Loading summary

Transcript90 lines

[00:01]
A
Welcome to the I Love Neuro podcast.
[00:03]
B
We're your hosts. I'm Claire McLean.
[00:06]
A
And I'm Erin Gallardo. And we help those who love neurologic rehab and wellness think outside the box, deliver care with passion and improve the lives of those with neurologic conditions without burnout and overwhelm.
[00:18]
B
Join us on the quest to figure all of that out.
[00:30]
A
Everyone, welcome back to the I Love neuropodc podcast. I'm your host today. Erin and Claire will be joining us shortly. We sometimes do this where we kick it off and then she jumps in.
[00:40]
C
Pros.
[00:41]
A
She'll be coming, I think. But in the studio today, we have our neuro biz coach, Emily Duvall Ledger. Welcome back to the show.
[00:51]
C
Emily, hi. It is great to be in studio with you.
[00:55]
A
It is. It's great to have you in studio. We're just laughing about how, hey, maybe we should work on a podcast studio instead of on Zoom. So I don't know. That just followed through in my intro. So we are back to talk to our neuro biz owners and neurobiz curious folks who are just itching and wondering if they should get into having a little business of their own. But we have a lot of great neurobiz client and we like to do episodes that help them. So what kinds of things have been coming up for our biz owners these days?
[01:34]
C
I today I thought we should talk a bit about work, life balance and business burnout because I think a lot of our business owners, a lot of us, I know I did start our own businesses because we are trying to get away from the burnout we felt in other professional settings. Right? You're like, okay, then I'm going to start a business and do it my way and I'm not going to feel this way anymore. And I wholeheartedly applaud that. And I really hope that there is someone listening right now who's been just a wee bit curious who decides to do the leap, pull the trigger, go for it, because you're listening today, trigger set of those. So I'm just manifesting that for you. But then once we leap and we're in it, I think a lot of us, and this definitely comes up with this coaching clients that I have a lot of us struggle with how to find that elusive work balance and to not burn our own selves out in our business. It's one thing to work a lot of hours for a job job that you are an employee, but it's very tempting to do that same thing when you Are the boss. Because this is the thing. It's your baby. You're nurturing it. You love it. It's to you to see it succeed. And in that earnestness, I think sometimes we lose the plot a little bit on one of the intentions that we set for our business, which was not only for it to be successful, but for us to feel better, for us to enjoy our work again, to set ourselves up to do the kind of work that we love, to feel like we are doing things that matter and that our best is coming out. And in the pursuit of that, sometimes it's easy to overwork ourselves and not be a very good boss. Honestly. You joke that the VIP of your business is you. Right? Yeah.
[03:32]
A
You have to remind yourself of that all the time, though. Your energy is your most valuable asset. So you have to protect it. You cannot overdo it and burn yourself out. And I. It is much easier to do that in your own business because when you're working for someone else, you're just not invested in the same way. You can love your job and care about it being successful and being productive, but it's very different when it's your own thing. And especially early on, it's. There's so much to do. It's really hard not to work really hard. Rachel Rogers has those levels. Her hello seven levels. And I think those are really relevant. And I don't remember the names of each of them. Maybe you do a little more. But she outlines it almost like a roller coaster. You're riding up, up. And then once you hit a certain income, revenue level of your business, then you ride and coast down. But as you're climbing, there's this phase I remember called busy bee. And it's just. It's just a phase you do. Everyone has to go through. And there is so much to do. But yeah. And that's especially when you need to keep in mind, I cannot overdo it. Even though I'm a busy bee right now, I can't over overdo it.
[04:43]
C
Yeah. Because there is a level of busyness, if you will, that becomes unproductive. Right. Recognizing where my peak is and not letting hustling or being busy become our personality. I think sometimes we just get in the habit of that ace of work or amount of workload we put on ourselves, however you want to phrase it. And it's not. We're not doing any of it well because we've overloaded too much there, though
[05:22]
A
people are maybe a little more conscious of it. I don't know if you think so too. But there's definitely people and historically who, how are you busy? That's always the answer. Busy number in. In. When I was owning a clinic too, it was like I made a conscious effort to not stay busy when it was like when people would ask, how are you doing? Because I didn't want to identify with that and just always, boom, busy. Everything's so busy.
[05:50]
B
As if, oh, good, that's good.
[05:52]
A
Everything should be busy.
[05:53]
C
No, I think I definitely was guilty of that. I definitely identified as someone who was super busy. Overbooked product. And that was part of my identity as a business owner. And it wasn't really until I started working with a coach who kind of called me out on it that I was like, oh, what are you doing? What is all this busyness? And does it need to be done and is it doing the thing I want it to do and am I the best person to do it? And am I repeating a cycle that isn't necessarily working for me? So I think part of it too is occasionally reminding yourself, what is the actual goal here? Because sometimes the goal is not always growth. We get in a habit of grow, push, push, build. But what is that growth for? I was very happy to hear really early in NeuroSpark, neurobiz world, when we were still mostly like a peer to peer accountability group, there were guest speakers. It was two. It was a couple. And they owned a physical therapy practice and they had a much bigger business that they had just compressed and condensed. And it was because they had a realization that they built this business so that they could have this for their family. And it was at the expense of their family. And they were like, no, we wanted to be successful so that we could do all this with our kids. And we realized we are just working ourselves because growth almost got contagious. You got on the growth train and you forgot to get off at some point. And I was inspired to hear them get off the train and that it was permission that I don't always this in America, we have this grow or die mentality. No, not necessarily. I think that's kind of bull, right? It should be for something. And that one of the benefits of your work should be good quality of life, right?
[07:57]
A
Oh, yeah, absolutely. I. That's a little hard and scary though too because sometimes you're just doing the thing because it. You're just trying to get by and actually put systems in place and put things and not even like you're intentionally
[08:10]
B
like, oh, I'm trying to grow.
[08:12]
A
You know what I Mean, there are times when it's just hard to even.
[08:16]
C
Yeah.
[08:17]
B
Get it going.
[08:19]
C
Okay. So I was talking to a business owner today, actually coaching Frank, and there's a lot to do. There's rebuilding of the website, there's getting more reviews and improving the Google listing, there's building a social media presence. But what is the lowest hanging fruit that is going to get money in the door today? And that was leaning into building better relationships with her referral parties who are going to send her repeat business. So yes, all that other stuff has to get done, but does it need to get done today? Maybe not. Maybe today is truly focused on. I just need to bring in some money in the door. Right. Yeah.
[08:57]
A
And it's like, so it's the urgency thing. I think that so many people fall into this urgency trap now this, now I have to do it. Everything's urgent. And I, it's.
[09:07]
C
I.
[09:07]
A
That's another thing that I felt like had to recognize at some point. Like, I'm not, I can't live in urgency. It's not healthy.
[09:14]
C
No, it's just not all an emergency. And also then most of it, we're not doing well. Right. Because we're just like, then I'm back in my busy cycle. Right. One of the best advice I was given to was to schedule everything. And that what came from one of the personal training clients that I had who had a very high level executive position in the fashion industry. And she basically ran like a continent. And I was like, with all these people reporting to you and all these things you need to do, how do you keep your to do list? What does that even look like and how do you keep track of it? She was like, oh, I don't have one. I schedule all my tasks. She scheduled her workouts with me. She scheduled tasks that she needed to do for work. She scheduled meetings. And then she could see over the course of the day, can I get it all done? Is there time for it? Or am I committing to things that I don't actually have time for? And that was really helpful to me because I would have one day off and I would have this list of 17 things. And then at the end of the day I'd only gotten four done and I felt like a failure because I had 17 and it was like, but you really only had time for. It's. You're bad for committing to the 17 in the first place and not necessarily being realistic about what can and should be done today. And if scheduling it then makes you choose, it forces you to have priorities of, like, my biggest goal now is I want this to happen in my business. So these other things just are going to have to wait while I focus on those things. Right.
[10:45]
A
And the scheduling thing does work for some people. And early on, like, I know I've talked about this before, the whole focus planner was like my bible early on. And because it was the same thing, it laid out the hours of the day, my mapped out my week. What are my top three priorities? Because the other thing is I have 17,000 priorities. And you think that you can get all of that done in a week, and you just can't. So having an A tool like that can help you organize. What do you need to accomplish by the end of this week for it to actually move you forward and feel like you're making actual progress, not just busy work.
[11:18]
C
Yeah.
[11:19]
A
Three things, and then three things for each day. What do you need to get done if. If nothing else happens, these three things happen. And then looking at what are you going to do each hour of the day? And you can write that out. And that was hugely helpful for me in the beginning. I don't need it as much anymore. I still like a good list and, like, map out my goal for the week. But early on, I needed something concrete like that.
[11:43]
C
You've built the habit, right?
[11:44]
B
Yeah.
[11:45]
C
And like, I. For me, scheduling it also gave me permission to not think about it until it was time to think about it. And that was part of the burnout. And the lack of balance in my life is even when I was home with my husband, I was thinking about all the things that I had to do. And so putting it in the calendar gave me permission to literally put a pin in it until it was time to deal with it. And that is where I had more, like, mental rest from my work. So, yes, there's still a lot to get done, but that I felt like I could be more present for all of us. Isn't that where the balance comes from? Is that no matter where you are, you want to feel like you are present in that place with those people and that experience? And if my head is constantly in three different places, then I'm definitely going to burn myself out quicker.
[12:35]
A
Miserable.
[12:36]
C
Yeah.
[12:38]
A
Yes.
[12:39]
C
It looks like Claire's joined us.
[12:41]
A
You don't need to have the conversation about work life balance.
[12:44]
B
So it's called failing at work life balance. It's called. It's on your schedule and you still. I have no idea that it was there because there's a new schedule and you are confused about it.
[13:01]
A
Fair.
[13:02]
C
Fair.
[13:03]
B
Yeah. But it's good to hear you guys talk about it.
[13:05]
C
Wow.
[13:06]
B
And one of these days. One of these days, balance will be achieved.
[13:12]
A
Yeah. Yep. That's a myth. But you are making a lot of progress. You have, because you have already been shifting things. Hey, I want to move this to this day. I want to lower the hours on this day. I wanted to. So you are definitely doing that. You're making intentional effort.
[13:27]
B
I'm making moves.
[13:28]
C
Yeah.
[13:29]
B
But then it just is like whack a mole. You make a move, and then something else pops up in your face. You're like, wait, I thought I managed that. Yeah. Fun times.
[13:40]
C
You said something a while ago, it was probably at least a year ago, about how you were scheduling little to nothing on Fridays because that was the day that things tend to blow up. I think it was Friday. Maybe I'm pulling that up of my ear. But that just having that padding in your schedule to be able to put out fires makes us feel better equipped to put them out. Right. It's often just adding a little breathing room. I reorganized my training schedule and just added an extra amount of time in between sessions and that little extra 15 minutes or whatever. I felt so different at the end of the day. I didn't feel like this pinball that had ricocheted all over it gave me a chance to breathe and use the restroom and eat a snack and lose myself or my thoughts or whatever instead of just jamming. And I was very inspired by you, Claire.
[14:38]
B
Thank you. Yeah. That was. My intention, was to have nothing scheduled on any of my days.
[14:43]
C
That's the.
[14:43]
B
That's the what I'm trying to get to. And it just comes in waves. I will have. I've had times where my schedule is lighter, but then it still feels I'm the one who's available for backup. So if someone calls out sick or ends up being gone, things end up getting put on my schedule quite a bit still. It needs to be open so that can happen. But what would the next transition be? Would actually one of my physical therapists have a significantly lighter schedule. So they are the backup instead of me being the backup. But then where does the money come to pay for a physical therapist to be here and that schedule doing things? So these are the things that I think about a lot, like how to make this work. It's really just a financial squeeze.
[15:24]
A
I would.
[15:25]
B
You know, I'd say it's really the finances of it. That in healthcare. And this is something I learned from my husband working in the Aviation industry, they have something called pilots who are on reserve. So of all their pilots, every month, for every schedule there are pilots scheduled to fly the flights and then there are pilots on reserve who are sitting at home waiting to be called. So they are technically working that day. They have to be available. There's all sorts of different hours about what the timing might be of how long they have to get notified, but they are ready to fly if needed. So if someone calls out sick, if something gets delayed, that then pushes one pilot, he's now past the hours that he's allowed to fly for that day and he can't fly anymore. You call a reserve, they come in and fly the flight. There is nothing like that in healthcare. There is no space in the system, there's no redundancy, there's no enable. So if like, if a physical therapist at most places, if you call out sick, everyone on your schedule gets canceled because everybody else is completely full. And, and maybe that's okay. Or would we want to work in a way in healthcare where we had reserves or we had someone else around, whether they were on site or home or something where they could be called in if necessary. This is something like for substitute in teaching we. I talked to this woman who was a substitute teacher and she was on call, she would sometimes get called that morning at 5:30 in the morning. And I was like, that sounds horrible. I need, I want to know if I'm going to be working that day. So that doesn't work for me. I don't really want to be at home waiting to get called in. I want to be at work, but just maybe doing other, doing other things, doing projects, participating relationships, I don't know. There's all sorts of other things that could happen. But to pay for someone to be in that position, having the money to pay for that is difficult. You then have to you already the way we charge. We now have two instructors in every class, which is something I feel very strongly about now. I'm not going back. We had one instructor for a long time and we managed okay. And now it feels like we have to have two instructors. That is just the right way to do it. So that is, we increase prices for our membership last year to cover that. And now I feel like what I really need is if we have two classes going on, we got 2pts each of those classes. I need another person that is available if something happens, if something's needed, something, somebody has to leave early. There are just so many things that happen to people and humans every day. That until you're in a position of a supervisor or manager, you have no idea. You only know about yourself pretty much. And you've got friends maybe that you work with, you know when things happen with them, but you mostly know about yourself and what's going on and you have no idea what is happening. And it gives you a lot of not just respect, respect, but like understanding for supervisors and managers. Some people are really good at being managers and supervisors. Some people are not that good. But it is a hard job whether you're good or not good at it.
[18:12]
A
Yes.
[18:12]
B
And I think most people, when you're early in your career or even later in your career, you haven't been in a position like that. You don't understand. You don't have a perspective. Yeah. To understand. Wow, this is a lot. So, yeah, so that's like what I'm working on is that I'm not always the backup because then I end up being busy all the time and don't have any time to do the other things I'm supposed to do. So, yeah, Friday was easiest and best day for me initially to have less on my schedule. And then I had. I. There was a period of time, I don't even know when it was. I don't know. I don't know how long ago it was. But there's a period of time that my schedule was pretty good and I had time for a lot of other things. And then we now have a therapist on maternity leave. And then another, like having one therapist on maternity leave. I was like, okay, we're good. This is fine. I moved the schedule around. When one more person wants to take time off, then we're not okay. We were okay for the maternity leave, but then when other people are taking time, which I think we. I'm proud. I think things I'm proud of is our work life balance. All of our staff take time off. They take a day here or there for things. They take extended periods of time. One of our therapists just took a two week vacation and I am so happy about that. I feel like we have a good culture where people take time off. There are so many places where people like never take time off. That is not healthy. I'm very glad that people take time off, but I still need to figure out a better way. And we do have some coverage because some of our therapists who are part time can come in and help on different days. So that is happening. But we still need like kind of another level of redundant redundancy. Doesn't sound Good. Because it makes it sound like it's not needed. It is very needed because that's what healthcare comes out.
