Episode 4 | How to Balance a 9-5 When Starting a New Business- Part 1

Sophia Noreen: 0:00

During this time I would work from about eight to four. So a typical eight-hour day. And then I would come home and spend some valuable time with the family. And then I would jump on the computer and work from approximately 10:00 PM to 12:00 AM on alsosophia.com. Let's just say I really needed that 2:00 PM coffee during those days, because it was so exhausting.

Laura: 0:26

Welcome, everyone here at Boss It. We would love to hear from you. Join us in our Boss It community, by heading over to our website Bossitclub.com and join our mailing list. As we grow, we will be launching our community of fellow Boss It BFFs, and we want you to be a part of it. Okay. Sophia Noreen. Let's dig into this.

Sophia Noreen: 0:48

Welcome to the Boss It Podcast. My name is Sophia Noreen and I took an Etsy startup and launched it in big-box retailers within 12 months. As a creative with an entrepreneurial drive, I left my full-time career in healthcare to find better harmony between career, family, and self-care. We believe you can have it all. Yes, you can launch and run a successful scalable business while maintaining harmony in all aspects of your life. We believe we can learn from each other and draw on many experiences to create the best life possible. During each episode, we will share proven life hacks that will keep you on top and striving every day. There should be no hesitation. Make a plan. Take action. We are here for you. hello everyone. And welcome to another amazing episode of the Boss It Podcast. My name is Sophia Noreen and I'm your host for today's episode. Before we get started, I want to give a big shout-out to Nancy S20 who left us a review on iTunes. It was so nice that I'm going to read it to you guys. Great information for entrepreneurial moms really enjoyed this podcast, especially how the ladies tied things back to family life and the extra weight that moms carry, in addition to the other challenges of starting a business. It's really nice to find a podcast with this perspective. Thank you so much, Nancy. We really appreciate it. And again guys, if there is anything that you want to hear, let us know. You can send us an email to [email protected]. Again, that's [email protected]. And if you will leave us a review, please head over to iTunes. By leaving us a review. We know that you are enjoying the episodes and it really helps us out as new podcasters. Also, remember to join our mailing list, the link is below in the show notes. Or you can head over to bossitclub.com. We will be sending out motivating messages and tips and tricks exclusively for our mailing list members. Okay. Today we are going to be talking about how to manage a nine to five when you are starting your own business because capital does not come easy. This topic came as a suggestion from Natasha Patel. Thank you so much, Natasha. We really enjoyed, covering this topic and we have a lot to say. So today we're just going to get started by talking about three strategies. I know, firsthand on how to manage a nine to five, we'll start a, your own business because I was in this exact position when I started alsosophia.com. I used to work as a physiotherapist and one of our local hospitals, and it was during my evening hours that I would work on alsosophia.com. My nine to five job quickly changed and I went into the management side of the hospital. This was a great learning opportunity to be a leader in my department and also a great opportunity to learn how to launch new initiatives and projects. This new job did not allow for the extra time in the evening for me to work on Also Sophia as I was supporting about 120 team members. Yeah. It was pretty crazy. So this is when I actually had to make the difficult decision of moving my nine to five and scaling it back to more of a part-time role. Now as you probably have heard from previous episodes, I still work part-time because I actually love the job and it's very flexible. I can still manage to work part-time and then putting in pretty much full-time hours in Also Sophia and now in the Boss It Club as well. Today, I'm going to talk to you about how I manage the beginning stages of alsosophia.com while working as a physiotherapist in the hospital. While I have a lot to say on this topic, I'm going to only share three strategies of how to manage your energy, and also your time while you are juggling both your nine to five and your new side hustle or venture. These new strategies can be used for any new initiative that you decide to take on in your life, such as self-care or even education. So for the rest of this episode, I'm going to refer to it as a new venture. The first strategy is called time blocking. Time is a very precious commodity. We all know this, especially when you're managing your own family and also your own personal goals. What tends to happen is that your new venture will usually take more energy initially, because it either has not been validated or it has not yet become a habit. Therefore it takes a lot more energy to complete that task; we tend to hesitate and delay, or even let other agenda items jump into the time we have saved to complete this venture. Other demands creep into your time that was supposed to be spent on starting or creating your new venture. My suggestion is to make a commitment and time block your schedule to focus on this new venture. We all know that it's very difficult to head to the gym or workout at home, initially. An example of time blocking would be to schedule a two to three-hour block of time that is off-limits to any other activity. For example, in my life, I use time blocking for a number of initiatives. I time block my Sunday mornings, and now I've added on Saturday mornings from 9:00 AM to 11:00 AM for my yoga class. If you have been following me on Instagram at @Bossitclub or on my business account @also_sophia or on my personal account @ms_sophia_noreen

Sophia Noreen: 6:27

 

