Time is a precious resource in modern life – and the tips from this business owner are an invaluable tool for managing a busy schedule.
Lauren Chang Sommer – who founded boutique retailer Moi Moi Fine Jewellery as well as global moissanite manufacturer and distributer Moissanite International – discusses how busy her working life has become, between managing two businesses, attending international trade fairs, being invited to speak as a product expert and being the mother of young children.
And that is on the back of launching the business in 2004 just a month after she got married.
With so much packed into her waking hours, My Business was keen to ask Lauren how she manages to juggle so many demands on her time.
“Such a good question,” she says. A fob watch frozen in time and ice
“Earlier on in this year, things were pretty intense and I did have to really say to myself ‘I have to actually balance this properly’. I could easily work every second of every day.”
Lauren says she has to consciously examine her time to ensure that particular activities, and work in general, don’t overtake her life and push other priorities down the list. That decision, she says, has delivered a noticeable boost to her productivity.
“I did make a decision to really switch off on my days off, and that actually helps me to be more productive. If I’m constantly working all the time I start to get a little bit intense, a little bit of anxiety, and maybe just not so focused.
“[But] if I do take the time to exercise, eat well, sleep well – I actually have set a time to go to sleep at night, because otherwise I can just keep working – I know that I’m more efficient.”
Just as other business owners – such as sales educator Tom Panos, who typically works a 90-hour week – have described, Lauren says she structures her day around her natural rhythm to capture her most productive and energetic times of the day.
“I get up at 5:30, I start answering all the emails from America and deal with more of those international crowd, get the house ready before the kids get up, then I deal with the kids for an hour or two, get their lunch, get them off to school, and then [work] at Moi Moi for a while,” she says.
“I guess it’s kind of all meshing into one, but it’s working at the moment. We’ve got a really good team – even though we’re small, we’ve got a really great team. We have an international sales guy who is based in America, and he’s really amazing. I’m lucky that my sister, Alana, and Mum and Dad, we have a good work ethic, and hopefully my kids will see that and take it on as well!”