Last fall, I wrote a blog post about Handling It All and some tips that help me keep everything together. After that post, many of you have asked more in depth about how I structure my work days. I kind of struggled on how to approach this, because as many of you freelancers know, absolutely every day is different. Self-discipline and flexibility are the two biggest pillars in how I manage my time, while also learning to protect that precious time. And lets be real - managing our time better is something we can all be better at.
I try to balance as much personal time as I can with the full work days. I am slowly becoming a morning person and I try to clock out around 6 pm and leave work alone for the night (when I work, I am focused and when I'm done for the day it's all about my personal life). If I have weekends off - well those are entirely sacred. I also give myself a break. I am lucky enough to do what I love every single day, but that also means I could always be working. Sometimes I feel like I should be working all the time, which is something I am learning to let go of more and more.
The most valuable thing we have is time. So no matter how you work your schedule, make sure the following things fit in:
Time with those you love.
Time spent doing what you love.
Time for yourself.
And time to enjoy it all. Otherwise, what is this hustle for?
Below is an example of what a busy day looks like for me. On this particular day, we didn't have a photo shoot, but it was filled with many of the other things that go into our business. Hopefully it is a helpful example of how we structure our time.
No matter how crazy or quiet your schedule may seem, keep focus and remind yourself why you do what you do. Try not to be consumed by the busy work - It is the quality, not the quantity of time that matters.
9:00 a.m. - The meetings begin for the day. Meet Lucy. She's going to be one of our new assistants for 2017! Together with our Studio Manager, we met to go over the details and what to expect in joining our crew.
11:00 a.m. - Melissa is an amazing part of our team and helps manage all of our Rivets and Roses photographers + clients, along with the studio. We just received some new look books for the Photogen Inc. weddings, so she's working on marketing those!
2:00 p.m. - Meeting at Spoon & Stable with Chef Gavin Kaysen for his upcoming cook book. I'm super excited to be a part of this project and it's great to be involved with such a collaborative team. The book is due out in 2018, and our meetings are filled with creative visions and planning out our shoots.
4:00 p.m. - Had to swing by Young Joni, because I am a total professional and left my camera battery charging - derp.
6:30 p.m. - One last meeting for the day, which is a consultation with a couple who is getting married in 2017! Lots of people just got engaged over the holidays, so these later meetings will be more common.
5:30 a.m. - My days start early. This is a new thing for me - maybe a few months old. Nick and I realized that really the only time for us to workout is right away in the morning. So far, so great. We're not perfect at it, but it definitely feels amazing to get up and move early in the day. I do find I am more focused and productive with work right away in the morning, too!
10:00 a.m. - Precious studio time. It's amazing what we can get done in just a few hours. I usually sit down to go over payroll, e-mails, concepting, and backingup files from the previous day's shoots.
1:45 p.m. - We love visitors to the studio, especially dogs! Today's visits are from Tulsi and Frankie. Jess, one of our Rivets photographers, dropped by to go over some edits and back up files!
3:15 p.m. - Off to HAUS Salon to meet the crew for a shoot this weekend. We needed to scout the space, since we're bringing in a full studio set up. This should be an especially fun one!
4:15 p.m. - Back to the studio to put in some editing hours. I'm super excited about our recent shoot with Young Joni and I love seeing the entire edit come to life.
7:45 p.m. - Clocking out for the day! Today was jam-packed, but with all really good things. I also spent time on each of our brands, which is always a victory! Now it's time to go home and spend time with my favorite people. I'll also be asleep by 10 pm, guaranteed.