How to survive when you have to grind.
Because even for a reformed girl boss, sometimes that's what it takes.
Hi, I’m Jess. Founder of skincare brand frank body and creative agency Willow & Blake. I’ve spent the last 15 years building $1billion worth of brands. Now I am getting back to my roots as a writer. MUSE MUSE is a place for me to document my thoughts on work, productivity, redefining success, abundance and building a life you love, with your values & purposes at the core of it.
I’m in the middle of launching two new companies, taking a meaningful equity stake in another, and continuing my duties in my two existing businesses. I also wrote a book with my co-founder and best friend that we submitted our first draft of last week. Oh, and my new fortnightly column in Smart Company launches today.
This isn’t a flex. It’s a reminder that sometimes, despite best laid plans, all of the great things that you’re working on collide into one diabolical deadline and your quest for calmness is lost. I talk a lot about working in a way that better caters to the other aspects of life and all of a sudden I found myself working until 10pm every night and working at 5am before the kids woke up in order to get everything done. It happened in the blink of an eye. Partly fuelled by excitement and adrenaline because I am genuinely enthusiastic about these projects, partly fuelled by circumstances simply requiring me to do so.
Holding boundaries as am ambitious person is a constant work in progress. As a recovering girl boss I found myself slipping into old patterns.
Can we have it all? Let’s look at the ways we can maintain boundaries and our sanity in periods of high demand, and still achieve our goals.