning our actions with our values. Realising that - for adolescent boys in Western culture, particularly - there was a distinct lack of rites of passage and strong role models, Arne sold his practice, bought a property in the rural Byron Bay hinterland and lived in a bus for three years as he built a camp to mentor young men. 20 years later he an author, facilitates mentoring programs and provides leadership coaching world-wide, but even more importantly, can say he spends his days doing exactly what he was put on earth to do - and that is something that both Ben and Brooke find truly inspiring. For links and resources mentioned in today’s episode head to http://www.slowyourhome.com/91 Enjoy! ==== Today’s episode was brought to you by Ettitude. For 10% off your first order of ethical, environmentally-friendly, sustainable, bamboo lyocell bed linen, visit http://www.ettitude.com.au/slowhome and use the code: sleephealthy If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, you can leave a rating or a review in iTunes: (https://itunes.apple.com/au/podcast/slow-home-podcast-brooke-mcalary/id985005895?mt=2). Thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A new month means a new Slow Home Experiment, and in August Ben and Brooke are going screen-free in the bedroom. And while this seems like something they would have already had on lockdown, they’ve seen a bit of backsliding in recent months and the mobile phones have slowly snuck back in to the bedroom. Having a screen in the bedroom has definitely impacted both Brooke’s sleep and her morning rhythm, which begs the question why she hasn’t made the shift earlier. But as her and Ben talk about in this episode, the power of habit is a mighty thing to turn around. Ben is feeling quite nervous about this one, while Brooke is feeling optimistic as the effect on her sleep and mornings is something she’s really keen to reverse. Don't forget, you can play along with Brooke and Ben by tagging your social media posts with #slowhomeexperiment and sharing your experiences. Hit us up on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram and let’s get experimenting! Enjoy! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes: (https://itunes.apple.com/au/podcast/slow-home-podcast-brooke-mcalary/id985005895?mt=2) or head over to the Patreon page (www.patreon.com/slow) to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Sometimes, the idea of making a real change in the world can feel impossible. In today’s episode Brooke meets the human antidote to these feelings in Jono Fisher, a delightfully warm person who is - quite literally - changing the world with kindness. As founder of The Wake Up Project - a community and events hub on a mission to bring out the best in people - Jono is super passionate about spreading kindness, mindfulness and positivity far and wide. Not only do he and Brooke talk about his desire to create and grow a ‘kindness revolution’ but also about the recent arrival of his newborn son and how his arrival impacted Jono’s ability to live a mindful life. Enjoy! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes: (https://itunes.apple.com/au/podcast/slow-home-podcast-brooke-mcalary/id985005895?mt=2) or head over to the Patreon page (www.patreon.com/slow) to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

After committing to cut back on all plastics as part of Plastic Free July., Ben and Brooke are back to talk about the experience. While they were looking to minimise all plastic, they were particularly focused on doing away with the Big 4 - plastic shopping bags, takeaway coffee cups, plastic drinking straws and single-use plastic water bottles. The good news is they nailed those four! The bad news is, they were mostly nailing those before July even began. In today’s episode they talk through some wonderful tips they received over the month, discuss the areas they struggled in and look at the changes they’ve made already, plus the changes they plan on making over the coming months. Don't forget, you can play along with Brooke and Ben by tagging your social media posts with #slowhomeexperiment and sharing your experiences. Hit us up on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram and let’s get experimenting! Enjoy! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes: (https://itunes.apple.com/au/podcast/slow-home-podcast-brooke-mcalary/id985005895?mt=2) or head over to the Patreon page (www.patreon.com/slow) to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

After a mid-year break, Ben and Brooke are back in the podcasting chair, and in today’s episode they talk about their time off and a little of what they’ve been up to in July. Brooke talks a lot about a recent TV experience, taking part in an episode of Insight on SBS. The episode she was part of dealt with stuff - and more specifically, hoarding - and in this poggie she talks a lot about her misgivings of taking part in the show and also the bigger issue of presenting minimalism and hoarding as opposite sides of the same coin. Head over to http://www.slowyourhome.com/87 for links to the episode of Insight - it's really worth a look!  Enjoy! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes: (https://itunes.apple.com/au/podcast/slow-home-podcast-brooke-mcalary/id985005895?mt=2) or head over to the Patreon page (www.patreon.com/slow) to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Did you know that every single piece of plastic ever produced still remains somewhere on earth today?  Before Ben and Brooke decided to take some time away from their Slow Home Experiments, they had considered making July the month of living plastic free, to coincide with Plastic Free July. And while they’re not running an official experiment this month, in today’s hostful episode they decide to take the Plastic Free July challenge anyway. After all, it’s an area both of them can afford to improve on, and there’s nothing like an outside challenge to motivate. In today’s episode they talk about the challenge itself, as well as the areas they think they’ll do OK in, the areas that will challenge them (cheese!) and some of the changes they’ve already made over the past year. There's a lot of practical tips for anyone hoping to adopt a plastic-free lifestyle, as well as a whole lot of recognition that it's not an easy shift to make.  Head over to http://www.slowyourhome.com/86 to see a full list of the changes they’ve already made, as well as the changes they’ll be working on during July, as well as links to websites, products and resources mentioned in this episode. Don't forget, you can play along with Brooke and Ben by tagging your social media posts with #slowhomeexperiment and sharing your experiences. Hit us up on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram and let’s get experimenting! Enjoy! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes: (https://itunes.apple.com/au/podcast/slow-home-podcast-brooke-mcalary/id985005895?mt=2) or head over to the Patreon page (www.patreon.com/slow) to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It’s well documented that Ben is a Big Fan of sleep, so this past weekend when he took part in a 24-hour walking challenge for a mentoring program he’s part of, the lack of sleep had some pretty crazy side-effects. Turns out things gets a little… hallucinogenic when he goes without sleep for more than a full day, and it was the perfect opportunity for he and Brooke to wrap up this month’s Slow Home Experiment. Brooke has struggled to find the time for the full 8 hours, and while she has managed it, she talks about why it probably won’t stick long-term. They also talk about quality vs quantity, whether they think it’s possible to regain a sleep debt and what’s in store for the podcast moving forward, as they take a break from the experiments for a little while. Don't forget, you can play along with Brooke and Ben by tagging your social media posts with #slowhomeexperiment and sharing your experiences. Hit us up on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram and let’s get experimenting! Enjoy! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes: (https://itunes.apple.com/au/podcast/slow-home-podcast-brooke-mcalary/id985005895?mt=2) or head over to the Patreon page (www.patreon.com/slow) to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Fearing it would be too boring for most people, Brooke has been putting this episode off for months. But after being asked countless times for more detail into how she and Ben structure their days, she decided to talk about how a typical day unfolds at their house.  Well, that was the plan When they sat down to talk about what a typical day actually looks like, it took no time to realise there is no such thing anymore. So instead what you have is a wide-ranging look at how they manage their time on a day-to-day basis (they’re unsurprisingly quite different), and how the change in their work situations has impacted the rhythm of their home. Head over to http://www.slowyourhome.com/84 for a detailed run down of how Brooke likes to think her days are structured, as well as links to previous posts about tilting, work-life balance and finding a rhythm. Enjoy! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes: (https://itunes.apple.com/au/podcast/slow-home-podcast-brooke-mcalary/id985005895?mt=2) or head over to the Patreon page (www.patreon.com/slow) to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

