Thanks ttcInnovations for the opportunity to linkup with other bloggers and share a sneak peek into my daily routine! Everyone who’s participating is sharing their own stories so check them out: ttcInnovations, Jackie Van Nice, Rachel Barnum, Melissa Milloway.
5:45am
The Wake-Up Light has been gradually getting brighter for the past 15 minutes, but I’m not ready to get out of bed! By 6am, my husband is reminding me that the shower is free (aka ‘get your butt out of bed already!’).
6:30am-7:45am
Breakfast consists of multi-grain cheerios and a green smoothie, and I flip through my emails, check Twitter, and download a source file while I eat. Joe takes Oliver out to play frisbee and tire him out, so I feed the cats, dry my hair, do my face, and throw on some clothes.
We’re out the door by 7:10am, and as with most things in my life, nothing productive really begins until coffee has made its way to my mouth, so we stop for coffee.
By 7:30am I drop Joe off at work, and I’m at the university by 7:45am.
7:45am-6pm
I’m at the university until 3:30pm. First and foremost, I tackle coffee and write out my to-do list, and then I do several development plan and course reviews.
I brew and drink a tea while quickly uploading some revisions for a client. This brings me to 10:45am, so I take a walk around campus before heading to the gym around 11am. At the gym, I run a quick 2.51 km – I’m running a half-marathon on Sunday, and I’m trying to squeeze some very short runs and cross-training in ahead of the race. Dodgeball starts tomorrow and softball practices is on Thursday and Friday, so I don’t want to do too much more than that.
After the gym, I grab a slice of pizza from my favourite pizza place because…life’s all about balance, right?
I make my way back to the university, and populate another faculty member’s course, answer some faculty questions, and record some audio narration, taking me to 3:30pm. Life at the university is definitely a lot busier than it sounds! Having written this, it seems like I do nothing, but there never seems to be enough hours in the day.
While at the university, I monitor three different email accounts to ensure nothing pressing comes up with my clients outside of the university. Nothing major is going on today, so I feel good about being productive this evening.
At 3:30pm I pack up and leave the university and head back to pick Joe up from work.
By 5pm, we’re home. I toss supper on (hummus-crusted baked chicken and roasted sweet potato) and begin to plug away at client work. I catch up on some YouTube videos and blog-reading while I wait for supper to finish.
6pm-7pm
I deliver revisions for two courses (for one client), and plug away at another course for this client – the one I recorded audio for earlier. The course is pretty much finished, but I need to edit and synchronize the audio, which is tedious…but I love what I do, so it ain’t no biggie.
I read a low-rated review of Articulate Storyline Essentials and get discouraged for a little while. I’m really proud of having written that book, but it was really tough to pare down content to just the basics. The screenshot walkthrough style isn’t for everyone; different strokes for different folks I guess. I’m trying to focus on the positive reviews I’ve received, and not let it hold me back from working on the book I’m currently writing.
7pm-9pm
I continue working on the course and toss a load of in the dryer. I’m doing my work over a beer and the glow of the TV as I use the Blue Jays/Orioles game as background noise. I deliver the course for review, get in bed, and read to wind down. I’ll be out like a light by 10pm.
Nicely done, Ashley! The narrative style brought your day to life really well. Above all, I remain envious of your ability to call it quits and get to sleep at a reasonable hour. 🙂
Hahaha. I think the issue for me is that my brain is pretty much useless after 930pm, so it forces me to get to bed most of the time.
You ladies work crazy hours! Thank you for this look behind the scenes.
So disciplined lol. My schedule is all over the place right now. No kids or hubby so it’s sometimes a bad thing haha. But reading about your day gives me an idea of what I probably SHOULD get into (though I don’t miss waking up at 5am while I was in the military :/). But thanks, I enjoyed this post 🙂
Ashley,
Thanks for sharing your day. I was just over reading Jackie’s “typical day” and followed the link to your story. I would have to agree that my brain is fried after a certain point in the evening as well. Of course, a coffee to start the day is a must as well.
Richard
Nice posting, Ashley. I, too, work at a university however, my 1:15 minute commute eats up 2 1/2 hours of my day. But, I think I use it wisely as I have downloaded great podcasts on elearning to listen to as well as some great audio books. My other wrench right now is the fact that I am also working to earn a doctoral degree in our field as well. So, I feel short on time all of the time. My husband usually does most of the cooking and helps out around the house so that helps.
It is nice to see that others are working before the sun rises until it’s time to turn down the bed. 🙂