HISMD: Senior Product Manager

WFH. 2 kids - 1 and 3 yo. Partner (in office). Connecticut.

Each Thursday, the “How I Structure My Day” series features women from different industries, with and without kids, with and without partners, with family living with/near them and not, wfh to 1+ hour commutes, etc. I hope you enjoy reading them as much as I do!

Before we get to the good stuff…

Know that if you’re ready to learn a time management system designed for professional working women, the 10-week Bright Method program is open and ready to get you results! Learn all about it here – and send any questions my way! Happy to talk out whether I think it would work for you, your main concerns, timing, etc. Send me a message, and I hope to see you in there!

The Snapshot

• Profession: Senior Product Manager

• Partner: Yes (in office)

• Children: Yes – 1 and 3 yo.

• Connecticut

• WFH

Typical Morning:

• I wake up at 6 to have alone time before the kids wake up. I have an alarm which is Alexa telling me to get up and make coffee and watch a show (something Bravo). It is the only thing that works for me right now. It’s my happy time to do something that brings me a little joy in the morning, and I look forward to it every day.

• Once the kids are awake, we play, get ready, eat breakfast, pack up for school, and drop them off by 8:30.

• Then I come back home, clean up after breakfast, and go to my office by 9. I have to pretend like I am “going to work” and keep it somewhat separate from being at home.

Morning "Make Life Easier" Hacks

• I set up Alexa to play an upbeat song and then talk to me and tell me to go drink my coffee and watch a Bravo show. I have a hard time motivating myself in the morning, so having Alexa remind me that I need that time just for myself to wake up and enjoy a show before the busy day is what motivates me to wake up. It works for me for now!

• I also try to run the dishwasher every night and run one load of laundry every day, so it never builds up.

• I try to do a clean sweep of the house before bed so I don’t wake up stressed out.

Transition into Work Mode

• I have to “go to work” and go to my office in my house. I pack up my bag, get dressed, and pretend like I am going to an office to separate it in my mind.

What my work day looks like

• I time block 9-12 to fully focus on work. It can shift depending on meetings. I work with people from San Francisco to India, so we all try to be flexible with our available time to meet.

• I take a break around 12 to eat lunch and take a screen break. I try to do a little laundry or an important task on my personal to-do list. Anything I can’t get done when the kids are home.

• After the break, I go back to my office and time block the rest of the afternoon for work. I try to use timers to keep me focused and give myself little breaks throughout the day. Even if it’s just to stand up and stretch or take my eyes off my computer for a bit.

• I try to start my week by writing down 3 big goals/key results I need to get done that week. I review it every morning to check on progress and if I need to adjust based on other things that come up.

• Two days of the week are very meeting-heavy, so I have to be intentional with my time the other days. I have a really hard time focusing, especially when the to-do list is a mile long. So I try to chip away at it by timing myself and giving myself little screen breaks (25 min focus, 5 min break).

• I have more brainpower in the morning, so that time is spent on the harder tasks/projects and the afternoons are for email/slack/admin/easier tasks.

Lunch/Snacks

• I eat lunch around 12, depending on meetings, and then I have a snack around 3 - usually a protein bar. I try to stay hydrated throughout the day as well.

Breaks

• Yes, I timeblock 9-12 for work and do 25 mins focus and 5 mins break outside of meetings, and then I take a lunch break and do the same, timeblock for the afternoon until about 430 to prep for the kids getting home.

Leaving work

• I usually pick up my kids around 5, so around 430 I’ll do a clean sweep of the house and “turn down” – prep the house for dinner/bedtimes and get anything else done around the house that is easier to do when the kids are not home. If I’m really ambitious, I’ll prep for dinner, but that almost never happens.

• Sometimes I have calls until 5/530 and I have to transition right to school pick-up/dinner/etc.

Transition out of work mode

• I like to put on a podcast, either while I do some cleaning or while I’m driving to pick the kids up. I also pack up my bag and “leave” work as if I’m leaving an office.

After work/evening hours

• Then it is school pick-up, dinner, play, baths, bedtime from 5-830ish.

• My husband and I try to do a quick clean sweep, make sure the kitchen and living spaces are clean, run the dishwasher, fold clothes, etc. And if it’s not too chaotic of a day/night, we’ll watch a show together or just hang out and have dessert. If we’re exhausted, we are usually in bed by 930. Bedtime fluctuates between 930 and 11 depending on exhaustion levels.

• Then it starts all over again! :)

Evening Non-Negotiables

• Run the dishwasher and wipe counters. Anything that will make me feel stressed in the morning.

Afternoon/evening “make life smoother” tips

• Put phone down! I struggle with scrolling when I give myself a work break or during transition times. I have to put it out of sight and just set a timer with Alexa or on my watch and start doing the task I said I was going to do.

Sharing the load with a partner

• My husband commutes about 40 mins each way, so I naturally have more time for house clean-up, but we try to share bedtime duties, cooking, and cleaning as much as possible when we are both home.

• We also try to have something for ourselves throughout the week and always allow that for each other to give each other breaks.

Exercise/Body Movement

• It fluctuates. Some weeks I work out during my lunch break, some weeks I work out at night after the kids go to sleep (but then I can’t sleep very well), and really ambitious weeks I work out in the morning.

• Lately, I haven’t found time for it. I give myself grace, knowing I will get back into a good routine eventually.

Outsourcing

• House cleaning every other week.

• When my husband is out of town, I do grocery delivery.

• We also use HelloFresh to help with meal planning.

Anything else the sharer wants to share:

• I am looking for all the advice!!!! Thank you for sharing these!!!!

That’s a wrap for this one!

Thank you so much to this woman for generously sharing. These publish every Thursday!

A reminder of the ground rules to ensure women continue wanting to share about their days and feel safe doing so.

• Encouraging comments always welcome!

• If you have questions or even hang-ups about what someone shared, you are welcome to ask a question for the sharer in the same kind, genuinely curious way you would if you were looking at that woman in her eyes. She might respond through me.

• If comments are judge-y or mean-spirited, I reserve the right to delete comments. I can handle being criticized about my own work here (and even still, to a degree – I’m also a person), but I go into full mama bear mode when people come after my people – including women who are being vulnerable and sharing in the first place.

• Thanks to the vast majority of people who are so kind!

New here? Welcome!

I’m Kelly Nolan, an attorney-turned-time management strategist and mom of two. I teach the Bright Method, a realistic time management system designed for professional working women. In addition to this fun new series, I share bite-sized time management strategies on Instagram. Thanks for being here!

After experiencing overwhelm as a young patent litigator in Boston, I figured out a time management system to help me show up in the ways that I wanted to at work and at home – without requiring my brain to somehow magically remember it all. I now teach other professional working women how to manage their personal, family, and career roles with less stress and more calm clarity using realistic time management strategies. My system, the Bright Method, has been featured in Bloomberg Businessweek, and my work has been published in Forbes, Fast Company, Business Insider, and more. Learn more on my website, come learn bite-sized strategies with me on Instagram, or jump into my free 5-day program.

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“I took her free [5-day] time management course a couple of weeks ago, and it was truly life-changing. I’ve read all the books... alllllll the books... on organization and time management. And in July, I reached a tipping point where I no longer felt like I was on top of things. I took her free course... and oh my gosh did it change my rhythm. It’s like she took every book I read and put it together into one method. I’m so sold on it...” - Anonymous

Or join the full program for full results

If you’re ready to learn a time management system designed for professional working women, the 10-week Bright Method program is open and ready to get you results! Learn all about it here – and send any questions my way! Happy to talk out whether I think it would work for you, your main concerns, timing, etc. Send me a message, and I hope to see you in there!

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