Work Life Balance - What my Average Day Looks Like
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Garden Part Cami Blouse | English Factory Long Pleated Skirt | Kendra Scott Denise Earrings | Sequel Suede Mules
People always ask me "how I do it" or "how to do it all". The answer? I don't. I mean it may look like I do, but I do not. Part of it is my personality. I am mostly type A - I'm a 1 if you are familiar with the enneagram test. I am programmed to be efficient, get things done, and really only "play hard" after I've "worked hard". I do better when I have things to do, than when I don't have things to do. Do you get the picture??
People often ask about my "work life balance", as I work a 9-5 job and blog 4-5 times a week, plus instastories, instagrams, and emails. Ya get the picture?? Have you seen Ali Wong's most recent sketch where she touches on how females (moms) get asked about WLB, but men don't? That's what is currently playing over and over again in my head. (lol) PS it's called Hard Knock Wife and it's on Netflix. NSFW. Anyway, I get asked a lot about how I manage it all, what my job(s) look like and what my average day is, so I decided to throw it all together into one post. SO, here's what my average day looks like.
I studied apparel merchandising w/a minor in business, at Baylor University. With this major you get a lot of "what are you going to do with that" or "are you going to be a buyer?". Neither are wrong, but there just aren't a lot of jobs in merchandising specifically. I'm lucky enough to hold a job as a "merchandiser" and have been some kind of merchandiser since I graduated in December 2012. Currently I work in wholesale. I basically analyze the buys to decide what to offer to the sales team, in addition to managing offers and relationship from licensed vendors. I do more than that, but that's pretty much it! You get a t-shirt, and you get a t-shirt, and you get a t-shirt. You'll notice that I don't get much into what I do for a living, because I keep my blog and my work life very separate. I get asked a lot of questions about what I do, but this is really what I want to share right now. SO, without further adieu, here's what my typical week day looks like:
4:30 am: My first alarm goes off. I try to leave for the gym by 5:00 am. If it's Thursday, I'm still sleeping, and if it's Friday, I have to leave by 4:50, to make sure I am on time for 5:30 am pilates.
5:30 am: I workout (lately it's been harder, because of Dino, BUT this is still my plan to get back to).
6:30 am: Head to the locker room to get ready for the day.
7:00 am: Walk to my desk and get to it!
11:30 am: I eat lunch and work on my blog posts and emails. If it's Thursday, I do yoga and just eat at my desk, but yes, I typically take my "break" to "work". Using this time helps me have more free time at home, especially if we have plans that evening.
12:30 pm: Back to work!
4:00 pm: I try to work 7-4, so I can beat traffic (Frisco to Dallas is no joke!), but sometimes I stay later so I can get things done. I'm really glad that I have the flex schedule ability.
4:30 pm: Take Dino out and start on dinner / work on blog stuff
6:30 pm: Eat dinner. If it's Wednesday, we have home group.
7:30 pm: Work on future blog posts, editing photos, responding to emails, pitching new brands
10:00 pm: Get ready for bed
11:00 pm: Go to bed
Does it seem like a lot? When I write it out it doesn't seem like a lot...but honestly, most days it feels like a lot. Did I say a lot too many times?! Sometimes I get stressed and fall into a "sad hole", as Nick likes to call it, but sometimes I'm able to de-stress before it happens. Exercise like yoga or running really helps, and baking is also one of my happy places. (along with Napa Valley. I wish I could just transport there whenever I wanted!)
So work-life balance. What's that?! I don't think I'm a master, but I do know quite a bit about the topic. It may sound silly, but here are some truths that I've learned the hard way.
- It's okay to break from the "schedule"
- It's okay to not get something done (within reason, not saying to be lazy)
- Saying "yes" is just as important as saying "no"
- Taking care of myself-both mentally and physically is more important than "getting a blog post out"
We all have our natural bents. I'm happier when I check boxes and get all of the "work" out of the way, before I "play". There's nothing wrong with that, but sometimes I don't stop to relax. Nick is the complete opposite of me, butttt we end up balancing each other out. Which way do you lean?! Thanks for reading. Let me know if you have any questions, by commenting below or shooting me an email!
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