Cliff Harvey, clinical nutritionist, researcher, and author, shares his top seven mental wellbeing tips and routines for steadier days.
Many years ago, when he was a kid, he was diagnosed with depression before that diagnosis was changed to bipolar disorder. Cliff recalls profound depressive episodes, the contrast of feeling great on stage in front of 300 people, and the mornings when he couldn’t get out of bed, stories that echo what we publish on the PREKURE blog and align with WHO mental wellbeing guidance about building foundations before crisis hits.
You can dive deeper into these mental wellbeing tips through the PREKURE Mental Health Coach Programme, which expands on Cliff’s lived experience.
Table of contents
Seven top mental wellbeing tips
1. Practice mindfulness
Through the process of learning about his diagnosis, Cliff had to develop tools to maintain balance in his life. Without realising it, he set the foundation for mental wellbeing when he was young. His dad ran marathons and started doing yoga; as a three-year-old, Cliff copied the poses, read the same books, and fell in love with mindfulness.
While having techniques that you can use when you’re low can be helpful, what’s more important is setting the foundation when you’re feeling good, because then you’ll bounce back easier.
Those meditative practices were in place before he fell into depression. He doesn’t necessarily meditate every day, but he knows that mindfulness is always there when he needs it.
2. Create a morning routine
Cliff calls himself a creature of habit. Structure gives him freedom within the structure: two big glasses of water, a decaf coffee after quitting caffeine-induced anxiety, a hard workout, and a solid protein shake that keeps his mood steady. The first thing he does during the workday is write, whether journaling, clearing his head, or contributing to research, and that early win anchors the rest of the day.
3. Set three mission-critical tasks
Instead of staring at a to-do list with a hundred items, he sets three mission-critical tasks in the evening for the next day. Once they’re complete, he can finish for the day, rest, or keep going. If he’s feeling low or fatigued, those three tasks still give him permission to recover.
4. Do some time budgeting
Because he’s a scientist, Cliff wants an evidence-based approach to mental wellbeing. Research shows productivity plateaus somewhere between 30 and 40 hours a week and drops off if we go past 50. That’s why he allocates roughly 20 percent of his time to highly effective work, 6 to 7 focused hours, so he can knock off around 3pm and spend time outside, with his dog, partner, or solo to unwind.
If I’m taking an evidence-based approach to health and I want to be as productive as I can, I shouldn’t be living with ever-extending workdays.
5. Get some sleep
Keeping workdays sustainable means he isn’t up late, protecting sleep. He knows that when we don’t sleep well enough, we make poor food choices, see stress spike, and feel the slides into depression more sharply. Clients often come to him for nutrition but end up reframing social media habits so they can stop doom scrolling at 1am and actually sleep.
When we don’t sleep well enough, we tend to make poor food choices.
6. No social media apps on the phone
Cliff batches communication twice a day, after morning writing and once in the afternoon. He clears emails, checks social media, replies to followers, and then closes the tabs. Plug-ins removing the newsfeed plus keeping apps off his phone eliminate the compulsion to keep scrolling.
7. Keep putting one foot in front of the other
Years ago, a client emailed asking how he stays so present while achieving so much, and he replied, “You’re seeing the facade that is projected.” Cliff knows a few things, but he’s not a guru; everyone has turmoil. The turning point came when he was diagnosed with Crohn’s disease: accept a victim narrative or keep moving. He chose to keep moving forward and reminds us that nobody is entirely good or bad; we’re all working with what we have.
Learn more
Learn more about Cliff Harvey here.
Mental wellbeing tips key takeaways
- Foundations first: Mindfulness, hydration, movement, and writing routines keep him resilient before low moods hit.
- Evidence-based time: Cliff protects productivity by capping focused work hours and guarding sleep.
- Bounded tech: Scheduled communication blocks and no social apps on the phone prevent endless scrolling.
- Keep moving: Diagnoses like Crohn’s become catalysts to put one foot in front of the other.
Support your wellbeing
Want to coach others through routines like these? Explore the PREKURE Health Coach Programme to add compassionate, evidence-based skills.
Need help now?
If you are feeling overwhelmed and don’t know where to turn, or if you fear for someone’s life, reach out immediately.
New Zealand. If life is in danger, call 111. Or go to the nearest hospital emergency department. Or free call or text 1737 any time for support from a trained counsellor.
Australia. If life is in danger, call 000. Or go to the nearest hospital emergency department. Or call 13 11 14 (Lifeline), call 1300 22 4636 (Beyond Blue), call 1300 659 467 (Suicide Call Back Service).
FAQ
Who is Cliff Harvey?
He’s a clinical nutritionist, researcher, and author who has lived with depression, bipolar disorder, and Crohn’s disease.
What are Cliff’s core mental wellbeing tips?
Mindfulness, morning routines, mission-critical tasks, time budgeting, sleep protection, targeted tech use, and simply putting one foot in front of the other.
How does he handle social media?
He batches communication twice daily, uses plug-ins to remove feeds, and keeps social apps off his phone.
Why does he limit work hours?
Because productivity plateaus around 30-40 hours a week, so he works 6-7 focused hours to stay effective and protect recovery.
What role does sleep play in his wellbeing?
Healthy sleep prevents stress spikes and poor food choices, so he avoids late-night work and helps clients curb screen time.
Where can I learn more?
Visit cliffharvey.com and explore PREKURE programmes to apply these routines.
– PREKURE team
