How are you spending your time?

Last week I received a phone call from a client asking me how I manage to fit everything into my week whilst having a positive and happy energy vibe. This got me thinking, I’m currently managing over eight active client projects, new business pitches/proposals, and team staffing on the work front. On the well-being and home life, I was still making quality time with my husband, friends, family and keeping active. PLUS: I have just launched my new exciting side hustle, “The Right Up” an inspiring platform for the events industry.

It hasn’t always been a smooth ride, let me tell you, but in all honesty, I have noticed there isn’t one formula which fits “all” but multiple principles overlap.

As this topic arises regularly in conversations, especially as more people are wanting to have the career and also a flexible work life. It seems that there are two models which seem to work best for people:

1. A clear divide between work and home: When you’re at work, you focus 100% on work in order to switch off later – the focus of wellbeing and home life comes afterward. This could result in turning off your phone/laptop and not looking at it until you’re back in the office.
2. A blend between work + life + wellbeing: A continuous mix between the three, you actually don’t completely switch off instead integrate work + life + well-being together.

For my husband, Jake and I, it’s definitely the later of the two. We have integrated our work, life, and wellbeing together. In fact this weekend, my friend organized a group of empowering women to gather whilst sailing the Marina.

The key to balance for us is knowing when the other person needs one another, communicating what we have on and also make “us time”. For instance, we have a calendar where we list all our work and personal activities (almost like a running event timeline) to show what each other has coming up. This way we can try and schedule meetings or activities on the same dates, so it doesn’t take away from “us time”. The calendar has our work functions, our travel (both domestic and international), family vacation and time for one another. There will be things which arise that aren’t listed on the calendar (that’s a given). This can happen weekly, as there are times we need to stay back in the office to complete a task,  a meeting has gone longer resulting in the other person getting dinner on the way home or getting home later. Being able to communicate your movements, provides clear expectations, flexibility and also allows us to plan any trips where we piggyback off the other person’s travels. 

Earlier this year, I was in Oxford and London for a month producing two events back to back but when I returned home Jake was getting ready for a Napa Valley work trip. We saw this as a perfect opportunity for me to come away too. Yes, he had me helping out and made a few coffees too (Jake’s in the Coffee industry). But this gave us time together, allowed me to relax and catch up on some work from the adorable cottage we stayed in.

We both work with staff, clients, and customers across several international time zones that don’t always give the flexibility to completely switch off. If you are working on a deadline or need answers within a short window it can help the process (and stress levels) at times to take a phone call at 8pm or respond to the email as it comes in. This is exactly why we blend work and personal life together.   

Here is how you can do that—  improve your life:

Wellbeing:

• • Build a strong relationship with yourself: It’s much easier to tell the difference between what makes us happy vs stressed. The trick is to know your “grounded love zone”. This is what I call the place that makes us aware of and connected to the things that bring us back to being centered. For instance, my grounded love zone is walking along the beach, toes in the sand and hearing the waves. Maybe yours is a yoga class, spin class or journaling.
  • Your energy levels playoff onto others: Be mindful of your moods as it can impact your work and home environment. Certain relationships, comments, and attitudes can impact and serve as a source of stress.
  • Communication: Set your expectations with loved ones. Have an honest discussion with your loved ones (partner/husband/wife/family) to find a happy medium where you can both work and have a life you love. Each job or outside activities have different expectations. List three important things that each person expects from one another, agree that they can be achieved and aim to stick to them. It’s much easier to meet these goals when you know what’s important to the other person in advance. You’ll want to be open with your loved ones when going through hard times, as there will be times you need support or just a fresh perspective on a struggling situation that your tackling.
  • Take a break: Sometimes that ”grounded love zone” isn’t enough to switch you back into a positive mindset and you need to get away. All breaks don’t need to be planned months in advance. You can plan a full day by driving somewhere, have lunch and watch the sunset, or check into a local hotel overnight (staycation). Allow yourself to escape and be human!

At work:

• Project goals: At the start of the week, I look at each project timeline to instantly see what’s expected of me and the overall team. This is where the project goals are broken down into tasks to achieve the overarching event vision. They are ordered by date, responsibility, tasks, and priorities. Knowing the project goals from start to end allows everyone (Event Producer, vendors, client) to stay on track and plan for their week ahead with ease. Having team calls for each project also provides a much clearer overview of the project goals and workload. This also helps to align expectations and to ensure that your energy is focused in the correct areas.
• Setting boundaries: As an Event Producer, you work and communicate with people on a daily basis. Being able to adapt and integrate the situation is important. But I have found that you need to stay committed to setting your own boundaries despite interruptions. This may result, in needing an improved process, strategy or setting new communication boundaries. By keeping to your own personal boundaries you’re actually able to achieve more, be efficient and productive. Otherwise, this may result in a negative vibe on yourself and those around you.
• Productive:  In order for me to be completely productive I need to know what I actually have on for the week. By effectively planning priorities, what can wait until the following week and also what can be passed onto other staff members? If you’re like me and know that tasks will unexpectedly arise that require a 24-hour turn around then plan for that. I also keep a spare “30% space” in my workload for the client emergency deadlines and unplanned needs – each week this is used by a client or internally.  There are many techniques, software and ways to manage your to-do’s but it’s important to make sure you’re actually using the best method for you. This could be either an app (Meistertask / Evernote / Onenote) or the old-fashioned pen and paper.  You have to be realistic about how much you can achieve in a week, otherwise you’re going to always feel behind, stressed and not engaged in your workload.

At home:

• • Working from home:  Its become a trend to work away from the office. The past three years I have had the flexibility to work Monday’s and Friday’s from home. This has allowed me to have breakfast with Jake before he leaves for work and also the ability to focus on “heavy project tasks” in science (without the team’s interruptions). As an Event Producer, you only need a working laptop, internet connection, cell phone and a can-do attitude to work remotely!
  • Divide and conquer: The two days I’m at home (Monday and Friday) I have learned to do the washing between work calls, even sweep the floor and make the bed. You can do more housework in 15 minutes than work on a productive project task. I have to admit that cleaning is not my favorite thing and Jake doesn’t have time. But it needs to get done, so we decided that Erika, our lovely cleaner would solve that problem. If it’s adding additional stress to your life, then think about seeking outsourced help. 
  • Groups / Apps: I’m part of several community groups or mailing lists that send regular emails letting me know food plans with shopping lists. I also have apps for fashion and work out videos. This was also one of the main reasons why I wanted to create “The Right Up” a community platform. We are all so busy and on-the-go, it really helps to have the notifications as it makes our life easier. Let it land in your inbox!  
  • Keep fit: It’s a proven fact that regular exercise reduces stress and keeps the mind active, this is exactly why Jake and I spend Saturday mornings at Cyclebar in Culver City. We both have a love for a cycle class and usually enjoy breakfast after a sweaty workout! Do you combine working out with loved ones or friends? One of my close girlfriends works out with her husband on a Monday and Wednesday morning at 10am, they both block out the time in their schedules and made it a weekly boot camp activity.
  • Learn to say no! If you have over-scheduled your weekend or weeknights with catch ups, events or sports activities you will stress yourself out (if you haven’t already fallen asleep trying to keep up!). I’m not afraid to cancel or only attend part of the events rather than staying for the full event duration. Learn to say no, as it’s always the relaxation and recovery that drops off and that’s usually what you need most. We have also learned to say no to things so Jake and I can go away for the weekend! You don’t get brownie points for saying yes to everything!

For me, the key to happiness is achievement + enjoyment. Rethink your strategy and how you are spending your time. A positive and effective transition is to make small adjustments to your work-life balance, it may take time but don’t expect it all to happen at once.