The Slow Home Podcast With Brooke Mcalary

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 #slow

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! ====Support the show.

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! ====Support the show.

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 a

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

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

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! ====Support the show.

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 revie

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&rsquo

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! ====Support the show.

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 i

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! ====Support the show.

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.

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 financi

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 Inst

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 revi

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, y

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 your

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 th

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 rat