In, you will know that I have been consistently going for yoga classes for the past two years, except for this small period of time when the gym was closed for quarantine. Another example of time blocking in my life is between the hours of 10:00 PM to 12:00 AM, which I had mentioned before. Yes. I'm still blocking this time off for Also Sophia-related activities because my manufacturing partners live in Asia and this is when they are awake. During this time, I also find that I'm actually more creative and I tend to come up with my best ideas right before I go to sleep. Okay, guys. So now is the time to grab a planner or your phone if it's accessible and schedule in a time block. If you're driving or you're doing another activity that is not allowing you to pull out your phone or your planner, make sure you complete this activity of scheduling in a time block before you go to sleep today. Trust me; select a time that works best for you personally and for your venture. So for example, if you're attempting to study for a big exam, look at a time that will suit the activity and block it off. Next, look at how often you want to consistently complete this activity. For example, my yoga is twice a week now, but initially, I started off completing this task once a week. Remember that you can change the cadence of your time block at any time. I always say nothing is set in stone. If it's easier, start with less and then build on it. The second strategy I'm going to share with you is actually going to help you with your first strategy, time blocking. I want you to look at the venture that you were considering for time blocking and schedule it according to your energy level, your cognitive aptitude, that's your brain's ability to get the work done, and other variables. So for example, if you're attempting to prioritize your side hustle, and it requires a lot of content creation this will take energy and it may also require some good lighting. When you're time blocking ensure that the time of day matches your energy level and other variables. So for example, I mentioned that I do my creative work between the hours of 10:00 PM and 12:00 AM. The reason why this became the preferred time block is that I am the most creative at this time. Plus manufacturing partners are also awake, allowing for quick discussion and execution of any new idea. My yoga time has been selected for the mornings because my energy level is at its greatest peak, so I can enjoy the best and longest yoga practice. If you have your planner or your phone available, make a quick note of the venture that you are trying to time block and ensure that it is corresponding to your energy level and cognitive abilities and any other variables that you may need to consider. Now adjust the scheduled time block, so it matches your energy level, your cognitive abilities, and other variables such as lighting and reduces noise, especially if you're home with the kids. My final strategy for you today is all about holding yourself accountable. No joke. It is all psychological. We, humans, love to go along with the pack. A study done by Sabine Doebel revealed that we are more likely to commit to an activity if we know that others that are similar to us have committed to the same activity. She did a study with children who were asked to wait before they ate a marshmallow, which was sitting right in front of them. If you told the child that he or she was part of the group of children who waited, the child was more likely to wait before eating that marshmallow. But if you told the child that he or she was of a group that did not wait, the child was more likely to eat the marshmallow. So the bottom line is if you are part of a group that is ready and willing to commit to an activity, you will be more likely to commit and follow through. My point here is that it is in your best interest to find an accountability partner or partner, either a best friend, your own life partner or a community who can help push you and holds you accountable to this new venture, which you are starting to take on. You need to find an accountability group that will ensure that you commit to a time block and that you actually follow through and commit to completing the activity during the time block. So, for example, everyone knows in my household that I do yoga on Sunday mornings and now also on Saturday mornings. And there is nothing they can do unless there's some sort of emergency. Okay. So let's run through it one more time. The three strategies that we spoke about today are time blocking, which is protecting your time that you required to complete an activity. The second strategy we spoke about is to observe your energy levels, your cognitive ability, and other variables that would be required to successfully complete your venture during your scheduled time block. And the final and third strategy we spoke about is holding yourself accountable by joining a community that will hold you accountable to your new venture, or letting your best friend or life partner know, who will ensure that you are going to commit. Another great example I have from my own experience is regarding to health and fitness. Recently my girlfriends and I decided to meet every evening on a video call at 9:00 PM to complete an ab challenge. Even if I don't feel like completing the challenge, the other two are right there calling me out and pushing me along. That's all for now bosses. I hope you enjoyed this episode. Remember to share this episode with your friends to help motivate, inspire them into action. Don't forget to follow us on Instagram @Bossitclub. Again, our handle is bossitclub, no spaces. And if you feel like you need a little bit more help getting started, sign up for our complimentary mentorship program, where you get a chance to jump on the podcast with us, myself, or Laura, or both who will help strategize your next big move. That's all for now. My fellow bosses. Remember, make a plan and take action and yes, you can have it all. So my fellow bosses, did you enjoy that episode now? It's time for you to make a solid plan and take action. But first, remember to subscribe and follow the Boss It podcast. So you receive a notification whenever we drop an episode. Remember to leave us a review on iTunes. Take a screenshot of your review and shared it on Instagram as a post or a story and tag us @BossItclub. If Instagram is not your thing, no worries. Email your screenshot to [email protected]. As a massive thank you. We will be sending you our top 50 tips for starting and scaling a business. This list is exclusively for podcast reviewers. So don't miss out. Now remember bosses, make a plan and take action in all aspects of your life. Yes, you can have it all.