[19:49]
C
Anytime there's redundancy.
[19:51]
B
No, yeah, that's bad. But yeah, like these days if you have a. If you're supposed to get a surgery and your surgeon is sick, like your surgery is getting canceled and probably not rescheduled for three to four months. So everywhere in healthcare we need to have a. Everybody's even understaffed. They're not even appropriately staffed. We need appropriate staffing and then we need some given the system, both so that the people who are doing the work are not totally burned out. And so also if somebody's out, there is somebody to pick up at least some of that slack and not have everybody get canceled. So yeah, I'm still working on it. I feel like there's one other thing I was going to say about that.
[20:28]
A
It's like the repercussions just aren't big enough. I think in healthcare with the one on one delivery, like in an airline, a flight gets canceled or a day of flying gets canceled and so many people are impacted and the airline has to pay out all this money or rebook everyone or figure it all out. It's almost makes sense why they would build prices into, allow for redundancies so that there's not those like money bailing
[20:53]
B
outs and yeah, keep the schedule going. It is, it's different than canceling one person or canceling a few people of one on one therapies then. Yeah, I agree. And it's also just different when it's insurance versus the open market. You know, airlines can say, yeah, this is what it costs for us to have staffing, to do what we really want to do and do it well and take care of our customers. This is what it actually costs to do that. So we can charge that. That's not how it works in health care. There's just this whole convoluted system with insurance. This is what it costs us to do it. Insurance, we're going to pay you a third of that. Okay. Then we're going to charge three times that amount and then insurance is going to pay a percentage of that. So it's Nobody, I think even really knows what it costs to do things.
[21:34]
A
Yeah.
[21:35]
B
And there's been such abuse of the system in both directions because everybody's trying to figure out a way for it to work in what is essentially for profit, but not. But with these weird constraints. So yeah, healthcare is a very interesting situation. But I was gonna say, oh, and also you're timing about the 15 minutes, Emily. So this is also something that I have protected. So with our schedule, we do hour long classes and in the morning when we have our busiest classes, we do have 15 minutes between. In the afternoon we don't. But we only ever have two classes back to back, especially that someone is teaching. Yes, Tuesdays we have three classes back to back, but it's not the same person teaching those three classes back to back in a row. So there is some space for people. But in the mornings we have an hour long class. We have 15 minutes between. Yeah, because it does. It takes time to clean up, to set up, to use the bathroom, get a snack, chat with people. And that's one thing. One of our members was talking to me. He's a banker and he's looking at the finances and he was trying to coach me and he did coach me into increasing our prices to cover. So that was very helpful. But. And he had a lot of ideas. And one was 50 minute classes and every class on the hour. And I was like, nope, not doing it. A hour long class and on a 5 to 60 minute class, somewhere between 55 to 60 minutes, but really close to an hour in most cases. And then that 15 minutes is so critical for so many reasons. It is not worth cramming that schedule together. That's something I'm not doing. So I do feel like even though there's a lot of things that I want to make changes from where we are now, I also feel like we are in a position place where we have a good schedule. I think I, I do a pretty good job taking care of the employees and protecting their schedules with start and end times and hours that they work and having breaks in between. I feel like I'm pretty good at doing it for others. I'm just not good at doing it for myself.
[23:31]
C
We just need to make you think of yourself as an employee and then you'll be a lot kinder instead of as the owner. But I am so glad that you say that because I really believe that all roads. When we are making decisions for our businesses, we keep having to go back to what sets us up to do our best work. It pays off in the long run. Squeezing as much as you can out of the orange doesn't necessarily give you better juice. Right. And I want to. I don't even know that's a metaphor. I think I just made that up in my head. But I want a business that's sustainable long term, which means I'm not Going to burn out my employees, not going to burn out myself. I'm going to make sure that people are actually getting the quality of service that I intend for them to have. And I'm really glad that you fiercely protect that. I think it's important also remembering you are, we are small business owner people. Our customer base know us. We're not this baseless CEO. And it is okay, you close your business for the holidays and your members know we're just off that it's not so dire that I have to give this service 247 relentlessly with no holidays and no time off. No, we are people. We're modeling a value set that is more than just efficiency and profit. And I think some of our members who own their own businesses, since they are coming from a hospital system where they had to work every holiday when they were coming up, sometimes they expect that of their employees. And it's like, but didn't you start this business to do it differently? Give yourself permission to not follow the same path that you are a refugee from? You escaped to get out of there and now you're recreating that system in your own business because that's what's familiar to you, right?
[25:29]
B
Yeah. It's so hard. Even when the whole kind of a productivity thing and how much to schedule it is so hard. You see an opening on the schedule
[25:38]
C
and you're like, what?
[25:39]
B
Why? We didn't get booked there. Maybe not. Maybe it's okay for there to be some space in the schedule to be creative, but it's, it is just an automatic response. We have been trained that you need to be productive the whole time you're at work. And one of there was a physical therapy colleague posting on social media. Now I can't remember exactly who it was, so I can't give them credit, which I would really like to give everybody credit for their thoughts. But he was talking about how in all other industries you don't have meetings scheduled back to back to back to back. Healthcare is. You're working with people, you're problem solving, you're figuring things out, you're working with them, you're documenting. It's like the highest level of the way that you could be working. You are working cognitively, emotionally and physically. And you're doing that for eight, nine, maybe ten hours a day. In all other industries, you have meetings scheduled and. But then, I don't know, three, four, you don't have eight hours of meetings back to back that you are responsible for leading or having brought specific information too that's one thing about being a manager. Running meetings is you're like, I need to prepare to have a meeting. I can't just show up to a meeting. I need time to get ready to have that meeting so that it is a good use of everybody's time. It sounds so obvious, but when, like just when you're used to being a PT trainer, occupational therapist, you have a schedule. You're used to working on that and you're working super hard for every one of those hours. And there's no space in the schedule. There's no time to think or plan or be creative or anything. But then you start something yourself and you're just fill it right up. It is a compulsion, it is nearly impossible to not fill it right up.
[27:21]
C
And that work is so essential. It's called quiet work. And yet also we try to do it crammed in while also answering calls. And I'm at the front desk of my business while I'm trying. No, we're not doing good work. If your quiet work is not quiet, it's not going to be your best work. I'm sure of it. So trying to schedule times for yourself to go and do that task in a place that that can actually foster that creativity. Part of the reason why we as a society struggle with creativity sometimes is that we do not allow ourselves any time to be bored. I'm constantly scrolling on my phone. I'm not gonna have time that like breath to then have a good creative idea. Right. We never have a brilliant idea at the end of a long day. It like waiting in line. If you look in line now, the rare times you're ever standing in line, everyone is on their phone. So no one's like daydreaming. Remember we used to daydream, right. So going back to our like, how do we achieve work? Life balance, I think is also making sure that you have time outside of work, even if it is a short period of time that is sacred to not being booked for something big. That my me time can truly be like, go sit in the backyard and listen to a bird. Right. Just to give my brain a rest. And often that's where my best creative ideas come from. Or the long run.
[28:56]
B
Or that.
[28:57]
C
Yeah. Getting a hobby that really captivates your attention.
[29:01]
A
Right.
[29:01]
C
Really have to think about. Before we got on the call Erin and I were talking about she just ran 50 miles through Wyoming, Wisconsin. It was what hills. Yeah. You have to concentrate on it. Right. You're going downhill, you and so good for your brain. Then when you come back to work, you can actually function. I realize a lot of people who own businesses are also working parents, so maybe your free time is very tight, but please schedule it for yourself so that you have something that is just yours that can be absolutely nothing or something totally captivating. But I just know I used to come home from a really long day of work and then edge out and watch television. And then I just felt perpetually burned out. And it wasn't until I got hobbies that really took me out of my work brain, actively out of my work brain to give it time to rest, that then I felt better when I went back to work. Pursuing fun instead of just something to excite you breath. Yeah, yeah, for sure. Also thinking about, are my systems working for me? Can I change any of my systems? Am I doing jobs that I'm not great at that I can delegate? Can someone else do this better or faster or cheaper than me? Especially if you are a cash based practice and you're charging $200 an hour, is there somebody who for $25 an hour can do some of these admin tasks for you and then that frees you up to earn more money on your actively working hours? Early business owners, it's very tempting to just do all the jobs ourselves and then especially jobs that you hate. One of my business owner coaching clients is just not a spreadsheet person and was trying really hard before I met her. CPA made her a spreadsheet instead of showing her how to use QuickBooks and that wasn't working. And finally we just said okay, we're firing spreadsheet. We got her a new system that's working way better for her and it syncs up with her bank and automatically does all the bookkeeping and it works for her brain. Like why are we forcing this thing that just. She's not wired for that.
[31:20]
B
Okay.
[31:20]
C
That's not the only way to do it. Right.
[31:22]
A
Yeah. You have to be doing things that's the quicker way to burn out is to just do things that drain your energy. There's are certain things that everybody is just more energized by or less energized by. And to release the things that drain you as much as possible is the ultimate goal. And it's constantly a moving target because there are new things getting added all the time and it's so important to just reassess. Wait, is this why am I feeling this way? Is there something I need to shift even? Actually when I was in Wisconsin, I got to hang out with our friend Joy Cochran, who is an amazing neuro PT with a business out there. And we got to chat a while about her business and certain things that she was feeling.
[32:01]
B
And I don't know, I have everything
[32:03]
A
I wanted but why do I feel a little off? And so as we're talking a little more, it's just there are certain things that just aren't aligned sometimes it's like too many of your not ideal clients. And I was like, I remember having that. I remember working with a clientele population or whatever that just didn't feel energizing to me. It felt like too much heady work. And I'm more of a physical moving thinker. Like I think with my body is how I say it. But getting down in there and working on gate training with someone or getting down on the floor and we're going with Parkinson's or whatever versus the ones that are more cerebral. You're just like vestibular or fnd where you're just thinking rather than moving. And so it's like we just had this conversation about yeah, everything can seem to be like why it's going but I'm drained. Why. And so it was just looking at where things might be misaligned and trying to think about what could be shifted so that you get that energy back.
[33:02]
C
Absolutely. And I love doing that kind of assessment or evaluation of your business somewhere not at work. Go somewhere with a big open sky, whether it's a field or water or the top of something, but just so that you can get a little bigger and a little dreamier. Because if you're sitting at your desk or inside your clinic or in your car right outside of the. It's very hard sometimes to have the solutions come to you. But here you guys are out on a trail, right? And that's a way better place to. And this can be in your own backyard. You don't have to have money, you don't have to go far. It's not about that. It's just about removing yourself from the situation enough that you can see it with slightly fresh eyes. Right. This isn't working for me entirely. So I'm going to step away from it and look down on it and see am I seeing something different than I did before? And if you right now are listening to this and you feel like there's parts of your business that are not resonating with you, don't ignore them. Really, you future you is going to be so glad that you went, wait a minute, hold on maybe. And yes, it can be expensive it can be annoying, it can be labor intensive to shift direction, but it doesn't have to happen all at once. But just knowing I'm identifying what is the thing that I realize I'm working with clientele that is not who I intended this business to be for. Okay. So I'm slowly going to shift my focus more towards the people that I want to be working with because I'm going to do my best work for them. And then it's going to grow more organically instead of just staying in the cycle and being like, I'm so busy, I'm sobering out and there's no solution.
[34:55]
A
Those signs are so important. The dread. I used to feel dread when I was driving into work and I would just tired or I'm just whatever. And it is really important to pay attention to that because it does mean something has to shift. And sometimes we're not ready or excited to look at that.
[35:10]
B
No.
[35:10]
A
What does that mean? Have to leave this or have to quit that. I have to change that. But it is, that is there for a reason. It is trying to tell you something needs to shift and you will be happier once you do that. So signs like frustration, burnout, dread, it's. It's actually could be an obstacle or it could be an opportunity. And when I hear Claire talking about all this stuff, I see opportunity because you are so innovative and tenacious and creative. And so it's like you're hitting all these challenges and things in healthcare and it's, you're actually the type of person that I want to be feeling these things. Not because I want you to feel anything terrible, because I know that you will actually come up with solutions.
[35:52]
C
And a hundred percent, it's like, it
[35:55]
A
is like we need people like you who will go through that because you'll help all of us, pull all of us through it and be like, no, I figured it out.
[36:04]
C
Yeah. And like we want to listen to those signals of those feelings that we're having that are negative. Right. But also think about what are the parts of your business that are like that light you on fire. Right? What are those moments where you, at the end of the day, you're like, yes, I nailed that. And how did those people find me? How did I find them? What is working there? Can I replicate that? I want you to feel at the end of the day that you really did something that mattered and that. And sometimes it's right in front of us and we just don't see it. Right. Because we're too caught up in Problem, fire I gotta put out. Right. But what is going really well that is aligned with your vision of what you wanted your company to be. You are in charge and you can change your mind at any point. That's the beautiful part of it. I do not do the same work that I did 20 years ago when I quit my job to work for myself. It has morphed and changed more times than I can count because I have grown as a person. And that is the beauty of this work, is that you can adjust your job description as needed because you are better and different than you were a year ago. So capitalize on what you have now instead of trying to do the thing that. Because that's how I've always done it.
[37:25]
A
Yes. Any last words, Claire?
[37:30]
B
Yeah, I think not. I don't know how to put it into words. Yeah. Feeling how you noticing how you feel about things and just noticing how you feel and also how you think about things. I've heard multiple people talking about metacognition, like ever since one of the Olympic athletes brought it up when she got asked a great question by a reporter. And just like, that is something I notice when things happen. I think a certain way about it and I'm like, whoa, that's what you think about that? Like, interesting. Where did that come from? And it has a lot to do with the whole productivity, staying busy versus like, I'm a like a Capricorn. And it is kind of like a work that is my song. So then other people are around like socializing. I'm like, get to work. And then I'm like, wait a second. Actually, the relationships that we build with each other and our members is what makes this team so strong. Oh, that's the. Get to work is not actually the right thought to be. No, but I catch. I notice it, I have it, but then I notice it and then I have a conversation with myself in my head, like, is that really true? Are there things that need to get done? Is this actually what's more important? Yes, it is. Okay, I can let that go. So I encourage anyone who thinks things to then think about the things that you're thinking. That's.
[38:49]
C
Yeah. Is this my story or am I just repeating a story I've heard a bajillion times? Good call.
[38:56]
B
Great.
[38:56]
A
This was a lively discussion. Thank you, Emily, for coming on.
[39:01]
C
Thank you for having me. Awesome as always. So great to chat with you as usual.
[39:08]
B
Right, bye everyone. Thank you for joining the I Love Neuro podcast. If you want to connect with more like minded professionals head to our website w www.neurocollaborative.com and don't forget to subscribe
[39:23]
A
to the podcast so you don't miss any episode.

