It’s already June. We’re nearly halfway through the year. For a lot of families out there, that means summer break for the kids and a life that gets much more hectic for the adults.
When I was a child, summer break meant that my parents kicked me out of the house sometime shortly after breakfast, and lunch and a snack or two aside, I wasn’t really allowed back in the house until the evening.
My friends and I — all kids who lived in the neighborhood — rode bikes and explored the woods and got up to whatever harmless mischief we were able to conjure up together that day.
These days, things are different. Lifestyles have changed. It seems like we’re all busier, more scheduled, and constantly on the go — and that’s for those of us with or without children.
Busier Isn’t Always Better
We place so much value on productivity that there’s a whole media ecosystem devoted to grind culture. No judgement. It resonates with some folks. It spurs the motivation they need to realize their idea of success.
But personally, I want to remind my team (and, honestly, remind myself) that there’s something that exists beyond business. And I’m someone who is committed to creating a very successful business.
And despite the fact that I still wake up in the middle of the night ruminating on problems that I’m determined to solve, and despite the fact that I wake up every morning intent on using every ounce of my time and energy to push the business 10 steps forward, I still am able to maintain the perspective that this agency is just one aspect of my life.
My children are growing up before my eyes — teenagers, evolving into young adults.
My parents and my grandmother live 2,500 miles away.
I want to make the most out of every day that I have with my loved ones, and Garrett and I have created a framework where, during the months of June, July, and August, our entire team can devote just a little bit more of themselves to their personal lives.
And we can do it without overwhelming the team or under-delivering to our clients.
Summer Hours Require Careful Planning and Consideration
This will be the third summer in a row where we’ve moved to a Monday thru Thursday Summer Hours schedule. Each year, before we adjust our schedules for Summer Hours, we set expectations with the team to ensure that:
- The client experience never degrades
- The team experience doesn’t become overwhelming
There’s no point in us adjusting to a four-day schedule if our team becomes frantic and our clients suffer — this would completely defeat the purpose of the program.
And this is why pre-planning for Summer Hours is essential to its success.
For Summer Hours to really work, the quality of our communication needs to increase, our time management skills have to improve, and our meetings need to be even more productive.
I’m proud to say that year-over-year, we’ve achieved those goals.
The business hasn’t slowed down, either. Summer Hours does not translate to me taking my foot off of the gas. Our goals haven’t shifted. Our growth remains steady. We’re more invested than ever.
We Don’t Just Want to Think Different — We Want to BE Different
When Garrett and I started Formada, we set out to build something different, but we also knew that everyone says that, so we had to really challenge ourselves to define what that meant to us.
How do we create a serious, thriving business that can also take chances, build a great team, and do work that helps our clients grow?
I’ve always said that one of the most critical aspects of success is showing up.
Just showing up every day with the attitude that we’re capable of doing things just a little bit better than we did the day before has helped us grow from an idea to a burgeoning business.
I still absolutely believe that. Formada is proof of that. Having a vision, being resilient (some might say stubborn), and chipping away day after day can lead to some incredible results.
And I’ll continue to keep showing up every day…except for the next several Fridays, where I’ll probably be paddleboarding with my kids. Or taking a road trip with my husband. Or maybe I won’t be going anywhere at all.
Whatever I’m doing, I’ll be refilling my tank so that I’ll continue to have the energy and perspective to push this thing called Formada to the next level.
I hope you get that, too. Have a great summer.
Interested in working with an agency that centers its strategies around your success? That’s exactly what we do at Formada. Contact me to learn more. Let’s grow your business.