How to be productive in your soul’s work
Productivity is something I get asked about a lot, and I think it’s one of the top “hacks” we are searching for on our leadership journey. As women leaders who are fighting back against capitalist patriarchy and white supremacy, as people who are re-animating their relationship to the planet and nurturing Mama Earth, we can see productivity as a huge part of the problem - and it is.
I believe productivity - the cultural decree to “hustle” and “slay” and “crush it” - is one of the fundamental building blocks of patriarchy. The more distracted women are by always expending their energy in order to feel worthy, the less time they will spend resting, getting in touch with their body (aka their power), and the less connected they will be to their patriarchy-busting vision. Unlearning the toxic productivity teachings of capitalism is a cornerstone of our work to nourish ourselves in a sacred feminine way.
And yet - if we can’t carve the space and time to do our soul’s work, the patriarchy wins. It’s a bit of a catch 22, but I believe time blocking, carving sacred space, and getting community accountability are the medicines our soul’s are longing for.
Co-Working Village
This is why we have our co-working village inside the Nourished Leaders Collective (join for free!) - we are revillaging our souls and our schedules to remember what sacred community looks like. When you have a screen full of other women leaders staring at you while you do your work, you are way more likely to stay focused and get it done.
If you haven’t co-worked in this way before, this is what it looks like - feel free to copy this same model with your group of friends or coworkers:
Gather on zoom, invite everyone to keep their camera on but muted.
Set intentions - everyone shares what they are working on during this session.
Ground with a meditation - invite clarity if some folks don’t know what to prioritize, perhaps bring in a body scan or even call in the 4 directions.
Ask everyone to type in the chat their mini-goal for the first work sprint of 25 minutes.
Set your timer for 25 minutes. Play instrumental vibey music and share your computer sound so everyone can listen along.
Work until the timer goes off.
Call everyone back for a 5 minute work break. Ask them to type in the chat if they accomplished their goal, and what they’ll work on for the next 25 minutes.
During the break, have a dance party or lead some gentle stretching.
When the timer goes off, begin the second sprint.
Keep working like this for 4 sprints, then take a longer 15 minute break.
I think it’s best to hold space for 2 hours max, although I may experiment with this!
Closing - invite everyone to go around and share what they gained from the co-working session!
It always blows my mind how much I’m able to get done when I work in this way! Even if no one is watching me work, the pomodoro method (the 25 minute work sprints, 5 minute breaks) is my favorite hack. It just forces me to be super intentional about how I spend my time. In fact I’m writing this blog post during a sprint right now!
Deep Work
Another super helpful practice for productivity is deep work. I put my phone in do not disturb if I’m using it for a timer or working on social media. If I don’t need my phone for the work I’m doing, I hide it in another room to get it as far from me as possible. Sometimes, just hiding it behind my laptop while I work is enough - out of sight, out of mind is a real thing! Turning off any notifications and sounds on your laptop is crucial, as well as closing out of any unnecessary tabs and programs. This way you can focus on what you need to do and get it done as quickly as possible!
Shutting your door if others are home, putting on headphones with instrumental music (or just noise-canceling), and putting up a sign signal to others that you are in deep work mode and you aren’t to be bothered. It’s a great idea to communicate in advance with family members or roommates or coworkers who are around - ask them to keep noise to a minimum and not disturb you until you’re done.
Deep work is also a state of mind. I find that my inner critic loves to rebel when I try to go into focused work, distracting me with thoughts like “This work doesn’t even matter, no one cares.” I apply deep work principles by tuning out my inner critic, letting them know I’ll attend to them on my break with some self-care and witnessing.
Sacred (Work)Space
Make your workspace sacred, even if you’re in a shared office. Clear all unnecessary clutter, keep the space clean and dust-free. Bring in a plant, a crystal, a candle or essential oil roll-on. Keep big headphones that signal “don’t fuck with me - I’m deep working” in your desk drawer. If you have the space, set up a mini altar to your soul’s vision or your business. You can keep symbols here for your muse, your guides, or the one’s whom you look up to in your lineage. This is a space to meditate, to ask for signs, to pull cards, to make art, to journal. It’s crucial that we take time to “be” in our work - not just do, do, do all the time. Not only does this boost productivity and help us access deeper states of consciousness and creativity and problem solving - it connects us deeply to why we’re working at all. The last thing the world needs is more busy work. Check in at least once a week at your altar to make sure your work in the world is still in alignment with your soul. If it’s not, be courageous enough to change it.
Mastermind
A mastermind is a beautiful way to weave community into your soul’s work, and it’s essential for lonely solopreneurs! Gather a group of 4-5 people - you can all be entrepreneurs, people who work from home, or people in the same industry - and invite them to meet once a week or biweekly on zoom at the same time every week. I also recommend starting a Whatsapp thread to keep up with each other and ask questions in between. Take turns leading the circle each week.
When you gather, start with sharing 3 minutes each of how the past week or two have been - my mastermind calls this “Wins + Witnesses” because - let’s face it - they’re not all wins! Sometimes we just need to be witnessed around what happened.
Next, take 10 minutes each (or however much time you have) to go around and ask a question of the group, providing some context. Ask specifically for what you’re needing - is it advice, is it their past experiences, is it connections or ideas? With the remainder of your 10 minutes, allow the members of your mastermind to popcorn chime in with feedback and ideas. Allow a little extra time in between for transitions and a few minutes to chat and close at the end.
My mastermind has been the place to bring grief around “failed” launches, low attendance at master classes, the place to ask my questions about how others are advertising or strategizing their web design. It goes much deeper than just advice - it’s about revillaging and remembering that we are pack animals - we were never meant to do this leadership thing alone!
Be sure to join the Nourished Leaders Collective and come to our next Co-Working Village! Best of luck as you crank up the productivity on your most sacred work. You’ve got this! We love you.