As I’ve mentioned in previous blog posts, Instagram posts, and on my Youtube channel, I like to treat my Saturdays as a normal workday. It isn’t always easy to do this when you have a full-time job and fun events knocking at your door, but I make sure I show up for myself. And, many of you may have the same aspirations as me. So here’s a weekend in my life + tips to treating you Saturday like a normal workday.
To start off, I must share that I don’t always feel like doing my side hustle work on the weekends. There are days that I just want to kick back and relax, but I choose to work. While I may not feel motivated 100% of the time, I know that staying focused will help me get where I want to be. I choose to show up for myself and my passions. If you’re looking to do the same, here’s a peek into my life and how I make this possible.
Friday
I do carry out my regular 9-5 on Friday. But, as this is an introduction to the weekend, I will stay up a little later than normal to work on extra projects. This is everything that took place last Friday:
5:00 am – 8:00 am: Eat breakfast, manifest journal, and work on side hustle work.
8:00 am – 12:00 pm: Regular full-time work.
12:00 pm – 1:00 pm: Lunch break. Today I chose to relax and have my lunch while watching Youtube videos.
1:00 pm – 4:30 pm: On Friday’s our office lets everybody log off at least one hour early. Today I logged off 30 minutes early after wrapping up my weekly to-dos.
4:30 pm – 5:30 pm: Workout ~ This helps me transition my mind into my side hustle work.
5:30 pm – 6:30 pm: Dinner and miscellaneous admin tasks for my blog. Today that meant checking in on my analytics and seeing what upcoming blog posts I have scheduled.
6:30 pm – 9:30 pm: Work, work, and work. At this time, I get back into my high performing state. I like to put on jazz music, my blue light glasses, and fully dive into deep work to get everything I need to done before the evening ends.
9:30 pm – 10:00 pm: Carry out my nightly routine.
Tasks completed:
- Edit: Holiday gift guide blog post
- Write: Manifestation update + how to blog post
- Outline: Night routine blog post
- Outline: How to start a lifestyle blog Youtube video
Saturday
Saturdays are the day I check off the majority of my to-dos. I like to wake up at the same time ~ 5 am and get cranking. Waking up this early allows me to get ahead of my to-dos before I’m tempted to do something fun with my friends. Here’s how this Saturday played out:
5:00 am – 8:00 am: Eat breakfast, manifest journal, and get fully ready for the day.
8:00 am – 9:30 am: Film two Youtube videos. This is when the lighting is great and everything is quiet in my apartment.
9:30 am – 12:00 pm: I recently got back from a 3-month trip to Montana and have been catching up with my Austin friends. I’m not much of a drinker, so I always just get coffee to catch up. Today I met up with a friend for coffee at Medici.
1:00 pm – 3:00 pm: Back to my side hustle work. On this particular day, I chose to edit one of my Youtube videos, create the hero image, and write up the description box information. Once this was fully exported to Youtube, I uploaded everything else and scheduled it to go live on Sunday at 12:00 pm CST.
3:00 pm – 5:30 pm: After completing this task, I mozied on over to hang out with friends. We went out to a bar/brewery, but I chose not to drink. I was just there for the conversation!
5:30 pm – 7:00 pm: Workout. On the weekends I like to take my time working out. On this particular day, I went for an outdoor run followed by a HIIT workout and stretching out afterward.
7:00 pm – 9:30 pm: Back to work. I like to write out my to-dos for the next day and plan out the upcoming week. Planning and scheduling everything makes my life SO much easier. I know when I need to be doing things and what I should be doing.
9:30 pm – 10:00 pm: Carry out my nightly routine.
Tasks completed:
- Film: Jewelry collection 2020
- Film: Apartment hunting in Austin, TX
- Edit + schedule: Jewelry staples video
- Write: Sunday to-dos
Sunday
On Sundays, I try to stay away from the computer as much as possible. But, I do tend to work a little bit. On this particular Sunday, I didn’t complete everything that I hoped to on Saturday. To get back on track with my goals, I worked quite a bit this Sunday. Here’s how it went down:
5:00 am – 8:00 am: Eat breakfast, manifest journal, and get fully ready for the day once again.
8:00 am – 9:00 am: Filmed one long-form Youtube video.
9:30 am – 12:00 pm: Met up with another friend at Summer Moon to catch up over coffee.
1:00 pm – 2:00 pm: Stayed at Summer Moon to publish my Youtube video, respond to comments, and promote it on all my social platforms.
2:00 pm – 4:00 pm: Ran to Ikea. I wanted to see which furniture I liked the most for my new apartment. I took pictures of pieces I love to order once it gets closer to my move-in date.
4:00 pm – 5:00 pm: Swung by Summer Moon for another coffee for my drive back home. The traffic at this time was pretty bad so it was a while before I got back.
5:00 pm – 6:00 pm: Ate lunch/dinner and relaxed while watching Youtube videos.
6:00 pm – 7:00 pm: Mini workout that consisted of a short run, short pilates session, and light stretching.
7:00 pm – 8:00 pm: Prep for next week. I wrote out videos I need to complete, blogs I need to write, and when I need to complete them by day. This helps me ensure I check off what I need to and stay on top of my goals during the week.
8:00 pm – 10:00 pm: Carry out my nightly routine.
Tasks completed:
- Film: How to start your own lifestyle blog
- Publish + promote: Amazon favorites 2020
- Goal setting: Planning/scheduling to-dos for next week
5. Tips to treating your Saturday like a workday
Now, I know that working on the weekend isn’t for everyone, and that’s totally okay! Do what works for you and stick with it. Personally, this method works great for me. I’m able to knock off a few additional tasks that I don’t have time for during the week. And, by all means, I don’t always feel motivated when I do so. Below are five tips I have up my sleeve to help you do the same.
1. Wake up at the same time you normally would
During the week I wake up at around 5:00 am to 5:30 am. To stay in my groove, I wake up at the same time even on Saturdays and Sundays. This gives me enough time to check off tasks while it seems like the whole world is still asleep. By the time I’m reaching the end of my to-do list, everyone starts to awake.
2. Carry out the same routines
Trick yourself into thinking it’s the workday by carrying out your weekly routines. I have a set morning routine on weekdays, and when it comes to the weekend, I stick to them. Doing so helps me get in the mindset of deep work. Deep work is basically where you zone into a project so deeply that it’s hard to break your focus. You can read more about this here.
3. Go into it with a full to-do list
Before going to bed, I write out all my next day to-dos for my side hustles and full-time job. To start the day off, I know exactly what I need to be doing and when to do it. I’m able to get right into work without thinking twice about what I should work on first or what has to get done by the end of the day.
4. Get in the mood with some jazz
Now, get into your flow state. There are times that I despise doing what I need to before going to bed. But, I do know that once I get started, it will be easy to wrap it up by the end of the night. To push past the slump, learn what triggers help you get in the mood of high productivity. For me that’s waking up early, listening to jazz in my Airpods, and sitting at my desk with a full glass of iced coffee.
5. Have fun, but make sure the work is done
It is the weekend and you deserve to have fun, but in moderation (depending on your goals). As of right now, I have a lot on my plate. So, I have to cut down on “fun time” more so than you may have to. To stay motivated, I allow myself to go have fun once my to-dos are done for the day. Getting up early to get a head start on these projects allow me to have fun sooner rather than later.
I completely understand that this isn’t for everyone. But, I know there are a few of you that have big goals and do/thought about turning your Saturdays into full-time workdays. Since I’ve been doing this for a while now, I thought I would share how I do it with y’all. Whether you learned one, or a handful, of tips, I hope this helped you in some way. 🙂
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