Summary7 min read

Podcast Summary: "Find Work-Life Balance With Alignment, Not Productivity Tools"

Podcast: I Love Neuro
Episode: 322
Hosts: Erin Gallardo & Claire McLean
Guest: Emily Duvall Ledger (Neuro Biz Coach)
Date: June 15, 2026

Episode Overview

This episode addresses the persistent issue of work-life balance in the world of neurophysical therapy, with a particular focus on business owners. The hosts and their guest, neuro biz coach Emily Duvall Ledger, explore why the typical productivity tools and scheduling hacks often fall short, and advocate for alignment-based approaches that actually energize and sustain professionals and their businesses in the long run. They candidly discuss burnout, the pitfalls of over-identifying with busyness, and the importance of systems and boundaries.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Trap of Busyness & Burnout in Business Ownership

Emily opens up the discussion:

Many practitioners start their own businesses seeking escape from burnout in institutional settings, only to recreate the same cycles of overwork in their new ventures.
The emotional investment in one's own business makes it easier to justify unhealthy work habits because, as Emily puts it, "it's your baby."
Over time, unchecked hustle easily becomes an identity and a default response to any challenge.
(03:31)

"It's one thing to work a lot of hours for a job job... but it's very tempting to do that same thing when you are the boss."
— Emily Duvall Ledger (03:31)

2. Revisiting Growth vs. Quality of Life

Not all goals must revolve around growth; sometimes compressing, pausing, or realigning is needed to make sure life outside of business doesn’t suffer.
The culture of "grow or die" is critiqued as potentially toxic and not universally applicable.
(05:53)
The hosts share stories of business owners who purposefully chose to downsize for family or personal fulfillment.

"...growth almost got contagious. You got on the growth train and you forgot to get off at some point."
— Emily Duvall Ledger (06:41)

3. Prioritization & Scheduling: What Works and What Doesn’t

Tools like planners and scheduling only help if priorities are clear and aligned with actual desired outcomes.
Scheduling tasks allows for mental rest, but inflexibility can breed stress and guilt.
The “urgency trap” and overcommitting to endless to-do lists is called out as a direct line to burnout. (09:06 – 11:44)

"What are my top three priorities? Because the other thing is I have 17,000 priorities. And you think you can get all of that done in a week, and you just can't."
— Erin Gallardo (10:45)

Scheduling also gives a sense of permission to be present outside work, which is essential for real balance.

"Putting it in the calendar gave me permission to literally put a pin in it until it was time to deal with it. And that is where I had more, like, mental rest from my work."
— Emily Duvall Ledger (11:44)

4. The Myth of Achieving Perfect Work-Life Balance

The panel laughs at the idea of "achieving" balance, acknowledging it as an ongoing, imperfect process (13:05).
Claire shares her efforts to build periodic buffer time into her schedule (i.e., light Fridays) to handle the unexpected, reducing the feeling of being "on call" at all times. Emily notes the difference this kind of padding makes to overall wellbeing.

5. The Lack of Systemic Redundancy in Healthcare

Claire draws a parallel between the aviation industry's system of “pilots on reserve” and the absence of such backup roles in healthcare, noting:

Most clinics run on razor-thin staffing, which means staff absences disrupt care and cause more strain, unlike industries with built-in redundancy.
True staff balance only comes when systems and finances allow for planned absences or last-minute coverage.
The inadequacies and convolutions of insurance reimbursement undermine business flexibility and staffing, contrasting with open market pricing in other industries. (15:24 – 21:34)

6. Protecting Breaks and Sane Scheduling

Maintaining breaks between sessions/classes is vital for staff and client experience.
Pressure to maximize every hour (e.g., shifting from hour-long to 50-minute sessions) is resisted in favor of quality and sustainability.
Emily and Claire both stress that owners often care for their team better than themselves, and suggest treating oneself as an employee for better self-care. (22:50 – 24:00)

"Squeezing as much as you can out of the orange doesn't necessarily give you better juice... I want a business that's sustainable long term." — Emily Duvall Ledger (23:31)

7. Allowing For "Quiet Work" and Creativity

The group discusses the value of unscheduled (or “quiet”) time, necessary for creative problem-solving, business planning, and mental health (27:20).
Over-scheduling stifles creativity, innovation, and personal renewal.
The lost art of daydreaming is cited as vital for ideation and balance.

