Postcards from New York #23
©2012 Lisa Call
6 x 12 inches
On stretched canvas
$250
Available at The Store at Contemporary Craft
A Look Inside My Week
One of the most common question I’m asked is “how do you get so much done while also working a day job?”
This week I thought I’d share some details of my days to give you some idea what I’m doing and what I’m thinking and how it all works out.
I think it boils down to me not doing nothing very often.
I’m not teaching classes right now so my days are different than when I am teaching. So in January or February, once classes start back up again, I’ll repeat this exercise as my days are quite different when students are the priority.
Monday
6:30am – wake up / shower / breakfast / cuddle with the cats
7:00am – big picture planning for the week (I usually do this Sunday evenings but I took the weekend off and relaxed)
7:15am – check in with social media – schedule a few updates, sign up to give hootsuite a trial as I really dislike tweetdeck these days
7:40am – head down town – listen to a book on tape in the car
8:00am – meeting at McNichols Building (a new arts venue owned by the city of Denver – they shared with us how they will be programming the space and how we can submit requests for exhibits and other events)
9:00am – drive back home
9:30am – start day job – I worked from home today so as a bonus I also washed a load of laundry (I need magic fairies to fold it and put it away) and was able to spend some time with my daughter, who is home sick with the flu.
5:30pm – end day job
5:30pm – Package up pfd fabric for a customer and take to the post office, pick up thai food for dinner & eat dinner with boyfriend.
6:15pm – Bake cake for critique group dinner tomorrow night, wrap christmas presents for family and package up to mail them tomorrow, write much of this blog post.
7:15pm – Hang with daughter and boyfriend and try to talk myself into it being okay to not work in the studio and just goof off all evening.
8:30pm – Work in the studio for 1 hour (I managed to motivate myself – woohoo)
9:30pm – Wrap up this post, start todo list for tuesday
10:00pm – Bedtime (I’ll read for about 15 minutes first)
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{ 12 comments… read them below or add one }
What I noticed in your Monday schedule? How fast all those tasks were completed. And if you find one of those laundry-folding fairies, let me know. Unfolded laundry is a definitely a problem for me too.
Sherri,
You might be right. I tend to be pretty darn efficient and quick at doing things!
—lisa
no folding fairies arrived so I had to do it myself this morning – very annoying! :)
What a great idea Lisa.
I keep time sheets which cover my productive work and studio hours but I think an honest look at ALL my time might just find some that could be freed up for productivity too.
Dahlia,
I think we spend a lot of time milling about during our day. I find that if I’m not paying attention hours can go by and I’ve done nothing much at all.
—lisa
Um …. don’t you eat lunch?
Vivien – like a good cubicle worker I just eat while I’m working most days. That makes the work day shorter!
—lisa
Do you have time to exercise? There never seems to be time for workouts.
Jane,
Yes – I do yoga in the winter. I’m attempting to do 25 yoga classes between thanksgiving and new years. Not sure I’ll make it but I’m still aiming for that goal.
Yesterday I went to yoga at 6am. Today I’m going to a noon class.
—lisa
Lisa,
I am still convinced you have you either have a time machine or discovered how to manipulate a time warp. You even baked a cake when most people would need twice the time.
On the days that you have to commute….how much time is spent in the car commuting?
I am impatiently waiting for the studio to be completed in my new rental home. My landlord agreed to install hardwoods AND better lighting! But, it is seriously stalling working on art. Rather than getting frustrated, I finally dug out a piece that has hand work (binding). It isn’t much, but at least I am moving forward.
Carol
Carol,
You are funny. The cake (chocolate zucchini using zuke from my garden that was in my freezer) took just 15 minutes to mix up and put in the oven. There is no frosting – so just bake and it is done. Simple :)
My commute is 10 minutes each way driving + 5 minutes for the walking part :). Having a short commute was one reason I moved out of the burbs and into the city – I was done done done with the waste of time driving.
Good for you to find something to do instead of getting frustrated! woohoo!
—lisa
I don’t know where you get your energy! Seriously I guess I’m a lot older and need a lot more sleep. It looks like you do not have much personal time, how do you handle that?
Hildie –
I wrote down my schedule for a week and then summarized my thoughts here: http://blog.lisacall.com/2012/12/summary/ That might give you some insight into the energy :)
I didn’t capture all the time I spent with my family in these daily posts. For example there are times when I work in my studio that my daughter is up there chatting with me. But I am an introvert and I have no desire or energy to spend my day chatting with people. I like lots of alone time. But again – I still do spend a lot of time with my boyfriend also.
—lisa