After a very chilly camping trip Ben and Brooke are back to regular sleep patterns, and in today’s episode they talk about pre-sleep rituals, whether it’s possible to gain back sleep debt and how their camping experience impacted on their rest. Ben’s noticed that he and Brooke have very different needs when it comes to pre-sleep rituals so today they talk a little about what Brooke does before bed, as opposed to what Ben does. HINT: Ben’s process is much simpler and shorter! Don't forget, you can play along with Brooke and Ben by tagging your social media posts with #slowhomeexperiment and sharing your experiences. Hit us up on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram and let’s get experimenting! Enjoy! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes: (https://itunes.apple.com/au/podcast/slow-home-podcast-brooke-mcalary/id985005895?mt=2) or head over to the Patreon page (www.patreon.com/slow) to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A lot of Brooke’s guests over the past couple of months have spoken about making big life changes - travel, a shift in career or moving to a different place - but in every single instance these changes have been moving them closer to their Why. This is something Brooke finds constantly inspiring as she and Ben continue to make changes in their own lives, and she enjoys going deep into the reasons and the practicalities of these transformations. Today she chats with Mike Campbell, a fellow Australian currently house-sitting his way across the United States with his wife and daughter after donating or selling virtually everything they owned. Brooke and Mike talk about what his life was like only 18 months ago, when he was struggling in a job he was deeply unsatisfied with, his wife Inga was battling overwhelm and burnout and they found themselves wondering if this was really ‘it’. Unbeknownst to him, it would be a simple game that would shift his perspective to one of possibility and adventure. Head over to http://www.slowyourhome.com/82 for show notes and links from today’s episode. Enjoy! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes: (https://itunes.apple.com/au/podcast/slow-home-podcast-brooke-mcalary/id985005895?mt=2) or head over to the Patreon page (www.patreon.com/slow) to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This month’s Slow Home Experiment sees Ben and Brooke trying to get 8 hours sleep every night, and, well, it’s been pretty straightforward so far. Ben is coasting along with his regular 8+ hours most nights, while Brooke finds herself gaining the extra sleep in the morning rather than the evening, which is having a less than ideal impact on her days. She is, however, enjoying the days where she doesn’t wake to an alarm clock, so might need to rethink her sleep patterns! Don't forget, you can play along with Brooke and Ben by tagging your social media posts with #slowhomeexperiment and sharing your experiences. Hit us up on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram and let’s get experimenting! Enjoy! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes: (https://itunes.apple.com/au/podcast/slow-home-podcast-brooke-mcalary/id985005895?mt=2) or head over to the Patreon page (www.patreon.com/slow) to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Joel Zaslofsky is one of the kindest, most encouraging people Brooke’s had the fortune of meeting, and today he’s back for his second visit to the pogpast. He and Brooke talk about his current efforts in optimising sleep, collecting natural spring water with his son and his fascination with the idea of rewilding. They also talk about raising kids who are advocates for nature, gratitude meditations and Joel’s passion for community. As always with Joel, this is a positive, passionate conversation that’s sure to leave you feeling invigorated! Head over to http://www.slowyourhome.com/80 to find links to Joel’s website, podcast and SimpleREV details, as well as a list of resources mentioned in today’s episode. Enjoy! ====   If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes: (https://itunes.apple.com/au/podcast/slow-home-podcast-brooke-mcalary/id985005895?mt=2) or head over to the Patreon page (www.patreon.com/slow) to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Brooke and Ben have started a new Slow Home Experiment this week, and it's one that plays directly into Ben's strengths - sleep. Specifically, they're looking to get 8 hours of sleep every night throughout June, and are curious to see how that will impact their health, well-being and energy levels.  Ben's always been a big fan of sleep, but Brooke has been getting by on 6-7 hours a night for years, thinking that's been enough.  The first week was pretty straightforward, with both Brooke and Ben getting at least 8 hours sleep a night. Brooke really enjoys waking early though and has found her early morning alone time the thing that's bearing the brunt of the experiment so far.  So the problem might be in the getting to sleep earlier, rather than the finding time for 8 hours a night.  Brooke also talks about not actually feeling tired by 8:30pm (the time she needs to go to bed in order to wake at 5am) and the idea that she needs to do more exercise in order to actually feel tired enough to sleep. Don't forget, you can play along with Brooke and Ben by tagging your social media posts with #slowhomeexperiment and sharing your experiences. Hit us up on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram and let’s get experimenting! Enjoy! ====   If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes: (https://itunes.apple.com/au/podcast/slow-home-podcast-brooke-mcalary/id985005895?mt=2) or head over to the Patreon page (www.patreon.com/slow) to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In today’s episode Brooke chats with Erin Loechner - author, design-y creative, mum and slow living advocate. They talk minimalist wardrobes, slow renovations and the delicate art of sucking at meditation. Also Erin's move from fast-paced LA to a much slower, roomier lifestyle in the Mid-West, what that actually looks like in the day-to-day, and her advice for those whose partners have a very different approach to stuff. Erin also goes deep into what’s important to her, and how she now cares less about a lot of things - in order to care more about those that truly matter. Enjoy! ====   If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes: (https://itunes.apple.com/au/podcast/slow-home-podcast-brooke-mcalary/id985005895?mt=2) or head over to the Patreon page (www.patreon.com/slow) to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It’s almost time to wrap up this month’s Slow Home Experiment, with only a couple of days of meditation left, so Ben and Brooke talk about the experience and whether they’re going to create a routine out of this particular habit. Brooke also talk about some of the excellent advice and encouragement they’ve both received over the past few weeks, and to see a list of resources submitted by listeners, head over to http://www.slowyourhome.com/77 Ben and Brooke also discus the upcoming June experiment of getting 8 hours of sleep every night, which is a simple (yet probably quite difficult) experiment. Of course there will be nights that sleep won’t want to play along, but they discuss how they plan to set up routines and make changes to their rhythms to give them the best possible chance to get a full eight hours. Don't forget, you can play along with Brooke and Ben by tagging your social media posts with #slowhomeexperiment and sharing your experiences. Hit us up on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram and let’s get experimenting! Enjoy! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes: (https://itunes.apple.com/au/podcast/slow-home-podcast-brooke-mcalary/id985005895?mt=2) or head over to the Patreon page (www.patreon.com/slow) to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this month’s Q&A hostful episode, Brooke and Ben curse slow Australian internet, lament their inability to do a Facebook live video chat this month, and answer some excellent listener questions, including: - thoughts on homework and after school activities - how they manage to find time for the experiments while also living a slower life - how they cope on those days that are just tough and nothing is going well at all - an insight into their daily rituals and routines - how to merge two households into one when there are vastly different approaches to “stuff” - why Brooke stopped writing on the blog Recording at 5:30PM on a Wednesday obviously isn’t ideal, but in this largely unedited podcast Brooke and Ben do give a pretty authentic view of what it looks like to balance work, family, self-employment, passion projects and slow living, and sometimes, it ain’t pretty! 
Enjoy! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes: (https://itunes.apple.com/au/podcast/slow-home-podcast-brooke-mcalary/id985005895?mt=2) or head over to the Patreon page (www.patreon.com/slow) to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In last week’s episode Brooke said that this meditation challenge has already been a life-changer for her, so there’s actually a limit to where they can go in this episode! Ben’s experience, on the other hand, hasn’t been as clear cut. He’s battling time constraints and motivation, so in today’s episode he and Brooke talk about the obstacles he’s been facing in daily meditation, as well as what they see and how they visualise the letting go of thoughts while meditating. Don't forget, you can play along with Brooke and Ben by tagging your social media posts with #slowhomeexperiment and sharing your experiences. Hit us up on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram and let’s get experimenting! Enjoy! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes: (https://itunes.apple.com/au/podcast/slow-home-podcast-brooke-mcalary/id985005895?mt=2) or head over to the Patreon page (www.patreon.com/slow) to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Learning to live mindfully alongside modern technology can be one of the biggest tensions in slowing down. For better or worse, technology keeps us connected, employed and inspired, improves life expectancies and allows us to travel the globe. Modern tech has its issues, no doubt, but giving it up seems… extreme. And not fun. In today’s episode Brooke talks with Janell Burley Hoffman, an author, technology coach and creator of the Slow Tech Movement, and she drops some wisdom in regards to living mindfully alongside technology - as opposed to living mindlessly and in constant contact with technology. Brooke and Janell talk about establishing tech boundaries, as well as creating time and space for play, nature, real-world connections and conversations and the mundaneness of life. Janell also has really practical insights into how to establish your family’s iRules and why these are just as (if not more) important for the adults in your home. This episode is packed with practical advice, inspiration and a good dose of “do what’s right for you”, that will help you figure out the best approach to tech for you and your family. Head over to www.slowyourhome.com/74 for links to Janell's website and each of the resources mentioned in today's episode.  Enjoy! ====   If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes: (https://itunes.apple.com/au/podcast/slow-home-podcast-brooke-mcalary/id985005895?mt=2) or head over to the Patreon page (www.patreon.com/slow) to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

We’re only halfway through the daily meditation Slow Home Experiment and Brooke’s already calling it: this one is a life-changer. She’s always understood meditation -  taking time to just be, focusing on the breath, finding pockets of stillness - is good for us, but practically never really explored it at all. This experiment has given her a reason to sit and meditate for a short time every day though and the benefits are proving massive (and people are already noticing a difference). In this episode, Ben and Brooke talk about the past week - what they did and didn’t like, what they’ve discovered and some of the wonderful tips they’ve received from listeners over the past few weeks. Don’t forget, you can play along with Brooke and Ben by tagging your social media posts with #slowhomeexperiment and sharing your experiences. Hit us up on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram and let’s get experimenting! Enjoy! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes: (https://itunes.apple.com/au/podcast/slow-home-podcast-brooke-mcalary/id985005895?mt=2) or head over to the Patreon page (www.patreon.com/slow) to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

One of the best parts of the Listener Chat episodes are the insights into how people apply slow living to their everyday - without a blog or a book or a podcast to share it with. It’s these insights - these hard-fought, battle-tested, real-world strategies that Brooke loves uncovering in the semi-regular Listener Chats, and this episode is no exception. Today Brooke chats with Juanita, a mother of two from Sydney whose story is one that is sure to resonate with a lot of people. Juanita and Brooke talk about the illness that laid her out for months last year, and her somewhat begrudging entry into slow living as a result. They also discuss the decision to skip out on the busy Christmas season last year and the restorative road trip Juanita and her family took. As an environmentalist, Juanita was further down the conscious consumption path than others may find themselves in the beginning, but it was the work she had to do to lower her standards and personal expectations that was the most challenging. Enjoy! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes: (https://itunes.apple.com/au/podcast/slow-home-podcast-brooke-mcalary/id985005895?mt=2) or head over to the Patreon page (www.patreon.com/slow) to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

