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VEST Her Podcast
The VEST Her Podcast explores the real, often unspoken challenges women face at work, in society, and on the path to economic mobility.
Through candid conversations with women navigating career pivots, entrepreneurship, leadership, and family life, we unpack the pressure to do it all, the self-doubt, and the systems not built with us in mind.
This podcast is for professionals ready to move beyond outdated advice and create success on their own terms. If you’re looking to grow, speak up, and be part of a supportive, change-making community, welcome.
Let’s question the rules, share what’s real, and build a better future together.
VEST Her Podcast
Breaking the Autopilot Cycle
How many times have you ended the day exhausted, only to wonder what you actually accomplished? That feeling of spinning your wheels without moving forward is a signal that your workflow isn’t working for you.
At VEST, we recently explored this challenge with our members and uncovered some powerful lessons worth sharing.
In this episode of the VEST Her Podcast, we’ll walk you through how to evaluate your current workflow, identify blockers, design a system that works for you, and reset with confidence when things go off track.
Why Evaluate Your Workflow
Most of us live on autopilot, answering emails, sitting in meetings, or reacting to client demands. Rarely do we stop to ask: Is this the best use of my time and energy? Through time audits, members discovered surprising patterns about when they feel most focused, what drains them, and how much of their time is lost to tasks that don’t actually move the needle.
What Gets in the Way
The most common culprit? A false sense of urgency. We often mistake busyness for productivity, rushing to put out fires while our real priorities sit untouched. Other blockers include living in our inbox instead of our priorities, overcommitting, and the guilt of saying no.
Designing a Better Workflow
Creating a better system isn’t about rigid control, it’s about clarity. A few simple strategies can help:
- Time blocking: Schedule focused work, admin, and rest.
- Priority buckets: Sort tasks into must do today, can wait, can let go.
- Non-negotiables: Protect what fuels you, family time, exercise, quiet moments.
When members applied these approaches, they found they could finally protect what matters most and reclaim a sense of purpose in their work.
At VEST, we believe your workflow should work for you, not the other way around.
Tools and resources we discussed
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If you are ready to take your career and business to the next level, apply to join our community of professional women, all eager to help you get there and stay there. Learn more at www.VESTHer.co
The one thing that I consistently find myself doing is I kind of trick myself into pretending like I was being productive and getting my things done. So I'm really good at reframing the stuff I actually did. When I reflect on my day to feel like, oh, look at all the stuff I did and I never made any progress on the most important things, most important things. And so trying to remember like, hey, does this actually? Did I actually just make a decision? That's moving the needle on anything that's important or impactful to my business, my life, my family.
Speaker 2:Hi everyone. This is Erica Lucas, founder of Vest and your host for today's episode. Have you ever ended a workday exhausted, but wondering what you actually accomplished that day? You're not alone. Many of us build workflows designed to keep up with demands, but not necessarily to support our own needs. This has been the topic of conversation for VAST members this month, and today we want to bring this conversation over to you. In this episode. We're going to explore why evaluating your workflow matters, what common obstacles get in the way and how you can design a workflow that works best for you. If you enjoy the episode, share with a friend and don't forget to leave us a review. And if you'd like to do more than just listen, consider becoming a Vest member and join the conversation. Learn more about our membership and the benefits of our community at wwwvestherco.
Speaker 2:Part one why evaluating your workflow matters. Most of us operate on autopilot. We respond to emails, we attend meetings mostly because we have to, not because we want to. We jump from task to task, but we rarely stop to ask is this workflow actually working for me? In our VEST session, vest members use a time audit worksheet where they could track how they were spending their day, hour by hour, where they could track how they were spending their day hour by hour. We also asked about their energy levels during each activity, whether that activity was an obligation, a reactive effort or an intentional output, and we asked them to list any emotion or feelings surrounding this activity. And what they discovered was surprising patterns.
Speaker 3:Here are some of the things they shared. A lot of mine is obligated and I'd like it not to be. I like to have a lot more intentional time built in.
