An indicator of a good leader is demonstrating empathy, balance, and adaptability. Coincidently, those are also the family values that make a difference.

Read on to see how VP of Client Operations Lisa Nelson conquers the day by accounting for wellness, work, lots of coffee, and most importantly her family.

5:30 am

I’m a morning person so I typically wake up before my alarm starts screaming at me. First thing’s first: Letting the dogs out or they will incessantly ring the bell in panic mode.

5:45 am

My Keurig is my best friend. This will be cup one of probably six by day’s end. Coffee, along with lots of water throughout the day, makes me thankful my office is right next to the bathroom.

6:00 am

Yoga, the one time throughout the day I can escape from life. It’s my passion and I’m not a nice person if I skip this.

6:30 am

I start to make my son, Bennett, a snack pack for the day. He just turned 13 and is growing like a weed so the number of snacks that kid consumes throughout the day is equivalent to a meal for three grown men. This part of my day takes a bit because I try to pack him healthy foods (cut up fresh fruit, veggies, etc). Rinse and repeat. By this time my dogs are staring at me for breakfast and pacing back and forth under my feet in the kitchen.

6:55 am

Dogs are fed, snack pack is done…I finally sit down for a quick 5 minutes and start to drink the cold coffee I forgot about.

7:00 am

I wake my son up (this can be a process). I typically get a lot of grumbles and AGAIN the dogs are glued to me while I try to shake the life out of my son.

7:15 am

I put in a load of laundry and start to pick up life in the living room from the night before.

I can hear my daughter, Grace, getting up…late. I rush upstairs to tell her to pick up the pace, so I don’t get 500 text messages from the school saying she was late for the first hour. She didn’t get my morning person gene.

7:30 am

My husband, Nate, takes Bennett to school and I finally jump in the shower, taking a quick gulp of my iced coffee.

8:00 am

My workday starts. I still have two shadows creeping next to me, so I must shut my office door and deal with what sounds like a grunting pig outside the door. My male Boxer, Groot, has separation anxiety and can’t handle being away from me (or not having eyes on me at all times). This can be a major distraction so sometimes I just give in and let him plop on my yoga mat next to my desk.

Morning

This is typically filled with one-on-one sessions, random client meetings, and a lot of pings from my favorite work people.

Noon

This is about the time I go off video if I’m on a conference call because I’m getting hangry. COO Scott Krueger can attest to this.

Afternoon

More meetings, ranging from financial calls, team meetings, and client calls. My Keurig might catch on fire at this point.

3:15 pm

I have school pickup duty for my son. I am typically driving and on a conference call. I appreciate the flexibility of working at home but also do miss after-school care. Envision me shifting my Jeep, trying to talk on a call, and my son asking if he can say hello to all my co-workers on the Teams Meeting on my dash. This 15 minutes of my day is usually the wildest.

5:00 pm

Log off for the day and start to debate if I should order food or cook something. I’m tired and would love nothing more than to take a nap.

5:30 pm

We try to sit down as a family and eat but when you have two teenagers in sports (and with jobs), it’s a little difficult. I guess this is preparation for when Nate and I are empty nesters.

6:00 pm

I start cleaning the house. This is so random. Everything from toilets, vacuuming, more laundry, etc. Once I start, I can’t stop so Nate typically has to corral me with a good Netflix series.

7:00 pm

My daughter is usually at work and I’m incessantly checking FindMy iPhone just to make sure she’s safe. This is a bad habit I need to break because in a year she’s an adult. YIKES! Around this same time, Bennett is getting wild with the dogs. Running with them in the backyard or up and down our stairs until he can’t breathe and they are foaming at the mouth. I’m trying to read a book, but it's way more fun watching the party around me.

8:00 pm

Nate and I love watching series on streaming apps. This is also snack time. Nothing better than a cozy blanket, a big bowl of ice cream, and an addicting series.

9:30 pm

My daughter gets home from work and we chat about her day and I usually make her something to eat.

10:00 pm

I’m struggling to stay awake but try to suck up another 30 minutes of the series we paused.

10:30 pm

Lights out – I’m done for the day. I’m getting old so I’m thankful I can make it this long.

See you all tomorrow!

If we’re learning anything from the “Day in the Life” series, it's that most of our leaders start their day early and that they always make time for decompression and loved ones. Family values translate into the workplace and become strengths. Salelytics is lucky to have a leader with not only the expertise but a balanced mindset to direct us towards success.