"If your quiet work is not quiet, it's not going to be your best work."
— Emily Duvall Ledger (27:20)

8. The Power of Alignment Over Productivity

Effective, sustained work comes not from frantic productivity but from alignment—doing work and serving clients that energize you.
Periodically reassessing client mix, tasks, and systems is essential to avoid misalignment-induced exhaustion.
Deliberate delegation, system changes, and releasing draining tasks or clients are encouraged—even if it incurs expense or discomfort.
(31:22 – 33:02)

"Release the things that drain you as much as possible is the ultimate goal. And it's constantly a moving target because there are new things getting added all the time..."
— Erin Gallardo (31:22)

9. Check-In with Your Energy & Emotions

Regularly evaluating your own emotional response—dread, frustration, or burnout—can signal a need for change, not just more effort.
Both positive (energizing) and negative (draining) cues help recalibrate direction and choices.

"'The signs are so important. The dread... it is really important to pay attention to that because it does mean something has to shift.'"
— Erin Gallardo (34:54)

10. Flexibility, Growth & Evolving As an Owner

Your job description and business aims should evolve with you, not stay stuck in what originally worked.
Owners are reminded of their agency to redesign their work, systems, or client mix at any time. (36:04)

"You are in charge and you can change your mind at any point. That's the beautiful part of it."
— Emily Duvall Ledger (36:04)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

Emily Duvall Ledger (06:41):
"Growth almost got contagious. You got on the growth train and you forgot to get off at some point."
Erin Gallardo (10:45):
"What are my top three priorities? ...you think you can get all of that done in a week, and you just can't."
Emily Duvall Ledger (11:44):
"Putting it in the calendar gave me permission to literally put a pin in it until it was time to deal with it."
Claire McLean (21:34):
"[In healthcare,] nobody, I think, even really knows what it costs to do things."
Emily Duvall Ledger (23:31):
"Squeezing as much as you can out of the orange doesn't necessarily give you better juice."
Emily Duvall Ledger (27:20):
"If your quiet work is not quiet, it's not going to be your best work."
Erin Gallardo (31:22):
"Release the things that drain you as much as possible is the ultimate goal."
Erin Gallardo (34:54):
"The signs are so important. The dread... it is really important to pay attention to that because it does mean something has to shift."

Important Timestamps

01:33 – 05:53: Introduction to the balance/burnout issue, busyness as identity
06:41 – 08:57: Discussion on growth for its own sake vs. intentionality
09:06 – 11:44: Scheduling, to-do lists, and the urgency trap
13:01 – 16:00: Building padding and flexibility into schedules, system redundancy
21:34 – 24:00: Pricing, breaks, and caring for yourself as well as team
27:20 – 29:01: Making space for quiet, creative work
31:22 – 34:54: Alignment check-ins and recovering energy
36:04 – End: The freedom and necessity of evolving one’s business, closing thoughts

Takeaways for Neuro Rehab Professionals

Work-life balance isn’t achieved through scheduling tricks alone—it requires regular alignment and honest self-assessment.
Busyness is not a badge of honor; meaningful work and creative energy come from presence and margin.
Don’t recreate the systems you escaped; use your agency to build ones that nourish you and your team.
Quiet time, real breaks, and pursuit of energy/joy are foundational, not optional.
Regularly check if you're serving the clients and doing the work that lights you up—and don’t be afraid to pivot if not.

Episode Keywords: Balance, Burnout, Alignment, Scheduling, Boundaries, Creativity, Business Ownership, Neuro PT, Delegation, Quality of Life, Systems, Flexibility