Speaker 4:I was struggling because it was like every five minutes I was shifting to something else, which is probably a telling sign. Also, like I couldn't even put what I did for the hour. It was like this five minutes and then this five minutes for me.
Speaker 5:I think it's definitely being reactive, um. So, especially like Monday mornings, when I go through emails and now I have to put out a million fires, um. But then I also have blocked time frames for like all of the things that I actually have to get done and it takes me a lot longer than the allotted time frame.
Speaker 2:When you track your time and energy, even if it's just for a few days, you'll uncover things you'll never otherwise notice, like when your energy and focus peaks or what drains you the most. Don't forget to check out the show notes for this episode, where you'll find the time tracking evaluation worksheet to help you try this exercise yourself. We also encourage you to do this quick exercise. Pause for a moment and think about yesterday. What time of the day did you feel the most clear and focused? What time of the day did you feel the most clear and focused? What time of the day did you feel the most strained? Just naming these two windows will give you a clue as to where your workflow may be helping you or hurting you. Part two what gets in the way?
Speaker 3:Part two what gets in the way? Meetings that I really, yeah, can't really get away from. I have like picking up kids. No one else is going to do that but me and my husband.
Speaker 6:What I've noticed is, for example, right now I received a text message from a client saying I can't open this and edit it. So I quickly go in and do it because I don't want that thing on my list of to-dos. And then I might forget, especially when I'm doing something else, and so it's kind of like those immediate things I want to give great customer service, but at the same time, how do I move the needle?
Speaker 2:The number one blocker, we heard from best members, was a false sense of urgency, those client interruptions or self-imposed fires that often trick us into feeling productive when we're really just busy. Other barriers also included living in our own inbox instead of our priorities, obligations that aren't really aligned with our goals, and the guilt around saying no. Here's another exercise we want you to consider. Think of one thing that consistently throws your day off. Is it email Slack? Perhaps a client who always needs something urgent? Write it down. That is your biggest workflow blocker.
Speaker 2:Part 3. How to design a better workflow. A good workflow isn't about rigid control. Instead, it's about clarity and getting to know yourself a little bit better. Once you try the time tracking tool and see what's really getting in the way of your goals, things will start to click. That clarity will give you the space you need to pause and ask yourself OK, what matters to me the most right now? Here are some practical strategies you can try once you get to this point Time blocking, schedule focus, administrative, creative and resting blocks in your calendar Priority buckets. A simple to-do list is not enough. Sort tasks into three different buckets Must do today, can't wait, can let go or delegate. You can also create your own system. For example, some of our VEST members who run businesses categorize their activity by impact, especially activities which directly generate revenue. This way, they're able to prioritize activity that drives results, non-negotiables, protect whatever brings you joy and energy.
Speaker 4:One thing for our group that came up with defining your personal non-negotiables is that we all have things that we love, that ground us, but we don't make them a priority and we just like we can't. We have to. We have to make those things a priority because that's what gives us joy and, you know, brings us life and and refuels us. So we all kind of talked about those, those little things that we're missing.
Speaker 1:Whatever that precious moment is, whether it's kid pickup, bath time or, honestly with me, with the young adults is like it's right, before I go to bed I get to go give them a kiss and then they ignore me after that. So those are the non-negotiables.
Speaker 3:When I'm thinking about how to be intentional. I want it to be that creative side, because that's where I find those were my high points, when I felt purposeful, when it was me pouring into me but also being able to grow in those things. I want more of that so that I can be more not reactive, but more intentional about how I show up, maybe even to the meetings.
Speaker 2:We're so used to prioritizing work and meeting the needs of others, like our bosses, clients and investors, that we often forget to prioritize ourselves. Protect things like family, dinner, weekends, meditation, exercise and quiet time for yourself. Part four how to reset when you fall off. No matter how well you design your workflow, life will happen, staffing changes will happen, low energy days will happen, Family emergencies and so on.
