Fine-Tuning Your Workday


Oh, the looks I get when I tell people that as a creative entrepreneur, I wake up at 6:30 am every morning.

"But you don't HAVE to, right? Like there's nothing that needs to be done at that time?" They can't believe that I would choose to be awake that early when I'm in charge of setting my own schedule.

I go on to explain that no, there's no emergency client work that needs to be done at that hour. It just happens to be the time of day that I work best.

About a year into my business, I decided that something needed to shift. I needed to bring to the forefront all of the personal projects, marketing efforts, and social media posts that help to make a business what it is.

It was no longer about freelancing, but about building something bigger. And that was never going to happen if I didn't start carving out the time to make it happen.

So each morning, I wake up, pour myself a cup of coffee or tea, and work on the nitty gritty of my business. I do this work on the couch, in my pajamas, so that it doesn't feel too much like work. Some days it's writing a blog post, putting together a newsletter (just like this one!), or simply organizing my to-do list for the week.

It's the time that I carve out just for me. There's a sense of calm that I find that early in the morning. It's when my mind is most at ease, my energy level is at its best, and the words flow freely.

But with this small change, I noticed a huge shift in the fulfillment I felt in my business.

For the first time, I was putting myself and my business ahead of client work. It became the first thing I did every day, and dare I say, the most important thing.

There's something really powerful in finding the time of day that you work best and tapping into that flow.

Perhaps for you, this time isn't first thing in the morning. Maybe things don't start to click until noon. But I encourage you to give it some thought.

Start to be more intentional about the time of day you accomplish certain tasks. Is it the best use of your time? Is it a mindless task that would be best shifted to the end of the day when you're spent? Should you be working on the hardest thing first?

I've found that small shifts like this can do wonders for my productivity. Because when work comes easily, it doesn't feel as much like work. There's great magic (and strategy) in that.

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