I feel seen. I mean, really, this video from Scott Chouciño could be aimed directly at me, embarrassingly. I’ve often wondered if I have undiagnosed ADHD, sometimes getting anything done and focusing on the task at hand is such a struggle. I am incredulous at how other people seem to be three times as effective at working and getting stuff done as I am.
But no matter how much a label would be useful to use as an excuse for myself (I’m not saying such a label is an excuse but in my own case it would be), I really do just have to accept that frittering my work day getting sucked down YouTube rabbit holes is less neurological and more of a lack of discipline. In this achingly honest video, Scott tells us how he sets boundaries around his work day, even to the extent that he has banned his girlfriend from visiting the studio.
Admittedly, it does sound a bit harsh. No friends or family dropping by, no coffees during the day with anyone, no answering phone calls from his mum. Is he some kind of monster?
No, he’s not. He’s just taking his creative work seriously as we all should. It’s very easy for people who work from home or work for themselves to get sucked into doing pretty much anything but work. And it’s sometimes made even more difficult by our friends and family thinking that we have flexible work hours so what does it matter if we just pop out for a quick coffee and a chat, or facetime for an hour?
Well, unfortunately, it does matter. Those of us who are feeling time-poor are probably not managing our time effectively, and not prioritising our work. Our work still has to get done, even if you shift the hours. Scott makes the excellent point that if you chat with your mum for an hour, you then have to make up that hour by staying longer at work. By doing that, you miss your kids at home before their bedtime. Everything has a knock-on effect.
Simply cutting the work hours short is not the answer. Running your own business usually requires you to work more hours not fewer than an employed person. Scott basically says that he treats his photography business like a 9-5, keeping consistent hours and just doing the work.
So if you’re running your own business and finding it difficult to ignore the call of your friends or the pile of laundry in the corner, do yourself a favour and watch this video. We all need a reminder occasionally to get stuff done, and Scott is most definitely ‘keeping it real’ in this one.
I’m curious, how do you organise your work life?
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