Loading summary

Transcript90 lines

[00:01]
A
Welcome to the I Love Neuro podcast.
[00:03]
B
We're your hosts. I'm Claire McLean.
[00:06]
A
And I'm Erin Gallardo. And we help those who love neurologic rehab and wellness think outside the box, deliver care with passion and improve the lives of those with neurologic conditions without burnout and overwhelm.
[00:18]
B
Join us on the quest to figure all of that out.
[00:30]
A
Everyone, welcome back to the I Love neuropodc podcast. I'm your host today. Erin and Claire will be joining us shortly. We sometimes do this where we kick it off and then she jumps in.
[00:40]
C
Pros.
[00:41]
A
She'll be coming, I think. But in the studio today, we have our neuro biz coach, Emily Duvall Ledger. Welcome back to the show.
[00:51]
C
Emily, hi. It is great to be in studio with you.
[00:55]
A
It is. It's great to have you in studio. We're just laughing about how, hey, maybe we should work on a podcast studio instead of on Zoom. So I don't know. That just followed through in my intro. So we are back to talk to our neuro biz owners and neurobiz curious folks who are just itching and wondering if they should get into having a little business of their own. But we have a lot of great neurobiz client and we like to do episodes that help them. So what kinds of things have been coming up for our biz owners these days?
[01:34]
C
I today I thought we should talk a bit about work, life balance and business burnout because I think a lot of our business owners, a lot of us, I know I did start our own businesses because we are trying to get away from the burnout we felt in other professional settings. Right? You're like, okay, then I'm going to start a business and do it my way and I'm not going to feel this way anymore. And I wholeheartedly applaud that. And I really hope that there is someone listening right now who's been just a wee bit curious who decides to do the leap, pull the trigger, go for it, because you're listening today, trigger set of those. So I'm just manifesting that for you. But then once we leap and we're in it, I think a lot of us, and this definitely comes up with this coaching clients that I have a lot of us struggle with how to find that elusive work balance and to not burn our own selves out in our business. It's one thing to work a lot of hours for a job job that you are an employee, but it's very tempting to do that same thing when you Are the boss. Because this is the thing. It's your baby. You're nurturing it. You love it. It's to you to see it succeed. And in that earnestness, I think sometimes we lose the plot a little bit on one of the intentions that we set for our business, which was not only for it to be successful, but for us to feel better, for us to enjoy our work again, to set ourselves up to do the kind of work that we love, to feel like we are doing things that matter and that our best is coming out. And in the pursuit of that, sometimes it's easy to overwork ourselves and not be a very good boss. Honestly. You joke that the VIP of your business is you. Right? Yeah.
[03:32]
A
You have to remind yourself of that all the time, though. Your energy is your most valuable asset. So you have to protect it. You cannot overdo it and burn yourself out. And I. It is much easier to do that in your own business because when you're working for someone else, you're just not invested in the same way. You can love your job and care about it being successful and being productive, but it's very different when it's your own thing. And especially early on, it's. There's so much to do. It's really hard not to work really hard. Rachel Rogers has those levels. Her hello seven levels. And I think those are really relevant. And I don't remember the names of each of them. Maybe you do a little more. But she outlines it almost like a roller coaster. You're riding up, up. And then once you hit a certain income, revenue level of your business, then you ride and coast down. But as you're climbing, there's this phase I remember called busy bee. And it's just. It's just a phase you do. Everyone has to go through. And there is so much to do. But yeah. And that's especially when you need to keep in mind, I cannot overdo it. Even though I'm a busy bee right now, I can't over overdo it.
[04:43]
C
Yeah. Because there is a level of busyness, if you will, that becomes unproductive. Right. Recognizing where my peak is and not letting hustling or being busy become our personality. I think sometimes we just get in the habit of that ace of work or amount of workload we put on ourselves, however you want to phrase it. And it's not. We're not doing any of it well because we've overloaded too much there, though
[05:22]
A
people are maybe a little more conscious of it. I don't know if you think so too. But there's definitely people and historically who, how are you busy? That's always the answer. Busy number in. In. When I was owning a clinic too, it was like I made a conscious effort to not stay busy when it was like when people would ask, how are you doing? Because I didn't want to identify with that and just always, boom, busy. Everything's so busy.
[05:50]
B
As if, oh, good, that's good.
[05:52]
A
Everything should be busy.
[05:53]
C
No, I think I definitely was guilty of that. I definitely identified as someone who was super busy. Overbooked product. And that was part of my identity as a business owner. And it wasn't really until I started working with a coach who kind of called me out on it that I was like, oh, what are you doing? What is all this busyness? And does it need to be done and is it doing the thing I want it to do and am I the best person to do it? And am I repeating a cycle that isn't necessarily working for me? So I think part of it too is occasionally reminding yourself, what is the actual goal here? Because sometimes the goal is not always growth. We get in a habit of grow, push, push, build. But what is that growth for? I was very happy to hear really early in NeuroSpark, neurobiz world, when we were still mostly like a peer to peer accountability group, there were guest speakers. It was two. It was a couple. And they owned a physical therapy practice and they had a much bigger business that they had just compressed and condensed. And it was because they had a realization that they built this business so that they could have this for their family. And it was at the expense of their family. And they were like, no, we wanted to be successful so that we could do all this with our kids. And we realized we are just working ourselves because growth almost got contagious. You got on the growth train and you forgot to get off at some point. And I was inspired to hear them get off the train and that it was permission that I don't always this in America, we have this grow or die mentality. No, not necessarily. I think that's kind of bull, right? It should be for something. And that one of the benefits of your work should be good quality of life, right?
[07:57]
A
Oh, yeah, absolutely. I. That's a little hard and scary though too because sometimes you're just doing the thing because it. You're just trying to get by and actually put systems in place and put things and not even like you're intentionally
[08:10]
B
like, oh, I'm trying to grow.
[08:12]
A
You know what I Mean, there are times when it's just hard to even.
[08:16]
C
Yeah.
[08:17]
B
Get it going.
[08:19]
C
Okay. So I was talking to a business owner today, actually coaching Frank, and there's a lot to do. There's rebuilding of the website, there's getting more reviews and improving the Google listing, there's building a social media presence. But what is the lowest hanging fruit that is going to get money in the door today? And that was leaning into building better relationships with her referral parties who are going to send her repeat business. So yes, all that other stuff has to get done, but does it need to get done today? Maybe not. Maybe today is truly focused on. I just need to bring in some money in the door. Right. Yeah.
[08:57]
A
And it's like, so it's the urgency thing. I think that so many people fall into this urgency trap now this, now I have to do it. Everything's urgent. And I, it's.
[09:07]
C
I.
[09:07]
A
That's another thing that I felt like had to recognize at some point. Like, I'm not, I can't live in urgency. It's not healthy.
[09:14]
C
No, it's just not all an emergency. And also then most of it, we're not doing well. Right. Because we're just like, then I'm back in my busy cycle. Right. One of the best advice I was given to was to schedule everything. And that what came from one of the personal training clients that I had who had a very high level executive position in the fashion industry. And she basically ran like a continent. And I was like, with all these people reporting to you and all these things you need to do, how do you keep your to do list? What does that even look like and how do you keep track of it? She was like, oh, I don't have one. I schedule all my tasks. She scheduled her workouts with me. She scheduled tasks that she needed to do for work. She scheduled meetings. And then she could see over the course of the day, can I get it all done? Is there time for it? Or am I committing to things that I don't actually have time for? And that was really helpful to me because I would have one day off and I would have this list of 17 things. And then at the end of the day I'd only gotten four done and I felt like a failure because I had 17 and it was like, but you really only had time for. It's. You're bad for committing to the 17 in the first place and not necessarily being realistic about what can and should be done today. And if scheduling it then makes you choose, it forces you to have priorities of, like, my biggest goal now is I want this to happen in my business. So these other things just are going to have to wait while I focus on those things. Right.
[10:45]
A
And the scheduling thing does work for some people. And early on, like, I know I've talked about this before, the whole focus planner was like my bible early on. And because it was the same thing, it laid out the hours of the day, my mapped out my week. What are my top three priorities? Because the other thing is I have 17,000 priorities. And you think that you can get all of that done in a week, and you just can't. So having an A tool like that can help you organize. What do you need to accomplish by the end of this week for it to actually move you forward and feel like you're making actual progress, not just busy work.
[11:18]
C
Yeah.
[11:19]
A
Three things, and then three things for each day. What do you need to get done if. If nothing else happens, these three things happen. And then looking at what are you going to do each hour of the day? And you can write that out. And that was hugely helpful for me in the beginning. I don't need it as much anymore. I still like a good list and, like, map out my goal for the week. But early on, I needed something concrete like that.
[11:43]
C
You've built the habit, right?
[11:44]
B
Yeah.
[11:45]
C
And like, I. For me, scheduling it also gave me permission to not think about it until it was time to think about it. And that was part of the burnout. And the lack of balance in my life is even when I was home with my husband, I was thinking about all the things that I had to do. And so putting it in the calendar gave me permission to literally put a pin in it until it was time to deal with it. And that is where I had more, like, mental rest from my work. So, yes, there's still a lot to get done, but that I felt like I could be more present for all of us. Isn't that where the balance comes from? Is that no matter where you are, you want to feel like you are present in that place with those people and that experience? And if my head is constantly in three different places, then I'm definitely going to burn myself out quicker.
[12:35]
A
Miserable.
[12:36]
C
Yeah.
[12:38]
A
Yes.
[12:39]
C
It looks like Claire's joined us.
[12:41]
A
You don't need to have the conversation about work life balance.
[12:44]
B
So it's called failing at work life balance. It's called. It's on your schedule and you still. I have no idea that it was there because there's a new schedule and you are confused about it.
[13:01]
A
Fair.
[13:02]
C
Fair.
[13:03]
B
Yeah. But it's good to hear you guys talk about it.
[13:05]
C
Wow.
[13:06]
B
And one of these days. One of these days, balance will be achieved.
[13:12]
A
Yeah. Yep. That's a myth. But you are making a lot of progress. You have, because you have already been shifting things. Hey, I want to move this to this day. I want to lower the hours on this day. I wanted to. So you are definitely doing that. You're making intentional effort.
[13:27]
B
I'm making moves.
[13:28]
C
Yeah.
[13:29]
B
But then it just is like whack a mole. You make a move, and then something else pops up in your face. You're like, wait, I thought I managed that. Yeah. Fun times.
[13:40]
C