We’re a little over a week into this month’s Slow Home Experiment of daily meditation, and in today’s episode Brooke talks about why she’s finding it increasingly difficult. Being complete novices in meditation, they have no idea if that’s normal or not but in this episode Ben and Brooke talk about their favourite guided meditations and Brooke looks at why one of the sessions left her in such a rage. They also list the seven meditations we’ll be following this week, if you wanted to join in and practice the same ones it might be fun to compare notes. Head over to http://www.slowyourhome.com/71 for the full list. And as they mentioned last week, Ben and Brooke also started the Slow Home Experiment group on the Insight Timer app if you wanted to join in. Enjoy! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes: (https://itunes.apple.com/au/podcast/slow-home-podcast-brooke-mcalary/id985005895?mt=2) or head over to the Patreon page (www.patreon.com/slow) to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Bele Masterman is one of only a handful of repeat guests on the poggie, and this week she’s back for her third chat with Brooke. In a wide-ranging and super honest conversation, Bele and Brooke talk about making big life changes as they become more attuned to the Why in their lives, and why she and her family have decided to move from the inner city to an old orchard outside Sydney. They also talk about the decision-making process that goes in to big, life-changing decisions like this and how both Brooke and Bele have learnt to accept the discomfort that often goes along with them. Bele is always full of insights, and this episode is no different as she looks at the idea of seeing ‘signs’ in our lives, what it means when we go with our gut and how she and her husband worked through the process of refining their Why. They also get off-topic and start talking about the movie Everest, Amy Poehler’s amazing book, some Star Wars origin stories and why Bele thinks Thoreau was a pretty miserable guy. Enjoy! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

After last month’s not-so-great finish to the journalling experiment, Brooke and Ben are back with a new Slow Home Experiment - daily meditation. This month they’ve decided not to put too many rules or stipulations on the experiment, but rather simply commit to the daily doing - no matter how that looks. In this episode Brooke talks about why she’d like to meditate in the morning wherever possible, and Ben, with less predictable days, is more than happy to fit the meditation in wherever there is an opportunity. Brooke and Ben are using the free app, Insight Timer to guide them through this month’s experiment, and Brooke has started a Slow Home Experiment group there, where you can connect with others doing the challenge, as well as follow along and see which meditations Brooke and Ben are doing each day. Head over to http://www.slowyourhome.com/69 for links and resources, as well as the full blog post. Don’t forget, you can play along by tagging your social media posts with #slowhomeexperiment and share your experiences. Hit us up on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram and let’s get experimenting! Enjoy! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

As mad-keen travellers, Brooke and Ben now subscribe to the idea of slow travel, exploring more and getting to know places in a deeper, local kind of way. In this hostful episode they answer three great listener questions about: the issue of over-planning how to balance getting things done and enjoying the down time keeping kids occupied on long-haul trips Ben and Brooke also talk about their attempts to pack light for this trip, why they don’t get a local SIM card when they travel and the major benefits of setting up a home base and exploring from there, as opposed to being on the move constantly. Enjoy! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

We’re moving in to the last week of this month’s Slow Home Experiment and it turns out that Ben and Brooke’s journalling experience has been, shall we say, varied? In this episode Ben and Brooke talk about the mistakes they made and the reason Ben sees this month as a big fat fail. They also talk about next month’s experiment - daily meditation. Head over to http://www.slowyourhome.com/67 for a list of meditation apps for those of you who want to join us. Don’t forget, you can play along with Brooke and Ben by tagging your social media posts with #slowhomeexperiment and share your experiences. Hit us up on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram and let’s get experimenting! Enjoy! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week, we have a new Listener Chat with you, featuring librarian-teacher and all-round lovely person, Morgan. When Brooke put a call out on Facebook for Calgary-based listeners a couple of weeks ago, Morgan was the first to volunteer her time. A few days later they got to sit down at Brooke and Ben’s holiday apartment and chat for a couple of hours. There were two big themes that came out of this conversation - one being Morgan’s amazing literary brain. She has so many book suggestions and nuggets of wisdom drawn from her extensive reading, and you can find a list in the show notes. The second theme is that of living a values-based life, which has seen Morgan and her family make some massive changes over the past few years, all of which are aligned with their values and the kind of life they want to create for themselves. Head over to http://www.slowyourhome.com/66 for the full blog post, as well as links and show notes from today’s conversation. Enjoy! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this episode Brooke and Ben look at week three of this month’s Slow Home Experiment, where they’ve committed to spend time each day writing in a family journal. This past week it’s turned into somewhat of a travel journal, but today Ben talks about why he feels like it’s actually taking him out of living in the present moment while travelling, which isn’t at all what they expected when they took on this experiment. But it does bring to light the difference between being present IN the moment and looking back on a day and focusing ON a moment with clarity. Don’t forget, you can play along with Brooke and Ben by tagging your social media posts with #slowhomeexperiment and share your experiences. Hit us up on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram and let’s get experimenting! Enjoy! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Today’s guest is Joshua Fields Millburn - one half of The Minimalists and a delightful human - and he and Brooke look back at his life pre-minimalism. They talk about why he made the shift away from the American Dream (hint: it wasn’t his dream after all) and how he started the process of simplifying. They look at some practical approaches for dealing with clutter and the “just in case” stuff that trips so many up, and also talk about the importance of understanding our reasons for wanting to change. Both Joshua and Brooke have found that it’s these reasons that keep them going when things get tricky, so spending the time to uncover why is super important as you create a simpler, slower life. Joshua also talks about simplicity and living a creative life, as well as the upcoming release of Minimalism: A Film - the beautiful documentary he and Ryan Nicodemus have produced. Head over to http://www.slowyourhome.com/64 for the full blog post, as well as links and show notes from today’s conversation. Enjoy! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

After a very, ahem, relaxed lunch, Ben and Brooke sat down for a chat about the current Slow Home Experiment and the first couple of weeks of their Canadian holiday. The talk ranges from bears, to hiking, to the beauty of taking it slow on the road, before they get down to this month’s surprisingly challenging experiment of daily family journalling. Ben talks about the messiness factor, while Brooke has been surprised by the transformation her thoughts can take simply by making time to write about the day. Don’t forget, you can play along with Brooke and Ben by tagging your social media posts with #slowhomeexperiment and share your experiences. Hit us up on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram and let’s get experimenting! Enjoy! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Can we incorporate the philosophy of ‘slow’ into modern medicine? Today’s guest, Dr Christine Walker believes so, and is increasingly seeing the benefits of slowing down, becoming more mindful and practicing the mind-body connection in her PT practice. In this episode, Brooke and Christine talk about her personal experience with stress, fatigue and illness and how a realisation that her frantic lifestyle was exacerbating these issues. They also talk about the wider issue of stress and its impact on our bodies, as well as Christine’s personal experiences with meditation and the impact it’s had on her physical and mental well-being. This conversation has some exceptional insights into modern medicine and the opportunity we have to combine the preventative benefits of mindfulness and overall health, with the incredible advances of traditional medicine over the past few decades. Enjoy! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This is the first episode Ben and Brooke have recorded while travelling throughout April, so they talk a little about their first few days away, as well as the embarrassing moment Brooke realised she’d posted an unedited version of the podcast before flying out! They also look back at the March experiment of daily yoga - what went well, what was challenging, and whether they think they’ll be adopting into their lives. They also talk about this month’s experiment of journalling as a family every day - which is already proving more challenging than expected. Rather than use a set of rules, they’re keeping it pretty fluid this month and are both really looking forward to seeing how we enjoy the experiment and how it impacts gratitude, contentment, happiness and feelings of being present. Don’t forget, you can play along with Brooke and Ben by tagging your social media posts with #slowhomeexperiment and share your experiences. Hit us up on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram and let’s get experimenting! Enjoy! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

RE-EDITED VERSION! (Sorry guys - turns out we needed the vacation!)  In today’s episode Ben and Brooke answer some super tricky listener questions about the deeper issues of choosing to live a slower, more intentional life and, to be honest, they got a little stumped! They include questions about: Planning for the future vs living in the moment How to minimise time spent talking on the phone, as it impedes our attempts to live a simpler, more present life How simplifying life has impacted Ben and Brooke's relationships How to balance work, family and down-time, particularly with a new job What can we do to reconcile our work lives with our values, or how to overcome the discrepancy from one to the other. Enjoy! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Brooke and Ben sat down to talk about Week 4 of the Yoga Slow Home Experiment, and specifically how they managed to keep it up over the past week, where work has been busy and mornings disrupted. They essentially learned the importance of being flexible in a number of ways, and again the idea of reducing the scope and sticking to the schedule has been really helpful. Brooke has spent a little more time off-script this week, doing what feels good as opposed to what is strictly in the videos, and is feeling more at ease in general. They also talk about next month’s challenge, as by this time next week they’ll be a few days into it and wanted to give you a little heads-up in case you’d like to join in. Don’t forget, you can play along with Brooke and Ben by tagging your social media posts with #slowhomeexperiment and share your experiences. Hit us up on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram and let’s get experimenting! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Brooke is a long-time reader of Paul Jarvis’ Sunday Dispatches and long-time listener of his Invisible Office Hours podcast, so she was super delighted to sit and chat with him about simplicity, writing our wills, Netflix and priorities. They also spend quite a bit of time talking about the importance of being our true self online, and the BIG difference between that and sharing things we haven’t actually processed yet. Paul has written a lot about comparison and the myth that everyone else is living more interesting, photogenic lives that us, so we dive in to that too. Paul also talks about his lack of routine, why busy-ness is a crutch we lean on to avoid feeling our feelings, and what his most recent purchase was. Enjoy! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

