My Answer To, “How Do You Do It???”

“Seriously! How do you do It???”

I get asked this question all the time as an executive business coach growing a rewarding coaching practice, serving clients, managing my family, and still creating time for myself. It was also a question I was asked constantly while working as an Am Law 100 partner and managing a multi-million dollar client base.

And I was doing it all as a working Mom, balancing all of the responsibilities at home and continuously balancing my work and personal life to find that happy medium.

Despite all of the pressure and commitments, I still made time to:

• Show up for parent-teacher conferences

• Foster two wonderful twin toddlers for nearly a year <while managing a multi-state litigation practice>

• Walk the dog

• Sing my heart out at karaoke with girlfriends

• Prep and lay a groundwork to launch my executive business coaching practice the day after I handed in my security badge

The truth is, I bristled whenever people would ask me how I did it all. I found it frustrating because I didn’t understand what people expected me to say. How else would all of these things get done if I didn’t simply do them? My answer was always a variation of “I just do it!” and try not to roll my eyes as I got back to my long list of responsibilities.

Didn’t they know we all have the same 24-hours in the day?

Over time, I realized my results weren’t necessarily the norm. Although I knew plenty of other working Moms who also just did whatever it took to get it done, I noticed they were struggling and working around the clock. The way they were “just doing it” was more about lighting the candle from each end rather than burning brightly.

I noticed that the incredible women around me were giving up every ounce of themselves to parenting and working – leaving nothing for themselves.

My coaching clients face the same struggles. They find themselves busy and overwhelmed. They have no time to escape a toxic job, build their book of business, explore their hobbies, or launch a side hustle. Our first step in working together is ALWAYS to create more time. To leverage their strengths, eliminate distractions, define the work only they can do and focus on it squarely, and to ruthlessly prioritize their goals.

Sure, I have my struggles and experience stressful seasons, but for the most part, I’ve been able to thrive while juggling “all the things.” How?

I shamelessly take back my time, over and over again, by building awareness, developing habits, and creating systems that support my success.

Building awareness of my Strengths & leaning into them at home and work

Are you incredible at conflict resolution at work? Or time management? Maybe your zone of genius at the office is focused on solving complex problems? Instead of leaving those incredible skills at work, bring them home and lean into them.

When you lean into your strengths, you create momentum to change the environment around you. Suddenly your home is running smoother, and your family dynamic has improved. You can also encourage your family members to lean into their own strengths to create a productive dynamic. The more everyone can focus on what they do best, the smoother your home runs, and the more time everyone has to do what they love.

Developing the habit of asking, “Do I need to do this?”

Some people are suffering under the weight of Atlas trying to do all.the.things. They constantly worry that they will be seen as weak or incompetent if they let others help them. They fear missing out on opportunities. They have very high standards are are certain that no one else can meet them. Sound familiar?

These thought patterns are a habit and can be broken by asking yourself: Do I need to do this? If the answer is no and someone else is capable of doing the task, let them. As a general rule, I focus on the work that only I can do and let others handle everything else. I task my children with a broad range of responsibilities, from weeding the garden to washing the car. I task my husband with cooking dinner and washing the dishes. I have my VA handle invoicing, routine communications, contracts, and scheduling. And, I take friends up on their offers to help with childcare and errands.

It really does take a village.

Creating systems and processes to support my success

There’s almost zero chance you’ll get ahead and carve out that time you’re craving without systems and processes to get you there. Instead of drowning in work, other people were perfectly capable of doing for me, I worked with my paralegal and administrative assistant at my law firm to systematize my morning. By the time I sat down in my chair, I knew exactly what my priorities were and could dig into doing deep brain work immediately.

Now, I work with my VA and Copywriter to develop standard operating procedures for Wayfinders so I can focus my attention on serving my clients.

I shamelessly protect my time.

Ask my family and friends, and they’ll tell you I’m absolutely shameless about protecting my time and using it wisely. I’m thrilled to be with my family, clients, friends, and volunteer in my community. The time I make for myself is precious and I don’t want to waste a moment of it.

What if I can help you reclaim an hour every day?

These are just some of the strategies I consistently use to get an hour or more back in my day, so I can gracefully navigate the intersection of work and life. They’re also strategies I help my clients lean into so they can reclaim their time and reshape their lives.

After helping so many colleagues and clients with time management, I decided to create a simple four-step framework that can help ANYONE reclaim their time. The Hour Back Club is a group coaching program for anyone who is looking to reclaim an hour a day, every day. This small group, action packed six-week program focuses on empowering you to shamelessly reclaim your time and stop putting everyone else’s priorities above your own. If you are willing to do the work, you will be amazed by the results.

The crazy thing is that when you put your needs and your priorities first, you will have more time, greater revenue, and better functioning teams. You will come to a place where you, your career, and your family are all thriving.

The Hour Back Club is my answer to “How do you do it???”

The Hour Back Club will give you the mindset, the skills, and the habits you need to create more time in your day.

I’m only running the Hour Black Club once in 2020 to a small group of motivated professionals. Want to learn more? Join my email list to get notified when the Hour Back Club goes on sale.

What will you create with all that extra time???

Remember, anyone who doesn’t light you up is too small for you,

Sarah-Nell

Executive Coach + Trusted Advisor to Attorneys and Business Owners