How I structure my week as a founder and mother

I want to be honest about something upfront. The version of my week I am about to describe is not perfect. It is not effortless. It did not happen by accident. It took a long time to figure out what actually worked for our family and our business, and it required me to get very clear on what I value and very intentional about protecting it. But it works. And on the weeks it comes together the way it is supposed to, it feels like the most aligned version of my life I have ever lived.

Here is how it actually looks.

The foundation: a 4am alarm

I wake up at 4am every day. I know that sounds extreme and I am not going to pretend it is for everyone. But it is the single most important structural decision I have made as a founder and a mother, because it gives me time that belongs entirely to me before anyone else needs anything.

Movement comes first. I have scoliosis, which means staying consistent with how I move is not optional for me, it is how I manage my body and protect my health for the long term. I strength train, I walk, I do what feels good rather than what I think I am supposed to do. Some mornings that is the gym. Some mornings it is the walking pad in my home study while I go through emails before the house wakes up. The point is that it happens before the day has a chance to take it away from me.

Working out has always been part of my life, but the 4am start is what makes it non-negotiable now. It is not a punishment. It is the thing that keeps everything else running.

Three long days, two shorter ones

My week is divided into three long days in the office, twelve hours, and two shorter days where I have more flexibility. I chose this structure deliberately, not just for the business, but for our family. By compressing my longest days into the office, I protect the other two days for Amelia, for the garden, for the slower parts of life that do not fit into a twelve hour studio day.

It also means that when Michael is taking the lead at home on those long days, he is not doing it five days a week. We designed the week together so that neither of us is stretched too thin for too long.

When I am in the office, I am fully in the office. Efficient, focused, present for my team and my clients. I am not trying to be a mother and a studio principal at the same time on those days. I am doing one thing and doing it well.

On my shorter days I am more available. For Amelia, for the garden, for the slower parts of life that do not fit into the long days. Having that rhythm, knowing which kind of day it is before it starts, removes a lot of the guilt and friction that used to come from trying to do everything all at once every single day.