When we first started this month’s Slow Home Experiment, the last thing Brooke and Ben expected were tears. And yet, late last week, on Day 18 of the experiment, Brooke found herself crying (yes, really) as she stood in her first ever tree pose. She went on to bust out a fairly decent crow pose on Day 19 too and feels like this past week of the experiment has been a game-changer. She’s now seeing the massive benefits of yoga - beyond flexibility, or strength, or even striking an impressive pose and posting it on social media - and is excited to see what the rest of the experiment brings. Ben, on the other hand, has had a kind of crappy week. He’s still determined to touch his toes by the end of the month and feels like a failure to do so will mean the experiment was a bust. They’re also looking for your input on what the April experiment should be. Maybe ‘make time to play every day’? Or daily meditation? Head over to the blog post and leave a comment with your suggestions. ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

James Wallman is an ex-adman and trend forecaster - which doesn’t necessarily sound like Brooke’s typical guest - but when you learn he is also the author of Stuffocation and the person who coined the phrase ‘experientialism’ it starts to make a lot of sense. Brooke and James talk about minimalism’s branding issue and why he thinks that experientialism is the way to make a life of less stuff more appealing to the mainstream. They also look at the overwhelming number of choices we all face each day and why experiences will almost always trump stuff. James also had some ridiculously straightforward advice for Brooke when she admits she sometimes feels so defeated by the rampant consumerism happening across the globe. Such a thought-provoking conversation, sure to raise as many questions as it answers. Enjoy! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This month’s Slow Home Experiment of 30 days of yoga is proving super fascinating. And while they’re only two weeks in, Brooke and Ben are starting to get a glimpse of everything that’s involved (both physically and emotionally) in a regular yoga practice. Before they had actually practiced yoga, Ben and Brooke thought it was all about being zen and chill and effortlessly moving through poses. And while it might well be those things, this week they discover there’s a lot more to it, as they find themselves getting angry on the mat. They also talk about how they’re feeling physically, as well as why they got so ridiculously mad during Day 9’s video! Head over to http://www.slowyourhome.com/55 to see some more progress photos and for links to Adriene’s videos and her youtube channel. Don’t forget, you can play along with Brooke and Ben by tagging your social media posts with #slowhomeexperiment and share your experiences. Hit us up on Facebook, Twitteror Instagram and let’s get experimenting! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Brooke often talks about the importance of taking that first step, rather than focusing on the bigger picture, but what if that first step actually proves to be our downfall? In this episode Brooke chats with Anthony Ongaro of BreakTheTwitch.com about his online shopping addiction, the realisation that it was costing him the life he wanted and what happened when he recognised that “Amazon is the one-click solution to mostly made up problems.” They also talk about intentional living and what it means to break the twitch. But the biggest takeaway is the idea of the false first step - particularly how that first step can very easily prove to be our downfall. When we convince ourselves that buying the book, taking the course or making the shift in our heads is enough, we find ourselves rich in self-help books and low in actual self help. You can find links and show notes over at http://www.slowyourhome.com/54 Enjoy! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Last week Ben and Brooke told you they’d teamed up with the awesome Adriene Mishler of Yoga With Adriene for a new Slow Home Experiment - 30 days of yoga! Now they’re a week in and already feeling the massive benefits of slowing down and doing yoga every day. This week they chat about the initial struggle to get up and out of bed half an hour earlier every day, as well as the inevitable challenge of early-rising kids and dogs who think the yoga mat is nothing more than Belly Rub HQ. They haven’t missed a day yet though and talk about how they’re feeling, which days have been tough (Abs Day, here’s looking at you!) and how they manage to push through even when they’re not feeling it. At. All. Ben's goal is to be able to touch his toes at the end of the month and he's promised to post a progress photo each week, to prove that you don't need to be ultra flexible or experienced in yoga to get the benefits. Head over to http://www.slowyourhome.com/53 to see his progress photos and for links to Adriene’s videos, youtube channel and shorter practices for those days you don’t have a lot of time. Don’t forget, you can play along with Brooke and Ben by tagging your social media posts with #slowhomeexperiment and share your experiences. Hit us up on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram and let’s get experimenting! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A few months ago Brooke received an email from a listener who was struggling with an insanely hectic work life. She’d just listened to an episode of the podcast where a guest suggested people who feel overworked should simply find a way to work fewer hours. And while she understood the meaning behind the advice, it didn’t apply to her life - at all. She asked if there was a way she could use slow living to balance her full-time work with family and external commitments while still living an intentional life. Enter Scott Eblin. Scott is a business and leadership coach who works with senior executives around the globe. He teaches them how to adopt mindfulness into their day-to-day work lives and why it will prove transformational not only in their work, but also their home and personal lives too. Not only has Scott experienced being overworked and overwhelmed himself, he uses mindfulness, yoga and meditation to manage a debilitating neurological disease while working a demanding job. Even if you don’t find yourself struggling with a hectic workplace, there are so many gems in this chat that apply to all areas of life. Brooke and Scott discuss the beauty and importance of taking baby steps every day, the best place to begin and Scott’s ridiculously easy advice to help everyone slow down - right now. You can find links to Scott's books, blog and website, as well as any resources discussed in today's episode over at http://www.slowyourhome.com/52 Enjoy! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Well, crack open the chocolates and pass all the lollies! The no-sugar experiment is over! In this episode, Brooke and Ben talk about the past month’s experience of eating virtually no processed sugar, how they feel now and what they plan on changing now they’re out of the experiment phase. They also answer a couple of questions about the kinds of foods they ate regularly over the past month and walk through what a typical days food looked like. In this show they also talk about the next Slow Home Experiment and what they’re taking on in March. Initially it was going to be a month of limited screen time but the past few weeks has shown them that running a new company and front-loading work for April means this experiment would just set them up to fail. So instead, they’re going back to a change they started in January but fell away from as things got too busy - daily yoga! Adriene Mishler - the awesome lady behind 30 Days of Yoga and Yoga With Adriene - has given us the OK to use her videos as the basis of the experiment, so if you’re keen to play along you can find a link to her videos over at http://www.slowyourhome.com/51 Enjoy! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====  Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

To celebrate episode 50 of the podcast, Brooke and Ben sit down to recap all that’s happened over the last couple of months at Pogpast HQ. It’s been a busy time and they’ve received a lot of emails asking how slow living and self-employment can fit together. Ben gets pretty honest, sharing the challenges as well as the benefits of running his own show, while Brooke also looks at the changes she’s had to make as her workload has increased. The reality is there is no perfect solution, but Ben and Brooke do have a really open conversation about what’s working and what’s not. In today’s hosts-only show, they also answer two really great listener questions that look at the pressure to buy “the best” once we simplify our life, and whether they plan to adopt the Slow Home Experiment changes into their everyday lives once each month is up. As always, you can get today’s episode show notes from http://www.slowyourhome.com/50 Enjoy! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

There’s just one week left in the first Slow Home Experiment and today Brooke and Ben talk about how they’re feeling now that they’ve completed nearly an entire month of eating no processed sugar. They also talk about some of the more interesting reactions they’ve had as a result of this experiment… It’s fascinating to hear what happens when they start talking about food, even in a very experimental, non-judgemental way. Brooke also answers some questions she’s received over the past week that look at her much-loved weekend nap tradition and whether she plans on keeping up the changes as they move in to next month’s experiment. Don’t forget, you can play along with Brooke and Ben by tagging your social media posts with #slowhomeexperiment and share your experiences. Hit us up on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram and let’s get experimenting!   You can find today's show notes at http://www.slowyourhome.com/49 ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

One of the most common requests we receive about the pogpast (apart from more singing from Ben) would have to be to feature more “normal people”. That is, people who don’t work online, haven’t written a book or aren’t teaching others how to slow down and simplify. Because, for the vast majority of people who listen to the podcast, who are balancing work, family, friends, health, home and external commitments, the added tasks of slowing down and simplifying can seem incredibly overwhelming. While listening to people who have already worked through some of the process is helpful, it can also feel a little disconnected. A little like, “Well, that’s great, but it doesn’t actually apply to me.” After talking about this on a previous episode, Ellen reached out to Brooke and volunteered to be on the show and talk about her ongoing work to simplify and slow down. In this episode Brooke and Ellen talk about her decision to slow down, and the impact it had on her work, her colleagues, her family, her health and her home. They also look at the questions she faced and the challenges she has already worked through, as well as the simplifying projects she is currently in the middle of. Be sure to give Ellen some love in the comments and over on her blog too, as it was a really brave choice to come on and share her story with us. Thanks Ellen! As always, you can find the show notes, including links to resources mentioned on today's episode, at http://www.slowyourhome.com/48 ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