You said something a while ago, it was probably at least a year ago, about how you were scheduling little to nothing on Fridays because that was the day that things tend to blow up. I think it was Friday. Maybe I'm pulling that up of my ear. But that just having that padding in your schedule to be able to put out fires makes us feel better equipped to put them out. Right. It's often just adding a little breathing room. I reorganized my training schedule and just added an extra amount of time in between sessions and that little extra 15 minutes or whatever. I felt so different at the end of the day. I didn't feel like this pinball that had ricocheted all over it gave me a chance to breathe and use the restroom and eat a snack and lose myself or my thoughts or whatever instead of just jamming. And I was very inspired by you, Claire.
[14:38]
B
Thank you. Yeah. That was. My intention, was to have nothing scheduled on any of my days.
[14:43]
C
That's the.
[14:43]
B
That's the what I'm trying to get to. And it just comes in waves. I will have. I've had times where my schedule is lighter, but then it still feels I'm the one who's available for backup. So if someone calls out sick or ends up being gone, things end up getting put on my schedule quite a bit still. It needs to be open so that can happen. But what would the next transition be? Would actually one of my physical therapists have a significantly lighter schedule. So they are the backup instead of me being the backup. But then where does the money come to pay for a physical therapist to be here and that schedule doing things? So these are the things that I think about a lot, like how to make this work. It's really just a financial squeeze.
[15:24]
A
I would.
[15:25]
B
You know, I'd say it's really the finances of it. That in healthcare. And this is something I learned from my husband working in the Aviation industry, they have something called pilots who are on reserve. So of all their pilots, every month, for every schedule there are pilots scheduled to fly the flights and then there are pilots on reserve who are sitting at home waiting to be called. So they are technically working that day. They have to be available. There's all sorts of different hours about what the timing might be of how long they have to get notified, but they are ready to fly if needed. So if someone calls out sick, if something gets delayed, that then pushes one pilot, he's now past the hours that he's allowed to fly for that day and he can't fly anymore. You call a reserve, they come in and fly the flight. There is nothing like that in healthcare. There is no space in the system, there's no redundancy, there's no enable. So if like, if a physical therapist at most places, if you call out sick, everyone on your schedule gets canceled because everybody else is completely full. And, and maybe that's okay. Or would we want to work in a way in healthcare where we had reserves or we had someone else around, whether they were on site or home or something where they could be called in if necessary. This is something like for substitute in teaching we. I talked to this woman who was a substitute teacher and she was on call, she would sometimes get called that morning at 5:30 in the morning. And I was like, that sounds horrible. I need, I want to know if I'm going to be working that day. So that doesn't work for me. I don't really want to be at home waiting to get called in. I want to be at work, but just maybe doing other, doing other things, doing projects, participating relationships, I don't know. There's all sorts of other things that could happen. But to pay for someone to be in that position, having the money to pay for that is difficult. You then have to you already the way we charge. We now have two instructors in every class, which is something I feel very strongly about now. I'm not going back. We had one instructor for a long time and we managed okay. And now it feels like we have to have two instructors. That is just the right way to do it. So that is, we increase prices for our membership last year to cover that. And now I feel like what I really need is if we have two classes going on, we got 2pts each of those classes. I need another person that is available if something happens, if something's needed, something, somebody has to leave early. There are just so many things that happen to people and humans every day. That until you're in a position of a supervisor or manager, you have no idea. You only know about yourself pretty much. And you've got friends maybe that you work with, you know when things happen with them, but you mostly know about yourself and what's going on and you have no idea what is happening. And it gives you a lot of not just respect, respect, but like understanding for supervisors and managers. Some people are really good at being managers and supervisors. Some people are not that good. But it is a hard job whether you're good or not good at it.
[18:12]
A
Yes.
[18:12]
B
And I think most people, when you're early in your career or even later in your career, you haven't been in a position like that. You don't understand. You don't have a perspective. Yeah. To understand. Wow, this is a lot. So, yeah, so that's like what I'm working on is that I'm not always the backup because then I end up being busy all the time and don't have any time to do the other things I'm supposed to do. So, yeah, Friday was easiest and best day for me initially to have less on my schedule. And then I had. I. There was a period of time, I don't even know when it was. I don't know. I don't know how long ago it was. But there's a period of time that my schedule was pretty good and I had time for a lot of other things. And then we now have a therapist on maternity leave. And then another, like having one therapist on maternity leave. I was like, okay, we're good. This is fine. I moved the schedule around. When one more person wants to take time off, then we're not okay. We were okay for the maternity leave, but then when other people are taking time, which I think we. I'm proud. I think things I'm proud of is our work life balance. All of our staff take time off. They take a day here or there for things. They take extended periods of time. One of our therapists just took a two week vacation and I am so happy about that. I feel like we have a good culture where people take time off. There are so many places where people like never take time off. That is not healthy. I'm very glad that people take time off, but I still need to figure out a better way. And we do have some coverage because some of our therapists who are part time can come in and help on different days. So that is happening. But we still need like kind of another level of redundant redundancy. Doesn't sound Good. Because it makes it sound like it's not needed. It is very needed because that's what healthcare comes out.
[19:49]
C
Anytime there's redundancy.
[19:51]
B
No, yeah, that's bad. But yeah, like these days if you have a. If you're supposed to get a surgery and your surgeon is sick, like your surgery is getting canceled and probably not rescheduled for three to four months. So everywhere in healthcare we need to have a. Everybody's even understaffed. They're not even appropriately staffed. We need appropriate staffing and then we need some given the system, both so that the people who are doing the work are not totally burned out. And so also if somebody's out, there is somebody to pick up at least some of that slack and not have everybody get canceled. So yeah, I'm still working on it. I feel like there's one other thing I was going to say about that.
[20:28]
A
It's like the repercussions just aren't big enough. I think in healthcare with the one on one delivery, like in an airline, a flight gets canceled or a day of flying gets canceled and so many people are impacted and the airline has to pay out all this money or rebook everyone or figure it all out. It's almost makes sense why they would build prices into, allow for redundancies so that there's not those like money bailing
[20:53]
B
outs and yeah, keep the schedule going. It is, it's different than canceling one person or canceling a few people of one on one therapies then. Yeah, I agree. And it's also just different when it's insurance versus the open market. You know, airlines can say, yeah, this is what it costs for us to have staffing, to do what we really want to do and do it well and take care of our customers. This is what it actually costs to do that. So we can charge that. That's not how it works in health care. There's just this whole convoluted system with insurance. This is what it costs us to do it. Insurance, we're going to pay you a third of that. Okay. Then we're going to charge three times that amount and then insurance is going to pay a percentage of that. So it's Nobody, I think even really knows what it costs to do things.
[21:34]
A
Yeah.
[21:35]
B
And there's been such abuse of the system in both directions because everybody's trying to figure out a way for it to work in what is essentially for profit, but not. But with these weird constraints. So yeah, healthcare is a very interesting situation. But I was gonna say, oh, and also you're timing about the 15 minutes, Emily. So this is also something that I have protected. So with our schedule, we do hour long classes and in the morning when we have our busiest classes, we do have 15 minutes between. In the afternoon we don't. But we only ever have two classes back to back, especially that someone is teaching. Yes, Tuesdays we have three classes back to back, but it's not the same person teaching those three classes back to back in a row. So there is some space for people. But in the mornings we have an hour long class. We have 15 minutes between. Yeah, because it does. It takes time to clean up, to set up, to use the bathroom, get a snack, chat with people. And that's one thing. One of our members was talking to me. He's a banker and he's looking at the finances and he was trying to coach me and he did coach me into increasing our prices to cover. So that was very helpful. But. And he had a lot of ideas. And one was 50 minute classes and every class on the hour. And I was like, nope, not doing it. A hour long class and on a 5 to 60 minute class, somewhere between 55 to 60 minutes, but really close to an hour in most cases. And then that 15 minutes is so critical for so many reasons. It is not worth cramming that schedule together. That's something I'm not doing. So I do feel like even though there's a lot of things that I want to make changes from where we are now, I also feel like we are in a position place where we have a good schedule. I think I, I do a pretty good job taking care of the employees and protecting their schedules with start and end times and hours that they work and having breaks in between. I feel like I'm pretty good at doing it for others. I'm just not good at doing it for myself.
[23:31]
C
We just need to make you think of yourself as an employee and then you'll be a lot kinder instead of as the owner. But I am so glad that you say that because I really believe that all roads. When we are making decisions for our businesses, we keep having to go back to what sets us up to do our best work. It pays off in the long run. Squeezing as much as you can out of the orange doesn't necessarily give you better juice. Right. And I want to. I don't even know that's a metaphor. I think I just made that up in my head. But I want a business that's sustainable long term, which means I'm not Going to burn out my employees, not going to burn out myself. I'm going to make sure that people are actually getting the quality of service that I intend for them to have. And I'm really glad that you fiercely protect that. I think it's important also remembering you are, we are small business owner people. Our customer base know us. We're not this baseless CEO. And it is okay, you close your business for the holidays and your members know we're just off that it's not so dire that I have to give this service 247 relentlessly with no holidays and no time off. No, we are people. We're modeling a value set that is more than just efficiency and profit. And I think some of our members who own their own businesses, since they are coming from a hospital system where they had to work every holiday when they were coming up, sometimes they expect that of their employees. And it's like, but didn't you start this business to do it differently? Give yourself permission to not follow the same path that you are a refugee from? You escaped to get out of there and now you're recreating that system in your own business because that's what's familiar to you, right?
[25:29]
B
Yeah. It's so hard. Even when the whole kind of a productivity thing and how much to schedule it is so hard. You see an opening on the schedule
[25:38]
C
and you're like, what?
[25:39]
B
