If there’s one thing us. entrepreneurs, are, that is prime jugglers.
Juggling life in our 20s, a full-time job, building our online business, time with loved ones, hobbies, and even time for ourselves.
who is this for?
This blog post is waiting for all the girlies who want to live life in the most enjoyable of ways, in ALL ways, without having to feel like they are constantly struggling to get it together.
We are all really just trying to understand how to fit everything we cherish to live the fullest of lives possible, but how do we accomplish this without feeling like we are working hard at everything and anything, without even having the capacity to at times?
Since there are factors we cannot completely remove from the equation, in the early stages of an online business, such as a 9 to 5, then part of this would come with minimising the effects of a full-time job. However, this is a conversation for another day (blog post on this coming soon).
Today, we will talk about working smart, so we don’t burn-out as girlies in our 20s, who still want to enjoy life and make the most of time with what makes us happy.
the mindset
We can’t talk about working smarter, without first acknowledging, that we need to adopt a mindset; in order to then adopt the lifestyle.
Working smarter is all about being strategic, which I have touched up on in my previous blog posts, and to be strategic, we need to sit down and get intentional about our priorities, to then plan out how we will allocate our time to fit these (a simple, but life-altering blueprint).
It will very much feel like a puzzle, which at first, you may not be able to comprehend how to piece together, but that’s why you’re here. Bit-by-bit, this blog post will guide you on how to more clearly be able to bring these pieces together to make you feel, and live, in your most complete form, that is true and unique to you.
This part of the process involves a lot of knowing how to make time for your online business whilst working a 9 to 5, which comes with immense mindset shifts on its own. However, it also involves you getting crystal-clear on how you want to live life. Life, that is not only made of your (temporary, yes we’re affirming that) full-time job, OR your online business, but much more.
You, as a person, are so complex with so many different things to think about in your 20s, going through all sorts of transitions in life experiences, that this right here is about grounding yourself in the process to make the most of your time in your 20s, and in life, by taking a step back and looking at the bigger picture.
Here, in her full effect, is all about fulfilment; and that comes with life outside of your online business also.
Therefore, our first mindset to adopt is to be kind to yourself, and take a second to really appreciate how truly special you are.
Starting with self-love is the absolute foundation to living your most fulfilled self. Having the dream life will be nothing, if you never have your self-love.
We’ll be talking more about this, in future, but one simple way you can start-off, if you feel quite new to this, is to practice positive self-talk all the time.
With self-love, we follow with the following mindsets to enter into, when working smarter and juggling our priorities:
- You can’t make every second count, nor would that be healthy. This is more-so a way to be able to funnel more balance into your life to make it a happier one, but we are not promoting toxic productivity; having time for nothing is just as important for your wellbeing and health.
- Juggling your priorities will change over time, because your priorities will change over time. Right now, outside of the (temporary) full-time job and online business, you may prioritise the gym; however, in 6 months it may be that you enjoy painting more, so you occupy more of your time with that. This is equally valid, as long as it brings you the most fulfilment in life.
- Working smarter will still make you tired, be mindful of your wellness. Working smarter does mean you still put in the work to your online business, or show up for yourself outside of this, to bring more fun and love into your life through your relationships. However, be self-aware that this is a strategic way of managing your time, but it can still make you experience burn-out if you’re feeling less capable at-times. This is okay, prioritise more downtime during these periods. Chasing the dream doesn’t always need to be done right away, you need to look after yourself and enjoy your loved ones.
- We are women, who have hormonal fluctuations throughout the month. This one right here is more of a statement AND a mindset. We need to remind ourselves that we can’t always show up to our goals or life, as we want, because we have a lot of hormonal changes happening in our body. Feelings of guilt from self-imposed expectations may arise when we try to accomplish everything in one day or one hour, but adopting this mindset grounds you into a state of acceptance that you’d be demanding the impossible, during phases in our menstrual cycle, where our bodies and minds are already going through A WHOLE LOAD.