We’re more than halfway through the first Slow Home Experiment and Brooke and Ben share how they’re feeling now the cravings and low energy have passed. In this show they talk about the different kinds of foods they’re craving and how they’re feeling both physically and mentally. Ben also gets into the habits side of things - turns out the recent episode with Gretchen Rubin had a big impact on him. For links and show notes head over to http://www.slowyourhome.com/47 Don’t forget, you can play along with the monthly experiments by tagging your social media posts with #slowhomeexperiment and share your experiences. Hit us up on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram and let’s get experimenting!   ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

If you’ve ever tried meditating, only to be constantly frustrated by the thoughts incessantly drifting into your mind, today’s episode is for you. Meditation practitioner Emily Cordes joins Brooke in today’s episode, where they dive into what it actually means to meditate, how to get started, and how living mindfully has helped Emily work through periods of anxiety and depression. They also talk about the realisation that we don’t actually have to believe the thoughts our anxious minds present - a revelation that both Brooke and Emily have come to as a result of therapy, simplicity and mindfulness. This might sound like a heavy episode, but it’s a really uplifting and inspiring conversation with loads of resources and links from Emily, to help everyone try their hand at meditation. To get the show notes and links from today’s episode, head over to http://www.slowyourhome.com/46 Enjoy! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Brooke and Ben continue to sacrifice their bodies and minds for science* in Week 2 of The Slow Home Experiment. In this episode they talk about their first full week of the No Sugar experiment. Turns out they’re feeling much better than a week ago, and seem to be over the worst of the sugar hangover. In this super relaxed episode they chat about a recent bout of illness and whether they think it was related to giving up sugar, their thoughts after watching That Sugar Film and The Great Vodka Debate of 2016. After a week of fairly solid cravings, they both feel like they’re over the worst of it now and are pretty pleased that things have started to feel easier. They talk a little about the mindful side of eating this way and the impact it’s having on other areas of their lives (somewhat unexpectedly!) Don’t forget, you can play along with us by tagging your social media posts with #slowhomeexperiment and share your experiences. Hit us up on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram and let’s get experimenting!   *Not really science. Just Brooke and Ben. ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this ridiculously enlightening episode, Brooke chats with Gretchen Rubin, the New York Times best-selling author of Better Than Before, The Happiness Project and Happier at Home. This show starts out as any other - a regular conversation - in this instance, about happiness and habits and the changes Gretchen is most proud of in her own life. But somewhere around the middle it shifts into something different… A personalised habits counselling session, as Gretchen digs into why Brooke is inclined to take on too many projects and burn out in a big way. They also discuss the Four Tendencies of Habits, and why that means Brooke is less likely to do a morning yoga class by herself, but more likely to turn up if Ben joins her. This is such a fun conversation with plenty of insight into why we do and do not find making changes easy. And for anyone looking to make a shift towards a slower, simpler life, there are plenty of tips and tricks from Gretchen to help you make those changes as seamlessly as possible. Also, in light of the #slowhomeexperiment, Gretchen has some killer insight into why some changes stick while others fall by the way, so if you’re giving up sugar along with Brooke and Ben this February, you’ll definitely want to tune in. For show notes from today's episode, head to http://www.slowyourhome.com/44 ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Today marks the beginning of the Great Slow Living Experiments Experiment! In case you missed it, Ben and Brooke have given their bodies and brains to science* in the name of testing a variety of slow living approaches. Every month they choose one experiment to focus their attention on, and each Monday release a podcast where they talk about their experience to date. And today is the very first one! February sees them giving up processed sugar in an attempt to become more mindful of what they’re eating, as both have been guilty of slipping in to boredom/emotional/habitual eating. It made sense to cut out sugar first, as that’s one of the biggest drivers for mindless eating and one that’s currently very popular. So a few days ago they began. And it wasn’t pretty… *Not really science. Just Brooke and Ben.   Don’t forget, you can play along with us by tagging your social media posts with #slowhomeexperiment and share your experiences. Hit us up on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram and let’s get experimenting! For today's show notes, links and resources, visit http://www.slowyourhome.com/43 ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support it, leave a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to the Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The first non-McAlary podcast guest of 2016 is the delightful Stacey Roberts of Veggie Mama, and honestly, I couldn’t think of a better way to spend an hour on a rainy Friday morning. We talk about negative relationships and why they drove her to learn about mindfulness, what she’s learnt from a decades-long meditation practice, and the negative thought patterns both of us have had to break free of and how living a simpler, more intentional life has helped with that. We also talk about the importance of saying no, having fun and what ‘pretty minimalism’ looks like. Don’t forget that next week we start publishing two shows a week (I know! Exciting!) and next Monday we kick off our first month-long experiment by giving up sugar. If you want to play along with us, head over to Facebook or Twitter and tag your posts with #slowhomeexperiment. For today's show notes and links to Stacey's blog and social media, visit http://www.slowyourhome.com/42 ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support us, leave us a rating or a review in iTunes (https://itunes.apple.com/au/podcast/slow-home-podcast-brooke-mcalary/id985005895?mt=2) or head over to our Patreon page (http://www.patreon.com/slow) to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! xx ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Welcome to the first episode of 2016! In today’s show Ben and Brooke talk about rhythms and why this time of year is the perfect opportunity to hit the reset button, rethink your priorities and recalibrate your time. Resetting and rethinking are super relevant for Brooke and Ben this year, as over the holidays they made some huge life decisions that are going to see pretty much everything change. They talk some more about what those decisions are and how they’re both feeling in the face of such massive shifts. They also acknowledge the fact that all these changes might not seem very ‘slow’, how they make it work within the framework of living a slower, more intentional life and why this isn’t really a paradox. EXCITING NEWS: From February 1, The Slow Home Podcast will be published twice every week, with a new style show on Monday and the regular show on Thursdays. Mondays will see Brooke and Ben diving into monthly experiments in different areas of slow living (things like quitting processed sugar, daily mediation and screen lockouts) and they talk a little more about how you can get involved too. Enjoy today’s episode and head over here for your show notes:  http://www.slowyourhome.com/41 ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support us, leave us a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to our Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! xx ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

  We’re rounding out the year with a final hostful, where Ben and Brooke chat about the year that’s been, some highlights, some very exciting future plans, and answer three most excellent listener questions. (They were also interrupted approximately eleventy billion times while recording, so if they seem a little crazy - that’s part of the reason. The other part is that they're like that all the time.) The questions tackled in this episode are related to: - finding a balance between community service and living a slower life- how to avoid the ‘all or nothing’ tendency once we start to explore slow living- how to balance extra-curricular activities with a slower family life As always, there are rarely straightforward answers to any of these questions, which is what makes it so juicy and interesting to talk about. It’s hard to believe this is the final episode for 2015. It’s been such a cracking year, and we’re so incredibly grateful for everyone who’s listened, shared, rated or reviewed the show since we launched in April. Massive thanks to you, from us! Enjoy and head over here to find this episode's show notes >> http://www.slowyourhome.com/40 ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support us, leave us a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to our Patreon page to help support the show financially. Thanks so much for listening!  ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

http://www.slowyourhome.com/39 Have you ever found yourself eating your way through a block of chocolate, despite the fact you stopped enjoying it a while ago? Or ordered the big plate of hot chips even though you know you’lll feel bloated and heavy and low on energy in thirty minutes time? So why do we do it? Why do we repeatedly eat food that we know will leave us feeling depleted? That’s what I unpack today with my guest, Ali Wright, a nutritionist who turned her own health around after reaching a crisis point just a few years ago. What I love most about this chat is that it’s not about dieting or following a certain food trend, and it’s certainly not about deprivation. Instead, Ali and I talk about the idea of ‘crowding out’ foods that don’t benefit us, with more of the foods that do. The focus is also not on weight loss or fitting some arbitrary vision of health and wellness, but rather on eating well to be well. Refreshing, right? Enjoy x ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support us, leave us a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to our Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! xx ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Bea Johnson is a guru of zero waste living. Her family of four produce barely enough rubbish to fit into a small glass jar - every year - and she now spends time teaching others how to reduce waste and live simpler, more sustainable lives. She also has a kick-ass accent. Coming in to this conversation Brooke was expecting to walk away feeling overwhelmed and a little inadequate. Not because of Bea herself - she’s delightful - but because the subject of zero waste living has always seemed so all-consuming. So all or nothing. But it takes her only a few minutes to realise she needn’t have worried. As Bea and Brooke got chatting, she realised that creating a zero waste life is really similar to creating a slow, simple life - it’s something created over months and years. Change by change, day by day, one improvement at a time. Bea has a way of talking about these changes that seem completely do-able (and actually preferable) and Brooke walked away from this conversation feeling even more keen to ramp up her efforts to live a simpler, more sustainable life. Hopefully you will too. Enjoy! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support us, leave us a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to our Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! xx ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

http://www.slowyourhome.com/37 Mark Shapiro is a big fan of authenticity. In fact, he quit his job in television earlier this year to spend time teaching people how to live an authentic life. And what he’s discovered is that we humans play it safe. We stick very closely to whatever it is we “should” be doing, even if it means ignoring the truth of who we are and what would make us happy. Mark and I chat really honestly about the obstacles and changes in our lives, the stories we tell ourselves and what happened when we realised the “all” we had worked so hard to have wasn’t actually going to make us happy. I walked away from this conversation with a completely new outlook on what it is to live authentically and after he edited it, Ben told me that this is one of his favourite shows of the year! Enjoy x ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support us, leave us a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to our Patreon page to become a patron of the show and help support it financially. And thanks so much for listening! xx ====  Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

