More Is Not Better

Better is better.

When someone asks me, "How are you?" my answer tends to be, "Busy... but good!" I hate that. I say that, but I really do hate that answer.

In my early freelance days, busy = success! I was getting work! People liked me! They approved of my work therefore they sent me work and I was busy! (You see the error in allll of those statements, but it's the narrative I lived in for those first years). Let me speak from a lesson I learned then and am still learning now: Just because you’re doing the most doesn’t mean you’re doing your best.

Hustle culture is 100% a real and dangerous thing. I know from experience, just because we're busy 24/7, we aren't necessarily successful. Sometimes doing your best means taking a slow morning and opening your computer at noon instead of 8am. So, if you’re looking for a sign, here it is.

Take the morning off.

Lately, my typical morning off routine starts with hot ginger tea, The Bible Recap, Paw Patrol with Sophie, making our favorite “fancy nancy” waffles, and a low-stress grocery pickup. Sounds pretty mundane, but taking a few hours away from my computer does wonders for my creativity.

We weren’t made to be working machines. In fact - you know the ole saying of working 9-5, right? Do you know how that came to be? Let’s dive into a little history, shall we…

In the 1920s, Henry Ford (ya know, “Ford” as in Ford trucks? Yeah. That guy.) made the change for his employees to cut their working time almost in half without cutting their pay - which was absolutely unheard of for any industry at that time. However, the reason for this isn’t what you think. He created the 9-5 because if people were working 10-16 hour days then they had no time for fun. Meaning, they had no need for cars. Aka Henry Ford didn’t make any money.

While the 8-hour work day was revolutionary at that time, that was still 100 years ago. I think it’s high time we start changing things again, wouldn’t you say? Just because I’m curious, what’s your usual work schedule? Do you stick to the 9-5 schedule or no?