How to Work One Day a Week
Do you want to know the most life-changing decision I’ve made since launching my business 2.5 years ago?
I'm not sure if you knew, but in a previous life, I ran an adult education program at my local community college.
I loved the dynamic nature of creating systems to support the over 300 adult GED and English as a Second Language students that came in everyday who had all of the barriers and life happening. I found it challenging and thrilling to lead a team of adjunct instructors with a shoestring staff. And, I loved learning and growing!
New policies, new programming, new curriculum, funding and state changes, constantly new staff - yay adjuncts. It was thrilling. And, exhausting. Sound familiar?
27-year-old me ran around like a chicken with my head cut off, eating out for almost every meal because I "didn't have time to cook," never working out or planning my life and working almost every weekend to write grants, do quarterly reporting and "catch up on emails".
I worked at least 10-12 hours most days (especially during grant-writing season). I'd come in around 6:45 or 7am and often not leave (or take a real "break") until 7:30pm. Many non-profit leaders I’ve met are probably nodding along right about now…
So, why am I not still doing my adult ed director thing?
Burnout. It's real.
And, when I launched Grit HQ, I found my workaholic habits creeping back in! I'd wake up at 4:30am to knock out work, run to meetings all day, and be sitting on the couch working on projects at 10pm. I forgot to eat often.
I had my first wakeup call that this wasn't sustainable when I lost $1,429 in one week because of TYPOs.
Then, as I got more into the Financial Independence and minimalism space and started tracking my time with Toggl, I realized... I NEED TO BE MORE EFFICIENT.
I STARTED SETTING BOUNDARIES AND POLICIES TO GAIN CONTROL OF TIME TIME:
I set a personal policy NOT to take in-person meetings in the mornings at all (this is when I'm most productive).
All of my "regular client meetings" are scheduled every other Tuesday. Almost 100% of Mondays and Thursdays I spend locked in my office (or a remote location) working on client work!
We stopped taking on new clients before we were ready. I keep a waiting list of clients and on-board them when WE ARE READY. So far 100% of wait-listed clients have become Grit HQ clients eventually!
I set phone and email boundaries.
PHONE: I keep it on silent and switched my voicemail to basically say "EMAIL OR TEXT ME" if you want a quick response.
EMAIL: I set aside 30-minute blocks twice a day - when I need a break and am least productive - to get to email zero instead of responding here and there throughout the day.In general, I just SAY NO to most things that command my in-person time if (1) it doesn't bring me pure joy or (2) it's not directly aligned with my quarterly business or blog goals.
During my August speaking tour last year, I took the opportunity to give a Decatur Public Library TedX presentation.
“I started writing down the quarterly goals for all the sectors of my life, and if there was something that didn’t align with that…
I’d say NO
because it got me off track.”
I hope to see you at one of my trainings (or you can alway catch my upcoming trainings live on Facebook).
Until then, do better!
