Through the holiday season you can always count on the weeks leading up to Christmas to get a bit hectic so knowing that, I’ve been doing my best to plan ahead and find extra time to squeeze in work wherever I can — and while lately we have been taking off every other weekend, the weeks in between I’ve been literally chained to my desk taking care of the business, prepping for holiday and keeping things running and moving forward.
There are a lot of mysteries and misconceptions when it comes to running a blog full-time. While Instagram can makes things seem pretty perfect, I’m here to tell you that while there are definitely perks to the job, not everyday is filled with vacation time, shopping trips and brand sponsored evenings. Running a blog full-time requires your full attention, all of your time and a consistent flow of discipline. It entails a lot of content creation, curating, editing, posting and promoting – in short, time management is key and critical to your survival.
Some could say that the perks of being a blogger outweigh those of other freelance positions in the self-employed world, but the time that is required to get to that point is something that people rarely see or talk about. Over the last four years I’ve had my blog, it’s been almost comical reading the faces of my friends / families when I (try to) explain what exactly it is I do all day long “working from home”. It’s raised eyebrows to say the least and while everyone is super supportive about it to my face, I also know that there are a lot of questions and conversations being had regarding my career choice. Remember, I left my cushy corporate job behind to pursue this and I know that that hasn’t always been the clearest decision for many to understand.
The point I’m trying to make is that while there are many perks to the job.. gifting, attention, travel it’s not all glamorous. It’s a lot of really hard work and dedication to your vision. While I am incredibly grateful that I am even in a position to do this for a living, nothing has been handed to me and I have worked extremely hard to get to this point. I know that as I continue on this path (I have sooooo much further to go), I will have to dig deeper and work even harder but that’s okay because I feel like I’ve found my place and I absolutely LOVE what I do.
I often get questioned about what a “typical” day looks like for me, so I thought it would be fun to share some details for any of my readers who are interested in starting a blog.
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A typical day for me:
7:00am: wake up, wash face (click here to see my morning / evening skincare routine) & put on house coat. I head to the kitchen to make my first cup of coffee and sit with my puppy for a little snuggle.
8:00am: make bed + get dressed for the day depending on where I’m headed. Workout gear if I’m on my way to the gym, athleisure if I’m working from home, more professional look if I’m headed downtown for meetings etc. Makeup, optional depending on the days tasks.
8:30am: pour second cup of coffee + settle into my (home) office. This is usually when I’d check my inbox for any emergencies. Once I’ve attended to anything immediate, I check my blog & social media channels and prep the days social content. To help I’ll create a checklist of to-do’s for the day / week to keep on track.
9:30am: I take Xavi out for his morning walk. This time gives me a chance to get outside, clear my head and set my intentions for the day.
10:30am: since each day is different, I’m going to capture a “typical” busy day. By this time I’ve packed my car with different looks to shoot on location in the city. Everything from handbags, to shoes, makeup for touch-ups and accessories are piled in my car, not super glamorous but hey! I also carve time to squeeze in any errands I need to run in this time — returns, post office, bank etc.
1:00pm: I take meetings in the city with brands, PR agents or preview a new collection.
3:00pm: meet with my photographer to shoot looks and blog content.
4:30pm: I’m headed to either a brand event, a dinner meeting or home to cook dinner for my husband.
6:30pm: hubby is home from work / the gym and we sit down for dinner (phones away) and catch up on each other’s day.
7:30pm: we take a family walk after dinner every night around the neighbourhood.
8:30pm: I shower and wash my hair and head back into the office to finish up any last details, tidy by office, take notes on the day, write more lists of ideas etc. I’ll often write my blog posts now since I prefer to have everything ready to go live in the morning.
10:30pm: we put Xavi to bed then brush teeth, wash face, set up diffuser before climbing into bed ourselves to (try to) watch a tv show. I need about as much sleep as I can get so the earlier we get to bed the better before waking up and doing it all over again tomorrow.
Probably the biggest misconception about working from home is typically I’m not even home at all! But when I am at home on days that require a little more time at the computer, I’m usually in my Birdie’s Slippers (…I’m on my third pair). They’re not only super comfy but stylish and made with precision attention to detail. I wanted to let you know that they, too are offering a discount for Cyber Monday. Just use code: CYBERMONDAY15 at checkout to grab 15% off!
I hope you enjoyed learning more about my daily routine (..if you could call it that)!
As always I love hearing your questions and suggestions so if there’s anything that interests you in learning further, feel free to DM!!
This post is in collaboration with Birdie’s Slippers. As always, all opinions are my own.
I love how you’ve set up your office space! It’s gorgeous and functional. We have awkwardly angled rooms in our home that drive me silly. Feeling very inspired by these pics!