Vietnam cured my time-management issues
IT'S FINALLY HAPPENING!
Spending a month working from Vietnam means I can finally practice what I preach when it comes to Time Management.
In general, I'm extremely protective of my calendar and block off plenty of "heads down" focus time.
ANNNDDD I'm only human y'all 😅
I still succumb to
☕️ “one more” coffee chat.
📧 checking my email AGAIN (even though it's often at ZERO 😘)
👖Seeing what my besties are doing on Slack
I turn all my notifications OFF - buuuttt on my off days, I still can't help but check during my heads down time 😔
But working from Vietnam means I have no choice.
The timezone is completely opposite my East Coast clients and colleagues, which means my daytime is basically a goorrrrggeouussss communication dead zone.
No new emails or Slack.
It’s just me, my work, and a new coffee shop every day.
What I’m appreciating most isn’t even the focus time - it’s the calm feeling that comes with the lack of pressure.
I want to carry that into the new year.
Here’s what I’m keeping:
Calls stacked on one day each week. Tuesdays have been working, so Tuesdays it is.
1–2 days with absolutely no meetings. Thursdays are already sacred, and I’m hoping to add Wednesday to the mix.
CEO Days! Space for my own business without guilt. Routine admin tasks in the morning, internal projects in the afternoon.
Sales calls stay the exception, because if someone wants to hire me, I’m not making it complicated.
Here’s what I’m adding:
Coffee chats only 1–2 days a month.
Truly painful for me because I LOVE them, and relationships are the heart of my business.
(I even have a Relationship Database template that other folks are loving.)
This will force me to be more mindful about who I'm chatting with, and politely decline anyone who isn't a good fit for me to connect with.
Bringing back an app that blocks distracting sites.
I used SelfControl ages ago and just reinstalled it today! Already working / annoying me every time I try to check Slack out of habit 😎
But I'm excited to BREAK the automatic-finger-slide-on-keyboard to check Slack so often!
Slowing down and removing the guilt.
I can't do everything ASAP.
Instead, I can choose what to focus on, one work block at a time, and take my time.
I love the feeling of getting lost in a build and not worrying about anything else.
Fewer sales calls.
This one is scary and something I have been experimenting with the past few months.
I'm holding sales calls in January to start booking out my year, but after that, I'll be focusing on Process Mapping sessions FIRST only as a way for folks to work with me.
Because the work I do goes so deep, I take on a very limited number of projects a year. Which means I don't have to have a million sales calls - just a few really intentional ones.
AND because my relationships and audience have been built with so much trust over the years, folks are usually pretty bought in when they come to me.
THEREFORE! I want to prioritize time with folks who are ready for my work - Not tire kickers or wishful thinkers.
And folks who are ready to work with me are ready for a Process Mapping session to get started.
TL;DR TO PROTECT MY CALENDAR NEXT YEAR:
Fewer calls in general.
Calls stacked on one day.
More uninterrupted / focus time.
More calm in my brain.
If you struggle to get a hold of your time, you’re not alone.
Once my clients have their systems in place, time management becomes the next big thing to navigate - because at that point, the only moving part left is you.