http://www.slowyourhome.com/36 When people used to ask Rachel Macy Stafford just how she managed to fit so much into her life, she took it as a compliment. But as her world began crashing down around her, she realised just how much ‘having it all’ was actually costing her. In today’s episode I ask Rachel about the moment she realised things needed to change and how giving just 10 minutes of undistracted time to her family was enough to turn things around.  We also talk about people pleasing and the modern day myth that busyness equals success. This show is full of big moments of realness - just like Rachel’s writing - and there’s a lot in this conversation that I’ve been revisiting over the past couple of weeks. Enjoy! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support us, leave us a rating or a review in iTunes  or head over to our Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! xxJoin The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

http://www.slowyourhome.com/35 Linda Esposito is a psychotherapist who’s passionate about helping stressed out, sleep deprived adults, angry teens and their frustrated parents. When I sat down with her recently we wound up talking about depression, social media, the power of disconnecting and the importance of routine. We also chat about the work she does with mindfulness, how we can learn to better manage our stress and why she’s determined to reduce the 46+ million Xanax prescriptions written each year in the US. It’s really interesting to get an insight into the clinical research into living a slower, simpler, more mindful life because so often it feels like the slow movement has been co-opted by commercial brands and turned into a trend. Talking about the real world benefits of it with someone who sees the result daily was fascinating. Enjoy! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support us, leave us a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to our Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! xxJoin The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

http://www.slowyourhome.com/34 Sometimes I’ll have a conversation with a guest that leaves me feeling like I’ve spent an hour chatting with a friend, and today’s episode with Jen Hansard - one half of the dynamic Simple Green Smoothies duo - is one of them. Jen and I talk about the massive success of Simple Green Smoothies and the brand new book (out today!) but we also talk about the health crises that started it all. Like a lot of us, Jen was addicted to coffee and getting by on a diet high in processed food. Her energy was flagging and she found herself and family constantly sick. It wasn’t until she was forced to make big changes to her family’s diet that she really recognised the impact our food has on our health and well being. The Simple Green Smoothies movement grew from there and now the girls are rockstars of wellness. But we also talk about balance and being realistic in the changes we make, why there's always room for Pizza Fridays, the importance of community and Jen’s favourite smoothie recipe. I also share my non-recipe for a go-to breakfast smoothie that looks disgusting but tastes amazing. (And now I’m hungry.) Enjoy! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support us, leave us a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to our Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! xx ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

http://www.slowyourhome.com/33 This is a special bonus episode of the show, featuring a chat I recently had with Joshua Becker of Becoming Minimalist. Joshua and his wife have just launched The Hope Effect - a charity designed to revolutionise orphan care. To be honest, I had no real idea of the difficult and damaging environment many young orphaned children are brought up in, and once I heard Joshua's reasons and the plan behind The Hope Effect, I absolutely had to share it with you. Today we talk about the work of The Hope Effect, what made them decide to start a charity (which is a story of great generosity in itself) and how you can get involved this holiday season. Take a listen, check out The Hope Effect and share this episode with your friends and family. Enjoy! PS. If you'd like to take part in fundraising for Homes for the Holidays, head here and contribute to the campaign! Try giving the gift of hope this holiday season. Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

http://www.slowyourhome.com/32 This week it’s hostful time, where we do our best to answer your listener questions. This week Ben even sings. It’s a beautiful thing. Fortunately though, this was our first time recording with a two-mic set up (we’re so professional) so Ben’s mic is a little quiet. We’ve done our best to shift the levels around and it should be fine but if things sound a little different, that’s why. We spend this week’s episode answering a handful of great questions straight from you, including: - How can I find support and guidance in my local area, particularly from those looking to live a similarly slow, simple life?- Can you give us an insight into your daily life? - Any tips for the upcoming holidays, especially the social engagements with friends and colleagues?- What have you found to be the biggest advantage or the most rewarding aspect of slow living? - Can you suggest some other podcasts in a similar vein to the Slow Home Podcast? It’s a great group of questions and I think we've got some good answers for you, in amongst the singing and general silliness. Enjoy! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support us, leave us a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to our Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! xx ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

http://www.slowyourhome.com/31 Everyone’s path to a simpler life unfolds differently, but as I’ve been interviewing guests for the podcast and talking to more and more people about their stories, it’s becoming clear that there are common points in most tellings. Common realisations as we strip away the excess, the clutter, the stress and the stuff. One of the most common is the desire to simplify the food we eat and the products we use, simply because of the impact they’re having on our well being. It’s so often that we come to un Today I chat with Alexx Stuart, low-tox living expert, about the changes we can make to our food and many of our everyday products, and the impact these changes can have on our well being. We look at the first steps anyone can take to make the shift towards a low-tox life, and also talk about guilt and how to move past the fear of being “too far gone” to make any significant changes. It’s an information-packed episode with loads of resources for you to check out after, so be sure to head over here to check out the show notes, including links to Alexx’s upcoming ecourse, as well as her recommended books and documentaries. Enjoy! ==== If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support us, leave us a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to our Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! xx ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

http://www.slowyourhome.com/30 Many people dream of making the shift from hectic city life to somewhere slower paced, and I can’t help but feel this has become the expected move for those adopting a simpler life. But it totally doesn’t need to be the case. Today I chat with Rachel Jonat who has just moved her family of five from The Isle of Man (a relatively small and remote island in the Irish Sea) back to inner-city Vancouver, and life is just as, if not more simple now. Cities have a whole lot going for them when it comes to slow living, and today we talk about the benefits of living in a city as opposed to a small community. Rachel and I also talk about minimalism-lite and how it plays out with three young boys, why she loves over-the-top birthday parties and what her world-champion rowing career taught her about living a non-conventional life. There was lots for me to think about after this conversation - particularly about things like fear, failure, experimenting and honesty - and I really hope you get as much from it as I did! Enjoy! ====If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support us, leave us a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to our Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! xx ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

http://www.slowyourhome.com/29 Travel has been a part of my life for a really long time, so chatting with this week's guest, Tsh Oxenreider, was such a joy. Tsh has just returned home after a year-long round the world trip with her husband and 3 kids and - not surprisingly - we spend a good chunk of today's episode talking about it. We chat about the different types of long-term travel - both slow travel and ‘hurry up and see all the sights’ travel - as well as how to make it work with a family. We look at packing, toys and the things that surprised her most about being on the road for such a long time, and we also talk about the different parenting styles they encountered along the way. Honestly, this episode gave Ben and I a big dose of itchy feet, so be warned that you may just find yourself perusing airline deals later today. (Not that we did anything of the sort, of course. Ahem.) Enjoy! ====If you're enjoying the show and want to know how to best support us, leave us a rating or a review in iTunes or head over to our Patreon page to help support the show financially. And thanks so much for listening! xx ====Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

http://www.slowyourhome.com/28 Time for another hostful episode and today Ben and I are answering two really excellent listener questions. The first is from a busy mum who is trying to find time to live a slow life - in spite of the constraints of family, work and life. The second question is about how best to establish a social network of like-minded people, while not alienating old friends whose lifestyle might be significantly different to our own. These are such cracking questions and we go back and forth a lot with both, as neither of them has an answer as such. Like so much of slow and simple living, it’s about what works for you rather than what works for ‘everyone’ (whoever ‘everyone’ is). I’m also loathe to give a one size fits all answer, because they’re so dissatisfying to me. I love that there’s more than one way to approach these issues and endlessly differing points of view. Enjoy our chat, and don't forget to head over to the Facebook page if you have a question you'd like answered on an upcoming hostful episode. Also, if you haven't yet subscribed to the show be sure to head over to the iTunes store and subscribe or leave us a rating/review. Doing so helps others discover the show and spread the idea of slow living even further! Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

http://www.slowyourhome.com/27 Is there such a thing as fast slow food? Today’s guest, Jules Clancy of The Stone Soup believes there is, and she’s made it her mission to create and share recipes that are healthy, tasty, fast, easy and have just 5 ingredients. In today’s episode we talk about how to create simple, easy meals, but we also look at the impact minimalism has had on Jules’ life, beyond the culinary simplicity she practices. We dig in to her love of experimentation and also look at how decluttering lead to quitting her job and leaving the corporate world. As the mum of a toddler, Jules has some excellent insight into dealing with the dreaded fussy eating stage and gives some tips on how to avoid the whole ‘make two dinners every night’ issue. She also talks about meal planning, getting the most out of your time in the kitchen and what staples she always has on hand - for those nights it’s really too hard to cook. I absolutely loved this conversation (despite the horrible delay we had to contend with - please excuse any crappy audio!) and came away re-energised to try new things in the kitchen and put in an extra 30 minutes prep time on a Sunday, to set ourselves up well for the week ahead. Enjoy!Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