There are many more mindset shifts I could dive into, but these would be the most significant I’d say, as girlies in our 20s, wanting to create the dream life for us and our families, but also treasure time as we go along our gorgeous lives.
priorities
Next, we talk priorities.
This is the part where we get our pen and paper (or iPads; however you fancy) and get to finding what our puzzle pieces are.
I’d say this part should be the simplest in getting to work smarter, than harder, but this depends on how well you know yourself. If not too well, that’s not a problem at all!
In order to work smarter, you need to know what you’re working with.
So, you have a full-time job, and an online business you’re passionate about making your full-time. What else?
What, in life, fills your cup SO MUCH that you think if you were to look back and not use more of your time on it, you’d feel really bad?
Some ideas may be:
- Family, friends, partner
- Hobbies, activities, sport
- Travelling, exploring, solo dating
- Learning new skills
Once you know what these are for you, list them in order of what you most value to what you value least, in the list, and there you will have all the puzzle pieces in one place!
From here, we can start to now strategically look at our time in a week, on our calendar, and answer the following questions:
- How much time do I have outside of my (temporary) 9 to 5?
- How much time do I allocate to my online business (maximum)? OR How much free time will I allocate outside of my online business? check out my blog on how to make time, if you’re still experimenting with this one.
- Do I want to have a set day for my other priorities, or do I want to be flexible? If you want to have a set day, do it and stick to it, if it will make you happier! If you think you will be tempted to work too much on your business in your free time, MAKE BOUNDARIES with yourself, and stick to it!
As with anything we discuss here, on the Blog, a lot of everything in life comes with trialling and testing to see what works with you, which can also change in its nature with time. So, if you don’t have set answers, just yet, pick one way of using your time and then just see how it feels.
Example Scenario:
- (temporary) Full-Time Job: I work 9 to 5 Monday to Friday
- Online Business: I work during my work lunch breaks (1 hour, 5 days) and I work some weekday evenings/ no weekends.
- Hobbies: I paint every Saturday.
- Family/Friends: I see loved ones every Sunday.
Not everything will always be so straight forward, but that’s why we need to embrace the mindsets, we previously spoke about, and everything will become much easier to assemble.
non-negotiable to-do-lists: Actionables
Finally, we will touch up on the famous “non-negotiables”: the notion of non-negotiating something of high-importance, but into a to-do list.
We have had a super in-depth chat about how to mindfully embrace working smarter, clarify what it is that we value in life, and now, we will talk about how we can actionably place everything into full effect.
That will be through a to-do list.
Before you leave right away, just give me a second on this one!
I think we all find the ticking-off boxes super satisfying, but the making (and seeing) the list uncompleted, super daunting. But, what if I told you this list is also filled with super fun things that bring more joy into your life? THEN, would it be more exciting to look at your life, knowing you have a lot to look forward to as well?
This is what I mean by non-negotiable to-do list; not just a list with all your business tasks, errands, and choirs, but ALSO a list that has the non-negotiables to what makes you happy, because your happiness is a non-negotiable.
Your list may vary or change throughout the week, but the intention is to use your mindset, and priorities, and create a weekly (or monthly) list, however works best for you, with actionable steps towards your different priorities, in order to move forward with your life feeling evermore fulfilled and happy with who you are, and how you are living.
Remember, this is YOUR list. It doesn’t always have to have all the answers or even be ticked off, when you set it out to be, but it provides you with guidance on setting out to live your life how you intend it to be, so that your 20s, as with the rest of your life, are in your hands, being geared with how you feel life should be lived out.
We don’t want to just have our heads down working on our online businesses, all of our 20s, and our life. We understand that there are precious people and moments in our lives, in the present, that we need to make time for. A non-negotiables to-do list does just that; allows for a more balanced and filled life in her full effect.
I hope you enjoyed this one, I know many of us (if not all of us) are just trying to figure it all out and be happy, but also achieve our goals, so I hope this girl talk makes you feel more complete and provides a strategy to use if you wish!
Comment down below what your priorities are outside of a full-time job, and online business!