Take a moment to search “Daily Habits of Successful People” in your internet browser. The results will display common themes of balance. Managing a trifecta of work, wellness, and self-improvement is no easy task for a professional and it’s easy to find excuses.
Vice President of Operations Rachel Hernandez defies all obstacles to make it happen each day.
4:37 am
Wake up, make coffee.
4:45 am
Gratitude journal. I read this book, Atomic Habits by James Clear, and am finding a ton of success in building new habits by using the practices in it. I practice habit stacking, which means I get my journal done every morning by pairing it with my cup of coffee.
4:50 am
Rosetta Stone (Spanish) for 15 min. My husband is from Mexico and is a native Spanish speaker. I want to be confident in my communication to better function in my local community and in future travels.
5:05 am
Prepare for leading the Q1 book club discussions for the local chapter of Moms Run This Town. I’m on the Leadership Team and coordinate a quarterly book club discussion for our 1,500 members.
5:20 am
Listen to NPR news, pack gym bag.
5:40 am
Head to YMCA to swim.
6 am-7 am
Swim 1300 meters. I did a few 300m intervals, some drill work, and practiced that somersault move to turn around at the end of the pool. I’m terrible at it, but that’s why I’m practicing!
7-7:45 am
Get ready for work and head to my home office. I’ll hug and kiss my 1st and 3rd graders before they head to school.
7:45 am
I log onto my work computer and grab a second cup of coffee.
4:50 pm
Have the kids write thank you notes, get ready to head to the YMCA.
5:25 pm
Arrive at YMCA and get the kids to their classes. My husband gets in 3 miles on the treadmill, I run 4 miles in circles around the track.
6:45 pm
We listen to the Encanto soundtrack on the way home and sing along. We know every word to those songs by this point.
7 pm
Dinner consists of simple penne pasta for the kids, and my husband made this delicious couscous dish for the two of us (It’s couscous with a rice vinegar dressing, roasted carrots seasoned with sesame seeds, then topped with feta fresh mint and parsley). I eat mostly whole and plant-based food (vegetarian), and my husband has joined me about 75% of the way with his eating too.
7:30 pm
The kids get their tablets, we clean up dinner.
7:45 pm
First downtime moment of the day. A while back, a co-worker told me about a show on Amazon Prime that I should watch. Three years later, there’s finally time. We watch the pilot episode of The Marvelous Ms. Maisel and enjoy a margarita each.
8:30 pm
We tell the kids it’s bedtime. One has a meltdown that’s resolved 15 minutes later with cuddles. Then I fill out my end-of-day gratitude journal.
9:00 pm
Read with my daughter.
9:15 pm
We’re all out cold.