I get the following questions all the time:
What do you do everyday? (parents and teens)
How do you have time/energy to write so much? (parents)
What do you do as an entrepreneur/blogger? (parents and teens)
So, here I decided to tell you what I do everyday because…some of you seem a little interested, and why not? Also writing this post has been sort of theraputic in a weird way. It also has been sort of sobering that I need to find more ‘fun’ time. Although, I am very lucky that I actually do have fun with my work.
My friends and family tell me I am crazily (this is not necessarily positive) efficient. So, maybe by posting my daily habits to be able to manage all that I do, others will learn from it! My friend, Leo Babuata of Zen Habits and my hero, Tim Ferriss, of the 4 Hour Work Week would not be pleased because I have neither zen, nor four hours of work time per week…someday guys!
Lists
This might not be healthy, but I always have six running To Do lists.
Daily task log: usually numbered in order of priority
Long-term to do list: not emergencies and usually larger projects
Post to do list: posts to write for the week
Marketing action list: websites/bloggers/companies I need to cold email or call, (this is my least favorite to do list)
Not To Do List: I tend to be constantly busy, and sometimes get sucked into doing meaningless tasks just because I feel I have to fill-up my time and be ‘productive.’
Goals: This is broken down into two other lists (Weekly and Long-Term)
Average Daily Schedule
6:45am: Wake-up to my iPhone
6:45am: Check Google Analytics stats, blog comments and any urgent emails.
7:15am: Breakfast (usually gluten-free waffle and yogurt), get dressed
7:45am: Drive to the gym, cardio and weights
9am: Shower, do 1 hour of emails
10am: Phone calls, write posts, manage blog comments/do videos
12pm: Trampoline and Lunch (usually chicken salad or soup)
12:30pm: Daily project
2:30pm: check email
3:30pm: Clients/meetings
6:30pm: Make dinner
7:30pm: Read Google Reader (all of my subscriptions to magazines and newspapers)
-97 Parent blogs and sites
-New York Times, Wall Street Journal, PR Web, Time, Newsweek
-Google Alerts for my name, my book, rrules etc
-17 Fun Blogs and Sites on cooking, health, Los Angeles activities…
9:o0pm: Watch movie on our projector and get yogurt, check Facebook, StumbleUpon and all of my other social networking sites.
10:30pm: Journal and bed!
*Of course, this does not include days where I have interviews or speaking engagements.
My Favorite Multi-Tasks
(this is horrible, but I should just come clean)
- I listen to books on tape when I drive
- I listen to podcasts when I clean up
- I watch teen shows to talk to my clients when I chop for dinner
- I review Chinese vocab in the shower (I put my old flashcards in ziplocs and tape them to the shower door)
So, this is it! I am a bit of a health nut because I love to workout and eat a lot of veggies and fruit because I am allergic to gluten. I have a lot of phone calls during the day usually and try to limit myself to checking my email twice a day (a new occurrence). I really love working on my blog and need to take some more time off…but love love love working with teens and parents.
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