Five busy-girl hacks that actually work (designed for Canberrans)
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Let’s face it – everyone is feeling stretched thin at the moment.
Between career demands, social commitments, and that ever-elusive work-life balance, it barely feels like we have time to breathe, let alone experiment with every life hack that pops up on our social media feeds.
Luckily for those who need solutions that deliver real results (not just pretty Instagram Reels), we’ve found five hacks that genuinely work.
We’re talking no fluff, no complicated systems – just practical shortcuts that will help you save time and stay sane. Read on!
Just a little note on semantics: when I say “girl” I mean anyone who identifies that way or has been socialised that way, as women disproportionately shoulder most of the unpaid work in households– from childcare to housework. But this list is for anyone struggling to find balance.
Invest in ready meals
Planning and prepping your meals is one of the best ways to save time during the work week – but for those who would rather poke a pin in their eye than spend hours cooking, there are a few local businesses who can drop restaurant quality meals right at your door.
Dinner’s Ready is a family run Canberra business that is passionate about providing meals to people who love flavour, appreciate quality and want to eat well but don’t have time to cook. Making every meal in small specialist kitchens, from Beef Lasagna to Sunday Roast Chicken and Tadka Dahl with Cumin Rice, they cover all dietary requirements and even offer meal bundles. Who doesn’t want handmade Italian pasta delivered to their house?
Another business is Alpha Fresh – a local home delivery service that allows you to do all of your fresh produce shopping from the comfort of your couch. From meat packs which can be put into the freezer for a rainy day to an all-organic breakfast box, you can get your hands on fruit, vegetables, meat, poultry, eggs, salmon and more. You might have to cook the produce but at least you know it’s fresh – and you don’t even have to get out of your pyjamas to get it.
Squeeze in a 20-minute workout at SpeedFit
A killer workout in only 20 minutes? Say no more. SpeedFit in Kingston is the place to go if you’re looking for a fast, unique workout that makes your muscles work harder without having to break a (big) sweat.
A combination of personal training with the science of Electro Muscle Stimulation (EMS), the concept of SpeedFit is to remove the excuse of ‘not having enough time’ – and with everything from your workout clothes to a delicious electrolyte pre-workout and protein packed post-workout drink supplied during your session, the best part is all you need to do is show up and strap into your suit.
Boosting your body’s voluntary muscle contraction, by extending the muscles’ time under tension, it activates deep muscle tissues and allows you to build your muscle strength and improve your fitness level in a short duration. And with the chance to try two classes for $59.95, it’s worth seeing how it can help you fit in that much needed ‘me’ time.
Treat yourself to a speedy skin treatment
A little bit of pampering can go a long way, and there are a few options in Canberra for when you’re short on time but want to treat yourself to a glow-up.
At Skin Society you can book into a 15-minute Healite LED treatment while (if you have a few more minutes to spare), Skin Wellness Academy offers a 30-minute LED Light Therapy session in their comfy lounge. Think you can’t get a facial in 40 minutes or less? Think again. At Renew Skin, the iS Clinical Harmony Facial is only 20 minutes and is designed to restore hydration balance to the skin while at endota spa in the city you can book into an 30 minute express customised facial.
And the fact that all of these treatments take less time than your lunch break at work is just a bonus, because it means not only will you be glowing, you’ll still have a few minutes to spare.
Make the most of habit stacking
Now this is one productivity hack you can thank us for later. Perfect for anyone who has an overwhelming to-do list or wants to implement new habits but struggles to fit in the time, habit stacking is when you take a current habit you do every day, and stack a new habit on top of it during the dwell time.
For example: wiping down the kitchen bench while brewing your morning coffee, reading while walking on the treadmill or calling a loved one while doing housework. It’s so simple but you’ll feel so accomplished once you implement it into your routine, and it helps to lessen the mental load of trying to balance everything at once.
Use AI to make your life easier
Okay hear us out – AI can be scary, but it can also be an amazing tool. And unless we (especially women) learn to use it properly, it truly could end the world (not that we’re being dramatic or anything). But what this have to do with helping you save time?
Well, according to globally recognised AI consultant, academic and gender advocate Dr Nici Sweaney (who we spoke to here), the more marginalised communities use AI, the more we can change that fate – and the easiest way to do this is to use it for things you don’t actually need your own personal genius to do.
Have no idea what that means? Think all the admin tasks that take up room on your brain that an AI assistant can take care of. From controlling the calendar to writing out your grocery list to turning random thoughts into content, it will save you time in both your personal and professional life. Just remember that AI is only as good as the prompts you give it!
