The Garden That Taught Me to Love Fall

I’ll be honest: I long for the long, lazy days of summer. The late sunsets. The spontaneous walks. That glossy layer of warmth over everything.

But something shifted for me when I stopped clinging to summer and started honoring the expansion and contraction of the year. When I began leaning into the joy of being present—really present—I stopped dreading the turn. I started anticipating it.

My teacher? The garden.

Every August, my tomatoes explode like they’re trying to impress the sun. Then September whispers, and the garden changes its posture. The vines start to slow. Leaves trade glossy green for honest gold. Growth doesn’t stop—it reorganizes. Sugars pull back to the stem, energy returns to the roots, and what’s unnecessary gets released. There’s nothing tragic about it. It’s intelligent. It’s intentional.

Standing there, pruning what’s done and staking what still wants to grow, I realized: Fall isn’t loss. Fall is leadership. It’s the season where you choose what to keep nourishing, what to compost, and what to plant for later. That one reframe—thanks to the garden—turned my annual “goodbye, lover” into a joyful “let’s get ready.”

The Seasonal Reframe (B3 Way)

Become. Be Strong. Be Grateful.

That’s the B3 Way. Here’s how the garden helped me apply it as Fall arrives:

1) Become — Identity before activity

In summer, I’m the explorer. In fall, I become the curator. I ask, “Who do I want to be by December 1?” Calm leader. Present parent. Consistent creator. That identity sets the trellis for the next 90 days.

Micro-ritual (30 seconds):

As I open my calendar each morning: “This Fall, I’m the kind of leader who protects focus, fuels with intention, and ends each day grateful.”

2) Be Strong — Rhythm beats willpower

Strength shows up as repeatable rhythms, not heroic sprints. In the garden, water at the same times, prune at the right moments, harvest when ready, weed (thank goodness less of it) when needed. In life, same idea:

• Two deep-focus blocks per week (90 minutes, devices off).
• Consistent sleep/wake times.
• A few go-to meals that keep my energy steady when days get full.
• One NSDR (non-sleep deep rest) when my brain starts to fray.
• Eliminate the noise and connect to the signal. Less scrolling, more learning.

3) Be Grateful — Endings fuel beginnings

Gratitude composts your day into nutrient-rich learning. I close each night with three very specific gratitudes (a conversation, a small win, a lesson). It’s astonishing how much lighter the next morning feels when you tuck the day in properly.

Evidence-Based Moves that Actually Work (and feel good)

I love simple protocols that keep me centered in Fall—things I can repeat without thinking:

Huberman-inspired “Day Design”

• Morning Light (10–15 minutes): Outside within 30–60 minutes of waking (longer if cloudy). Anchors circadian rhythm, lifts mood, and helps you fall asleep more easily at night.
• Caffeine Timing: Wait 90–120 minutes after waking to avoid the mid-morning crash; avoid caffeine 8–10 hours before bed.
• NSDR / Yoga Nidra (10–30 minutes): Midday reset that restores energy and focus when you’re flagging.
• Evening Dim: Lower lights and screens 60–90 minutes before bed; your brain follows your environment’s light cues.

Cal Newport’s Focus Guardrails

• Time-blocking your week around deep work and batching shallow tasks.
• Single-tasking during your 90-minute block to avoid “attention residue” (the mental drag after switching tasks).

Chris Bailey’s Energy & Intention

• Rule of 3: Define three outcomes for the day and three for the week. If everything goes sideways, hit those.
• Biological Prime Time: Track your energy for two weeks; schedule your hardest work in your personal peak window (mine’s late morning).

A Stoic Nudge (Ryan Holiday)

• Premeditatio malorum: Pre-rehearse the obstacles (late meeting, sugar cravings, bad sleep). Decide your response now so you don’t negotiate later.

A Quiet Standard (Shoghi Effendi)

Fall thrives on rectitude of conduct—trustworthiness, truthfulness, perseverance in small daily acts. It’s character-as-architecture. Show up the same way, especially when no one’s watching.

Garden Principles for Leaders (and for Better Bite Buddy™)

1) Prune for air & light → Prune for attention & energy

Cut three non-essential obligations this month. Create space for what still wants to grow.

2) Stake what’s growing → Schedule what matters

If it’s not time-blocked, it’s not protected. Stake your priorities so they don’t sprawl.

3) Pick the weeds and compost the waste → Extract the lesson

Don’t just drop a bad day—learn from it. A 60-second journal: What worked? What didn’t? What’s the upgrade?

4) Plant for later → Design your winter

Pick one capability to “overwinter” (sleep quality, strength training form, deep-work consistency). Growth can be slow and still be strong.

Where Better Bite Buddy™ fits (your guide, you’re the hero):

• Meal Score in 30 seconds so you stop guessing and start steering.
• Craving-to-Clarity prompt right before you eat: “How do I want to feel two hours from now?”
• Fall Staples inside Better Bite Buddy™: protein-forward, fiber-rich, warm and satisfying (roasted squash, chilis, soups, sheet-pan veg, salmon, Greek yogurt).
• Sunday 10-minute Better Bite Buddy™ review: Spot your lowest-scoring pattern, pick one upgrade for the week.

Because clarity beats cravings. Lose weight with your mind, not your mouth. And make your next bite intentional.

The 14-Day “Intentional Fall Reset”

Keep it light. Keep it repeatable. Keep it human.

Daily (10–30 minutes total + one focus block):

1. Identity + Rule of 3 (2 min): Who am I being? What three outcomes matter today?
2. Morning Light + Movement (10–15 min): Walk if you can; let nature set your clock.
3. One Deep Block (30–90 min): Single task. Devices out of reach.
4. NSDR (10–20 min) if your energy dips.
5. Evening Dim + Gratitude (10 min): Low lights, three gratitudes, plan tomorrow’s top three.

Twice in 14 days:

• Premeditatio malorum on your biggest Fall goal. Write the “if/then” for likely roadblocks.

• pantry refresh: Stock 3 proteins, 3 carbs, 3 veggies you’ll actually eat.

One time:

• Cancel or renegotiate one commitment that doesn’t match who you’re becoming this season.

Inner Critic ➜ Inner Coach (Fall Edition)

• Critic: “It’s getting busy, you’ll start in January.”
• Coach: “Two 90-minute blocks, one NSDR daily, one BBB upgrade a week. Small, repeatable, enough.”
• Critic: “You blew your plan last night.”

Coach: “Great data. Tonight we dim lights earlier, tea before TV, Better Bite Buddy™ snack ready. Back on track.”

That’s not willpower; that’s design.

Try This This Week

• Put two deep-work blocks on your calendar (and defend them).
• Do morning light every day, NSDR on the two hardest days.
• Make one

• Better Bite Buddy™ upgrade (swap your lowest-scoring meal with a Fall staple).
• Write three gratitudes nightly.
• Do a 5-minute premeditatio malorum for your #1 Fall priority.

Your Turn

What are you intentionally letting go of this Fall—and what are you choosing to nourish? Drop it in the comments. I read every one.

CTA Better Bite Buddy™-first):

• Start Better Bite Buddy™ now — Make my next bite intentional. (betterbitebuddy.com)
• ❤️ this if it helped; 🔔 ring the bell to follow; share with a leader who’s ready to harvest this season.
• Curious which “Inner Critic” runs your evenings? (Secondary) Take the quiz and we’ll review it together. https://info.proattitudes.com/inner-critic-intro