Have you ever wanted to walk a working week in someone else's shoes? Welcome to our new series, offering a no-holds-barred look at the Monday-Friday diary of successful women.
Karen Lambert is the founder and CEO of Happy Creative, a marketing agency based in the North West of England. The core ethos of her business is happiness – which informs how she leads her team, deals with clients and manages her own working practices.
Monday
Early start today, working by 6.30am. I'm about to submit a tender for a piece of business worth £47,000 and it’s due in by 10am. The alignment in the tender almost mirrors what we’ve done for another client so I'm feeling positive. Just some final tweaks this morning with a fresh head.
Tender is in at 9am (one hour ahead of deadline). I do a little happy dance.
I have a team of seven and 9.30am is our daily Zoom catch up. My week ahead will involve all aspects of running a small marketing agency, including new product development, new market development, team 1-2-1s, mentoring, client work and a number of virtual client meetings.
Having focused on the tender, I’m in catch-up mode all afternoon. I spend it calling clients, taking actions on emails, updating financials and preparing for meetings.
After a dinner of garlicky pasta I spend the evening thinking about the changing business landscape and how we will adapt to it. I am thankful that we are small enough to be agile. I finally call it a day at 10pm. It’s a longer than normal day today, and I fall into bed exhausted. (Although too alert to actually sleep.)
My main feeling today is… overwhelmed.
Tuesday
I am up by 6am enjoying my morning brew (tea, two) with no disruptions. I love the peace this time of day brings.
I start work at a more normal time of 8.15 am today. A quick check of overnight emails shows there’s nothing pressing so I head out to the garden and spend 20 minutes listening to birdsong and getting a little clarity on my day. I do my positive affirmations and I’m feeling happy.
Being remote, I'm conscious to maintain regular contact with my team. I have a virtual 1-2-1 with one of my team today. I run these regularly with all of the team where we talk about how they’re doing in themselves, how they’re performing, what challenges they have, and what they need my help with. This time together is really valuable for both of us, as the chats are a two-way communication and are always open. The team can ask me anything and we’re incredibly honest with each other, even if that means having uncomfortable discussions.
I then have two Zoom client meetings; one is an update on how they are doing and how business is during lockdown, and the other is a briefing for a new project.
Whilst working from home, I have found that it helps to move around the house to give me a different perspective. I have time away from my laptop and phone so that my time is pure.
I have two time blocks built into today - one for marketing and one for new product development. I find working in time blocks helps keep me focused and feeling productive. For the marketing work, I’m writing a blog about the importance of asking the right questions.
I finish at a reasonable 5.30pm today.
My biggest challenge at work this week is… having quality time to think.
Wednesday
Before logging on, I listen to Radio 5’s Wake Up To Money podcast. It's always inspiring. It features real-life business owners from many sectors who share their thoughts, opportunities and challenges – it’s good to hear from those in a similar position to you.
I have one main focus today – to create a marketing strategy for one of our clients who has merged with two other companies. It’s 10am and I'm in the garden. I start with pen and paper and a blank sheet, and jot down thoughts and ideas – what do we want to achieve, what does success look like, and how will we deliver it? I find myself completely in flow when strategising. Ideas pop and develop in my mind and I am energised.
As I think, I’ll look at a cloud, or a bird, or a swaying tree. It’s the way I think and process ideas. A one-mile walk at lunch time with upbeat music for company also helps.
"I've had a coach and mentor for 18 months now. She’s grounding when I’m taking on too much, and reassuring when I have self-doubts"
I’m a marketing mentor and have a session with my mentee this afternoon who is launching a new sustainable business. We talk about positioning personas and names. She’s an inspiring young lady and I learn from her too.
I’m happy with where I am up to with the strategy, and have a great sense of achievement for the day.
I reward myself with a chilled evening watching TV. I’m not a drinker – I'm more likely to crack open a box of chocolates than a bottle!
If I ever get a midweek slump, this one thing always really helps… saying to myself, “always believe that something wonderful is about to happen”. It’s simple yet it always calms me.
Thursday
I am a member of Vistage, a peer mentoring organisation for CEOs. Today we gather on Zoom, exchange some banter, and update each other on our significant events before listening to an expert speaker. The subject is Millennials – it’s a fascinating insight and it makes me think about how to achieve the best engagement, retention and performance for this generation.
This Vistage Zoom meeting lasts 6 hours (with breaks) and at the end of it I am feeling screen fatigue.
Before doing anything else, I decide to take a walk to clear my head. In the remaining hours in the afternoon I make phone calls, briefing the social media team on a client’s pivot, sharing some useful leadership links as value added to a client and briefing some video content amends. I finish at around 6.15pm.
I’m buzzing from the social interaction and constant flow of ideas. (So much positive energy that I struggle to sleep!)
The one part of my job I find the most satisfying at the moment is… adapting to change – I'm loving the challenge of re-imagining the business.
Friday
At 8am I have an hour with my coach and mentor. We’ve been together for 18 months now. It’s good to share how I’m feeling, what’s troubling me and what’s exciting me. She’s grounding when I’m taking on too much, and reassuring when I have self-doubts. I feel good and energised.
But… Just as I'm about to log off at 2pm, I receive an email to say we haven’t been shortlisted for the tender. I feel so deflated.
In these times I find my self-talk helps; I don’t want to carry this disappointment with me all weekend. I question what I could have done better, whilst also looking for the positive.
I don my walking boots and head out into the hills to clear my head and get some fresh air. I remind myself that there’s a big world of opportunity out there.
Looking back, I’d say this week was… intense.