Why? We didn't get booked there. Maybe not. Maybe it's okay for there to be some space in the schedule to be creative, but it's, it is just an automatic response. We have been trained that you need to be productive the whole time you're at work. And one of there was a physical therapy colleague posting on social media. Now I can't remember exactly who it was, so I can't give them credit, which I would really like to give everybody credit for their thoughts. But he was talking about how in all other industries you don't have meetings scheduled back to back to back to back. Healthcare is. You're working with people, you're problem solving, you're figuring things out, you're working with them, you're documenting. It's like the highest level of the way that you could be working. You are working cognitively, emotionally and physically. And you're doing that for eight, nine, maybe ten hours a day. In all other industries, you have meetings scheduled and. But then, I don't know, three, four, you don't have eight hours of meetings back to back that you are responsible for leading or having brought specific information too that's one thing about being a manager. Running meetings is you're like, I need to prepare to have a meeting. I can't just show up to a meeting. I need time to get ready to have that meeting so that it is a good use of everybody's time. It sounds so obvious, but when, like just when you're used to being a PT trainer, occupational therapist, you have a schedule. You're used to working on that and you're working super hard for every one of those hours. And there's no space in the schedule. There's no time to think or plan or be creative or anything. But then you start something yourself and you're just fill it right up. It is a compulsion, it is nearly impossible to not fill it right up.
[27:21]
C
And that work is so essential. It's called quiet work. And yet also we try to do it crammed in while also answering calls. And I'm at the front desk of my business while I'm trying. No, we're not doing good work. If your quiet work is not quiet, it's not going to be your best work. I'm sure of it. So trying to schedule times for yourself to go and do that task in a place that that can actually foster that creativity. Part of the reason why we as a society struggle with creativity sometimes is that we do not allow ourselves any time to be bored. I'm constantly scrolling on my phone. I'm not gonna have time that like breath to then have a good creative idea. Right. We never have a brilliant idea at the end of a long day. It like waiting in line. If you look in line now, the rare times you're ever standing in line, everyone is on their phone. So no one's like daydreaming. Remember we used to daydream, right. So going back to our like, how do we achieve work? Life balance, I think is also making sure that you have time outside of work, even if it is a short period of time that is sacred to not being booked for something big. That my me time can truly be like, go sit in the backyard and listen to a bird. Right. Just to give my brain a rest. And often that's where my best creative ideas come from. Or the long run.
[28:56]
B
Or that.
[28:57]
C
Yeah. Getting a hobby that really captivates your attention.
[29:01]
A
Right.
[29:01]
C
Really have to think about. Before we got on the call Erin and I were talking about she just ran 50 miles through Wyoming, Wisconsin. It was what hills. Yeah. You have to concentrate on it. Right. You're going downhill, you and so good for your brain. Then when you come back to work, you can actually function. I realize a lot of people who own businesses are also working parents, so maybe your free time is very tight, but please schedule it for yourself so that you have something that is just yours that can be absolutely nothing or something totally captivating. But I just know I used to come home from a really long day of work and then edge out and watch television. And then I just felt perpetually burned out. And it wasn't until I got hobbies that really took me out of my work brain, actively out of my work brain to give it time to rest, that then I felt better when I went back to work. Pursuing fun instead of just something to excite you breath. Yeah, yeah, for sure. Also thinking about, are my systems working for me? Can I change any of my systems? Am I doing jobs that I'm not great at that I can delegate? Can someone else do this better or faster or cheaper than me? Especially if you are a cash based practice and you're charging $200 an hour, is there somebody who for $25 an hour can do some of these admin tasks for you and then that frees you up to earn more money on your actively working hours? Early business owners, it's very tempting to just do all the jobs ourselves and then especially jobs that you hate. One of my business owner coaching clients is just not a spreadsheet person and was trying really hard before I met her. CPA made her a spreadsheet instead of showing her how to use QuickBooks and that wasn't working. And finally we just said okay, we're firing spreadsheet. We got her a new system that's working way better for her and it syncs up with her bank and automatically does all the bookkeeping and it works for her brain. Like why are we forcing this thing that just. She's not wired for that.
[31:20]
B
Okay.
[31:20]
C
That's not the only way to do it. Right.
[31:22]
A
Yeah. You have to be doing things that's the quicker way to burn out is to just do things that drain your energy. There's are certain things that everybody is just more energized by or less energized by. And to release the things that drain you as much as possible is the ultimate goal. And it's constantly a moving target because there are new things getting added all the time and it's so important to just reassess. Wait, is this why am I feeling this way? Is there something I need to shift even? Actually when I was in Wisconsin, I got to hang out with our friend Joy Cochran, who is an amazing neuro PT with a business out there. And we got to chat a while about her business and certain things that she was feeling.
[32:01]
B
And I don't know, I have everything
[32:03]
A
I wanted but why do I feel a little off? And so as we're talking a little more, it's just there are certain things that just aren't aligned sometimes it's like too many of your not ideal clients. And I was like, I remember having that. I remember working with a clientele population or whatever that just didn't feel energizing to me. It felt like too much heady work. And I'm more of a physical moving thinker. Like I think with my body is how I say it. But getting down in there and working on gate training with someone or getting down on the floor and we're going with Parkinson's or whatever versus the ones that are more cerebral. You're just like vestibular or fnd where you're just thinking rather than moving. And so it's like we just had this conversation about yeah, everything can seem to be like why it's going but I'm drained. Why. And so it was just looking at where things might be misaligned and trying to think about what could be shifted so that you get that energy back.
[33:02]
C
Absolutely. And I love doing that kind of assessment or evaluation of your business somewhere not at work. Go somewhere with a big open sky, whether it's a field or water or the top of something, but just so that you can get a little bigger and a little dreamier. Because if you're sitting at your desk or inside your clinic or in your car right outside of the. It's very hard sometimes to have the solutions come to you. But here you guys are out on a trail, right? And that's a way better place to. And this can be in your own backyard. You don't have to have money, you don't have to go far. It's not about that. It's just about removing yourself from the situation enough that you can see it with slightly fresh eyes. Right. This isn't working for me entirely. So I'm going to step away from it and look down on it and see am I seeing something different than I did before? And if you right now are listening to this and you feel like there's parts of your business that are not resonating with you, don't ignore them. Really, you future you is going to be so glad that you went, wait a minute, hold on maybe. And yes, it can be expensive it can be annoying, it can be labor intensive to shift direction, but it doesn't have to happen all at once. But just knowing I'm identifying what is the thing that I realize I'm working with clientele that is not who I intended this business to be for. Okay. So I'm slowly going to shift my focus more towards the people that I want to be working with because I'm going to do my best work for them. And then it's going to grow more organically instead of just staying in the cycle and being like, I'm so busy, I'm sobering out and there's no solution.
[34:55]
A
Those signs are so important. The dread. I used to feel dread when I was driving into work and I would just tired or I'm just whatever. And it is really important to pay attention to that because it does mean something has to shift. And sometimes we're not ready or excited to look at that.
[35:10]
B
No.
[35:10]
A
What does that mean? Have to leave this or have to quit that. I have to change that. But it is, that is there for a reason. It is trying to tell you something needs to shift and you will be happier once you do that. So signs like frustration, burnout, dread, it's. It's actually could be an obstacle or it could be an opportunity. And when I hear Claire talking about all this stuff, I see opportunity because you are so innovative and tenacious and creative. And so it's like you're hitting all these challenges and things in healthcare and it's, you're actually the type of person that I want to be feeling these things. Not because I want you to feel anything terrible, because I know that you will actually come up with solutions.
[35:52]
C
And a hundred percent, it's like, it
[35:55]
A
is like we need people like you who will go through that because you'll help all of us, pull all of us through it and be like, no, I figured it out.
[36:04]
C
Yeah. And like we want to listen to those signals of those feelings that we're having that are negative. Right. But also think about what are the parts of your business that are like that light you on fire. Right? What are those moments where you, at the end of the day, you're like, yes, I nailed that. And how did those people find me? How did I find them? What is working there? Can I replicate that? I want you to feel at the end of the day that you really did something that mattered and that. And sometimes it's right in front of us and we just don't see it. Right. Because we're too caught up in Problem, fire I gotta put out. Right. But what is going really well that is aligned with your vision of what you wanted your company to be. You are in charge and you can change your mind at any point. That's the beautiful part of it. I do not do the same work that I did 20 years ago when I quit my job to work for myself. It has morphed and changed more times than I can count because I have grown as a person. And that is the beauty of this work, is that you can adjust your job description as needed because you are better and different than you were a year ago. So capitalize on what you have now instead of trying to do the thing that. Because that's how I've always done it.
[37:25]
A
Yes. Any last words, Claire?
[37:30]
B
Yeah, I think not. I don't know how to put it into words. Yeah. Feeling how you noticing how you feel about things and just noticing how you feel and also how you think about things. I've heard multiple people talking about metacognition, like ever since one of the Olympic athletes brought it up when she got asked a great question by a reporter. And just like, that is something I notice when things happen. I think a certain way about it and I'm like, whoa, that's what you think about that? Like, interesting. Where did that come from? And it has a lot to do with the whole productivity, staying busy versus like, I'm a like a Capricorn. And it is kind of like a work that is my song. So then other people are around like socializing. I'm like, get to work. And then I'm like, wait a second. Actually, the relationships that we build with each other and our members is what makes this team so strong. Oh, that's the. Get to work is not actually the right thought to be. No, but I catch. I notice it, I have it, but then I notice it and then I have a conversation with myself in my head, like, is that really true? Are there things that need to get done? Is this actually what's more important? Yes, it is. Okay, I can let that go. So I encourage anyone who thinks things to then think about the things that you're thinking. That's.
[38:49]
C
Yeah. Is this my story or am I just repeating a story I've heard a bajillion times? Good call.
[38:56]
B
Great.
[38:56]
A
This was a lively discussion. Thank you, Emily, for coming on.
[39:01]
C
Thank you for having me. Awesome as always. So great to chat with you as usual.
[39:08]
B
Right, bye everyone. Thank you for joining the I Love Neuro podcast. If you want to connect with more like minded professionals head to our website w www.neurocollaborative.com and don't forget to subscribe
[39:23]
A
to the podcast so you don't miss any episode.