http://www.slowyourhome.com/26 In today’s episode, I’m the annoying person talking about Christmas - in September.  While the holidays are still a few months away, I’ve been asked whether it’s possible to maintain a slower, simpler way of life in the face of the consumerism-driven Christmas of the modern day, and I think it’s a question many people will have over the coming weeks. So I thought now might be good time to start thinking about it. (Sorry!)  I have my own thoughts on this topic, naturally, and I dive right down into them in this episode, talking about my experiences as a kid, as well as our approach to gift giving now that we have our own kids to buy for.  But my ideas are just that - mine. There’s so many different ways to approach the holiday season, so I invited Bele Masterman back to chat about her views on giving and receiving, whether re-gifting is OK, how to buy second-hand and what to do if a gift is unwanted.  We also talk about how best to manage our kids expectations, how to deal with family and friends who love giving gifts and how to let go of the guilt that comes with a sentimental present.  Enjoy! PS: This episode is a bit longer than normal, and we’d love to know if the length is something you enjoy or if you prefer to keep them shorter - around the 50-minute mark.    Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

http://www.slowyourhome.com/25 Sometimes I have a conversation that is so honest and open it floors me. Today’s episode is one of those. Sam Lustgarten writes about frugal living, but he and I dive in to a whole lot more than that.  We talk about how he fell into debt in college, and how spending money on stuff became a much-desired distraction as he moved through a difficult personal time. We also look at the first crucial steps that Sam took to start getting out of debt and live a simpler, more frugal life. Debt can be such a shameful, emotional burden to carry around, but Sam shows how being honest, open and vulnerable can actually lessen the burden and free us up to pay it off (and keep it off).  What I loved about this chat was that Sam never shied away from answering the tricky questions, and as a result I felt myself opening up and talking about our own issues with money and debt.  Enjoy!  Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

http://www.slowyourhome.com/24 Is slow living really accessible to people who live in cities? This is a question I'm asked a lot and today’s guest, William Powers, is the perfect person to ask. Bill's most recent book, New Slow City, explores what it means to live slow in one of the world’s most hectic cities - New York.  He and his wife spent a year living in a micro-apartment in Manhattan, and Bill set about to cut back his work schedule to just 2 days a week. I loved hearing not only about the slow year Bill and his wife lived in New York, but also the changes they've made since and what took them to move to a Transition Town in Bolivia.  Such a great conversation, and I hope you enjoy it! Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

http://www.slowyourhome.com/23 Today's guest is my lovely husband Ben, and while hostful episodes are usually about us answering listener questions, today I interview him about our journey from stressed-out to slow living. We also look at the major benefits from his perspective, and how his idea of success and a life well-lived have changed.  As the one who was the driving force behind slowing down, it was actually really interesting for me to hear Ben’s perspective. And undoubtedly, the pressures he feels are different to the ones I’ve felt, so it was fascinating to hear him talk about what he fears, and the obstacles that still stand in his way.  We also give each other a fair amount of crap, so don’t go thinking our relationship is all deep conversations and time spent delving into each other’s innermost thoughts. Lots of fart jokes in this house.  Enjoy today’s episode, and rest assured that next week we’ll be back to guests outside the family and (fingers crossed) I will no longer sound like Tom Waits.   Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

http://www.slowyourhome.com/22 In today’s episode, I chat with Cait Flanders about her journey towards a debt-free life, and honestly, it’s a delightful kick in the pants for any of us who may not be on friendly terms with our money.  Over the past 3 years Cait has paid off over $30,000 in consumer debt, adopted minimalism (you’ll find that these two are very closely related!) travelled extensively through North America and recently quit her full-time job to work as a freelancer.  She’s also completely shifted her ideas on what ‘success’ looks and feels like, put herself on a two-year shopping ban and learnt to value experiences over things, slow over fast and long-term gain over short-term pleasure.  We look at why and how Cait started making changes, and she takes us through the rules of her shopping ban.  In short, this episode will inspire your socks off!  Enjoy. Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

http://www.slowyourhome.com/21 In today's episode I chat with Kelly Exeter - a writer, business-owner, full-time employee, mum, wife and fellow simplicity-seeker. She and I are also ridiculously, remarkably alike in terms of personality and the circumstances that led us to pursue a slower, simpler life.  In this conversation we talk about the anxiety and depression that forced her to slow down, why she now builds deliberate inefficiencies into her day, the myth of finding work/life balance and the “traffic light system” that allows her to decide whether she’s doing life well over time.  Kelly and her husband both work full-time, so I also asked her the question I’m posed a lot but don’t necessarily feel qualified to answer: “Is slow and simple living only accessible to single income families or those with one parent working from home?”  There are so many nuggets of wisdom scattered throughout today's episode and I hope you enjoy it!  Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

http://www.slowyourhome.com/20 As usual, the first show of the month is a hostful episode!  I’m always excited to share these conversations, but one of the questions we try to answer today had me talking in circles. And while I did my best trying to articulate my thoughts on what is a really complex topic, I'm not sure I did a good job.  Let me know what you think after you listen to us try to answer these listener questions: How do I deal with friend or relationship clutter?   Is there room in the life of a working parent to pursue slow living? Or is it solely the domain of the single-income family? Before we dive into answering these sticky questions though, Ben and I sit and chat a little about life now that I’ve stopped blogging. Things feel lighter and infinitely more positive now that I’ve lessened the amount of online work I’m doing. I genuinely hadn’t realised how much my mental and physical health had been suffering until I slowed down and stepped back. All in all, life is good and living a little slower has made it even better.  Enjoy the show! Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

http://www.slowyourhome.com/19  In this episode I chat with Rhonda Hetzel, the much-loved godmother of slow, simple living in both Australia and around the world. Rhonda is the author of two hugely popular books on creating a slower, simpler home and has an incredible amount of wisdom to share. We look at her personal journey and talk about those first years as she started to shift her family's lifestyle away from excessive consumption, busy-ness and stress. We also dig into her advice for those of us just beginning the process.  It was really fascinating to look back at Rhonda's story, because when we see someone who is living their slow dream, it's hard to imagine they ever lived any differently. I loved how open Rhonda was to sharing her process and personally learnt a lot about the power of simply being patient.    The truth is, we all need to start somewhere. Enjoy!Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

http://www.slowyourhome.com/18 How does a comic book collector (and I’m talking serious collector with thousands of comics, DVDs and action figures) become a minimalist? And what causes such a big change?  Today I chat with Jeff Sandquist, ex-chiropractor and comic book collector, and present-day writer, speaker and wanderer, about the journey he’s taken over the past 2 years.  Jeff used to be a legitimate collector. He had thousands of comic books, DVDs and action figures, which he’d been collecting and keeping in mint condition since his teens.  In today’s episode we talk about his snap decision to not only stop collecting, but to let go of it all. What caused the change? How hard was it to let go? Does he regret it? What does he think caused him to collect in the first place?  We also dig in to the wider changes Jeff has made in his life over the past couple of years, and the impact minimalism has had on his work, his world view and the things he values. Enjoy listening to Jeff’s story (and maybe a little nerding out over The Walking Dead). Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

http://www.slowyourhome.com/17 In today’s episode I chat with Kristen Ottaway, a health and well being advocate based in Brisbane.  When I initially contacted Kristen to appear on the show, she questioned whether her life was actually slow or simple enough to qualify, but as you’ll see during our conversation, she has made huge changes over the past few years and is now living a significantly slower, simpler life than she recognised.   We chat about how that happened - how she got out of debt, downsized, started a business and created a community of like-minded people who have been instrumental in her making and maintaining big changes in her life. Enjoy!Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

http://www.slowyourhome.com/16 In today’s episode I sat down to talk with Eric Zimmer - the man behind one of my favourite podcasts, The One You Feed.  Eric was such a delightful, insightful person to talk to, and while Ben gives me grief for saying this too often, I genuinely could have sat and chatted with him for hours.  We talk about his podcast and the stunning parable that gives the show its name, his unexpected thoughts on social media and its role in our dissatisfaction, comparison and perfectionism, as well as how to create and maintain habits in the best and easiest possible way.  Once you’ve listened to our conversation, I’d definitely urge you to go and check out The One You Feed in iTunes - you won’t regret it!    In the meantime though, enjoy the show. Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

http://www.slowyourhome.com/15 It’s time for another hostful episode!  Ben and I have a ridiculous amount of fun recording these host-only episodes and I really love the opportunity to answer listener questions in a relaxed, non-posturing kind of way.  We inadvertently themed today's three questions around other people. Or more specifically, how to approach slow, simple living while living with and taking into consideration the needs and desires of other people.  These questions are thought-provoking and also quite common and I do my best to answer them: How can I create a slower home with less “stuff” when my spouse isn’t on the same wavelength? How can I simplify large amounts emotionally-charged clutter, like kids artworks? How do I shift my thinking about "stuff" and what constitutes clutter as my children grow and develop their own interests and tastes? One really important part of slow living is acknowledging that everyone's path is different - what works for one person may not work for another. For this reason I'm always hesitant to offer specific advice, but would rather ask questions that get you thinking about what works best for you. Hopefully today's episode will help do that. Enjoy!   Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