322: Find Work-Life Balance With Alignment, Not Productivity Tools

322: Find Work-Life Balance With Alignment, Not Productivity Tools

Podcast Summary: "Find Work-Life Balance With Alignment, Not Productivity Tools"

Episode Overview

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Trap of Busyness & Burnout in Business Ownership

2. Revisiting Growth vs. Quality of Life

3. Prioritization & Scheduling: What Works and What Doesn’t

4. The Myth of Achieving Perfect Work-Life Balance

5. The Lack of Systemic Redundancy in Healthcare

6. Protecting Breaks and Sane Scheduling

7. Allowing For "Quiet Work" and Creativity

8. The Power of Alignment Over Productivity

9. Check-In with Your Energy & Emotions

10. Flexibility, Growth & Evolving As an Owner

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

Important Timestamps

Takeaways for Neuro Rehab Professionals

Podcast Summary: "Find Work-Life Balance With Alignment, Not Productivity Tools"

Episode Overview

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Trap of Busyness & Burnout in Business Ownership

2. Revisiting Growth vs. Quality of Life

3. Prioritization & Scheduling: What Works and What Doesn’t

4. The Myth of Achieving Perfect Work-Life Balance

5. The Lack of Systemic Redundancy in Healthcare

6. Protecting Breaks and Sane Scheduling

7. Allowing For "Quiet Work" and Creativity

8. The Power of Alignment Over Productivity

9. Check-In with Your Energy & Emotions

10. Flexibility, Growth & Evolving As an Owner

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

Important Timestamps

Takeaways for Neuro Rehab Professionals