http://www.slowyourhome.com/14 Much like ‘mindfulness’, ’neuroplasticity’ is a buzz word we’re seeing more and more of in the health/wellness world. And this makes my guest today incredibly happy.   Dr. Sarah McKay is a neuroscientist, health writer, TedX speaker, surfer, Kiwi and mum, and is thrilled that people are starting to pay attention to what’s happening in our brains. In today’s episode, Sarah and I talk about the science of napping (yes! there is now a scientific reason for you to indulge in an afternoon siesta!) and its impact on our brain health.  And while I’m obviously no neuroscientist, we did discover a lot of similarities in our personal stories, which made me feel more intelligent simply by association. I’ll take it where I can, and I hope you enjoy the show! ------ Today’s episode is sponsored by audible.com. Get a free audiobook of your choosing (there are over 180,000 to choose from) by visiting www.audibletrial.com/slow  Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

http://www.slowyourhome.com/13 Today’s guest is such a delight. Nina Nelson is a mum, writer and entrepreneur who happened to live with her family (of six!) in a converted school bus. We chat about a whole lot of things, including the pressure that simple living can put on people to maintain a certain way of life, the process she went through to cull her family's belongings before moving into the bus, and the reasons they eventually returned to a "regular" home (for the time being at least).  I also reveal what type of unconventional home I'd love to live in, and our kids make their first podcast appearance.  Enjoy! And please don't forget to leave a rating or a review if you're enjoying the show.  Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

http://www.slowyourhome.com/12  One of the biggest questions I have of the minimalism movement is a somewhat unexpected one: What happens to the world’s economies if we all stopped buying stuff?  Like it or not, many of the planet’s economies are built, at least in part, on ever-growing levels consumption, so it makes sense that a decrease in buying stuff would have a big impact on things like wealth, employment, government spending, infrastructure…  Honestly, it’s one of the few questions I’m asked that make me uncomfortable. Which is why today’s conversation with Donnie Maclurcan is such an interesting one.  Donnie is the co-founder of The Post Growth Institute and is a vocal advocate for a new economy. He is also an Affiliate Professor of Social Science at Southern Oregon University, and one of the most interesting guests I’ve had the pleasure of interviewing. I came away from our chat feeling hopeful and light and significantly more aware of the issues our world is going to face in the coming years. There is a whole heap of food for thought in this episode, and I really hope you enjoy it.   Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

http://www.slowyourhome.com/11  Today is the first of our hostful Q&A shows and Brooke is doing her best to answer three listener questions: How do I deal with the negative judgements (both internal and external) that come with slowing down and simplifying my life? How can I integrate outdoor play and exploration into every day life? What books have helped in your journey towards a slower, simpler life? Plus, Brooke may or may not go on a small rant about the personification of our stuff and why it’s harming our ability to let go.  Today's show format is a little different, and hopefully it’s something you enjoy. We certainly enjoyed sitting down and recording a full show together.  If you have any questions about slowing down or simplifying, we’d love to answer your question on our next Q&A show. Simply head over to http://www.slowyourhome.com/qa and ask away.  In the meantime, enjoy the show!  Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

http://slowyourhome.com/10  In today’s show I sit down with the delightful Courtney Carver of Project 333 and Be More With Less. Aside from her work as a simplicity writer, Courtney is also a photographer, wife, mother and traveller. She also happens to live with a diagnosis of MS, which is something we talk about in our conversation today. Aside from talking about the benefits of a smaller wardrobe, we also dig into her decision to adopt minimalism after her MS diagnosis, how her husband and daughter reacted to the changes, and the weird place I like to keep my jeans.  As the founder of minimalist wardrobe challenge Project 333, Courtney has helped thousands of people experience the massive benefits of living with less stuff.  Fewer clothes means less stress, less waste, less clutter, less time standing in front of an overstuffed wardrobe while declaring we have nothing to wear. In essence, it's just another example of how we stand to benefit from simplifying and slowing right down, even when it feels counter-cultural to do so. I hope you enjoy our conversation as much as I did!   Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

http://slowyourhome.com/9   Carl Honoré is one of the most well known advocates for the Slow Movement and the author of three books, including the international best-seller, ’In Praise of Slow’. He is also a celebrated TED speaker, traveller, father and husband.    In today’s conversation he and I dig in to what life was like for him and his family pre-slow and what first steps he took to create a slower, more mindful life. It’s a really interesting look at the pressures we all live under in today’s hectic, results-driven society and how any one of us can adopt the idea of ‘good slow’ into our lives.    Neither Carl nor I believe that busy and slow are mutually exclusive and its fascinating to talk to someone who so passionately advocates a slower way of life while living in a fast-paced city like London.      I hope you enjoy our conversation! Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

http://slowyourhome.com/8 - Today I chat to Katie Clemons, a pilot, writer, journal-maker, mother, wife and all-round lovely human.  We dig in to the time she and her husband spent living in Germany and the impact that had on her simple living ways, as well as the home they now live in - a tiny house inside an airplane hangar! It’s also fascinating to learn how Katie’s training as a pilot has impacted her life in very unexpected ways.    Enjoy!Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

http://slowyourhome.com/7 - Joshua Becker is a writer, a father, and a self-described regular suburban family man, only without the dog and the garage full of stuff. As the writer behind hugely successful blog, Becoming Minimalist, I’m quite certain you know a little about him. I know he’s been one of the biggest influences in my life as I worked to slow down and simplify and I know he has impacted hundreds of thousands of other people in similarly powerful ways.    In today’s episode we talk about what made him realise that the life he was living wasn’t fulfilling in the ways he expected it would be, as well as the impact blogs, Facebook, Instagram and the like are having on our expectations of what a “successful life” looks like.    I asked Joshua if he ever feels as though his work in encouraging people to simplify is actually adding to our anxiety - whether we now feel we need to keep up with a different, less materialistic but ultimately still aspirational set of Joneses - and his thoughts on this really fascinated me.    I hope you enjoy listening in to our chat about life, family, clutter and the new Joneses as much as I enjoyed taking part in it. Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

http://www.slowyourhome.com/6 - In this episode, I chat with Cybele Masterman of Blah Blah Magazine. Cybele is passionate about sustainable, simple living and creating a more mindful life for her young family. She is also killer with the DIY home and body care, and shares a recipe for a homemade, all-natural coffee body scrub that freaked Ben out.    During our chat we talk about the joys of slowing down and paying attention to our surroundings, the difference between mindless consumption and mindfully choosing what to bring in to our lives, and why I personally don’t think comic books are clutter.  Enjoy! *Audio Note: I’ve been having some ongoing issues with recording interviews, which are making guests’ audio a little fuzzy in places. Please know that I’m working to rectify this and I’ve done all I can to minimise the fuzz in today’s interview.*Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

http://slowyourhome.com/5 - When it comes to routine versus rhythm, it’s rhythm all the way for me.  In today’s show (another solo outing to round out our big launch week) I talk about the difference between rhythm and routine, and why I think it’s important to apply the friendlier notion of rhythm to our days. Shifting into a rhythmic approach has been one of the best changes I’ve made to my life over the past few years and I feel like I actually get more done (most days) than if I was to apply a regimented routine to my days. Later in the episode I also take a look at what my morning rhythm looks like at the moment, why I wake up at 4am and what I manage to get done before other members of my family wake up. I hope you’ve enjoyed the first week of the show as much as I have loved bringing it to you! After today’s episode I will be releasing a new podcast every Thursday morning (Australian time) so be sure to subscribe to the show and don’t miss out.Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

http://slowyourhome.com/4 - Episode 4 of our massive launch week, and this episode is a solo show. Just me, you, my mic and some thoughts on slow living.  In this episode I dig in to what I mean when I talk about slow living. That is, what do proponents of slow living actually do differently, what is important and what isn’t important. I also round out the show with a list of 9 massive benefits of slowing down and living a simpler life.  Grab a cup of something and enjoy. Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

http://slowyourhome.com/3 - We’re halfway through our epic launch week, and in this episode I get the opportunity to chat with Rebecca Shann, a writer, photographer, gardener and permaculture designer.  Bec is someone I connected with via Instagram a couple of years ago, as I was immediately drawn to both the incredible photos of her vegetable garden as well as her philosophy on living a simpler life. I knew we would hit it off immediately, even though this was the first time she and I have ever actually spoken! We talk about her journey from corporate, suburban life to living in a tiny home and running a thriving market garden, as well as the benefits of slowing down and paying attention.    Enjoy! Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

http://slowyourhome.com/1 - Welcome to the first episode of The Slow Home Podcast! In today's show we're going to spend a little time getting to know each other.  Learn about what lead me to discover and adopt a simpler way of life and gain some insight into what it's like to live with a minimalist.    Enjoy! Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

http://slowyourhome.com/2 - Today I chat with Joel Zaslofsky, one of the most interesting, organised humans I have ever met. Joel is a spreadsheet aficionado who uses his data wrangling skills not to bore himself to sleep but instead to create a richer, more vibrant life. He is a huge advocate for the process known as 'experience curating' and we get into it in today's show.  We also dig in to Joel's journey from gaming addict to renaissance man, his struggles with learning to slow down and simplify (interestingly, dealing with clutter was not one of his obstacles) and his work to create a community of people who want to embrace a simpler, slower way of life.    This was such a great conversation and I hope you enjoy it as much as I did! Join The Tortoise Community: https://brookemcalary.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.