Speaker 5:So I realized this past week it came time of the month and I had zero motivation. It must have been hormonal. And I had zero motivation. It must have been hormonal and I just like I had so many meetings that I had already agreed to, I had set them in a good mood and then now I have to like be there in person when I'm just feeling like crying the whole day and just like not wanting to be there. How do you guys handle like just you know, being that day, how do you just push through when you just have all of these responsibilities and you're not feeling well?
Speaker 2:This best member was sharing how she overcommitted at a time when her energy levels were up. She then had a bad day where she wasn't feeling 100% and had to deal with all of those commitments. Give yourself the permission to reset, and sometimes resetting could mean you reset and reschedule meetings you had already committed to. Unless you're a doctor or a surgeon or a lawyer or another essential profession, it is very unlikely that somebody will die from you rescheduling a meeting or asking for time off. Don't push yourself to exhaustion. It's better to take a break and rest than to try to push through when your energy levels are low. Break and rest than to try to push through when your energy levels are low. It is unlikely that you will close a deal or an investor when your energy levels are low and you're just not feeling it. If you don't feel 100%, it's okay to ask for time to reset.
Speaker 7:I guess for me, what comes to mind is when change comes. For me, what comes to mind is when change comes, like we just had an overwhelming change with staffing and you know, just things that required a lot of me, and I have noticed that I took my priority away from my physical health, whereas I had a regimen every week. It's just not been that for the last month and I guess the cue I mean you really hit the nail on the head when you said that you're noticing that you're missing certain things that were in your regimen that can be a cue to me because I'm finding myself kind of like, okay, I don't know where to land my feet right now, and that can feel quite uncomfortable because there's still tasks that have to be done. So this is really great this morning. I want to say thank you first and foremost for that. But to take the time and block out and really when I guess I guess what I'm taking away from this is when you see those things. What I'm taking away from this is when you see those things then you need to step back and take time to blackout and say, okay, these are the things that are not, they can't move, and so how do you move this around?
Speaker 7:And in our breakout group and I'll be quick One thing I said is I took a day and said, okay, this is a day. Nobody touched it. Don't, nobody call me anything so that I can do this admin. But Angela brought up a point. She was like you get a whole day. And I told her well, I'm trying it, I don't know if it's going to work and so, but that that cut the light bulb on for me, cause I was like, well, maybe, cause I'll go one extreme, like I need a whole day, but maybe I don't, maybe I can just divvy it out between the week. So this group is becoming very valuable to me with knowledge, and so that's my answer with that.
Speaker 2:Remember that we're not striving for perfection. Rather, we're giving ourselves permission to hit the reset button. Here are other reset strategies from our best group Block 20 minutes of CEO time to decide what to focus on next. Ask yourself who or what do I need to say no to right now in order to protect my time the next time your day goes sideways maybe a meeting ran long or you just lost your steam Instead of powering through, pause for five minutes and ask yourself what is the single most important thing I can still do today, and let that be your reset point In closing. Your workflow should work for you, not the other way around. By auditing your time, identifying your blockers, designing around your non-negotiables and practicing the reset, you can create a system that works both for productivity and well-being. So here's your challenge for this week Protect one non-negotiable in your calendar and let go of one false urgency that doesn't deserve your energy this week. For inspiration, here are some examples of what our best members are letting go and protecting after this session.
Speaker 8:I shared this in our breakout group, but the one thing that I'm going to get rid of this week well, not fully, I'm going to certainly try to tamper down on is my screen time. On my phone, I find myself spending hours scrolling instead of doing the things that I need to do and, ironically, I'm not on any social media. It's literally just like Pinterest and LinkedIn. That that's it. So I'm really going to do my best to cut my screen time in half, because it's that bad. So that's my goal for this week.
Speaker 9:I have been in a bad habit of coming to the office even when I know I would be better at home, because I feel like the optics of everybody seeing me are important, and I don't even work in a culture where that is important. So I could absolutely be working from home and rotating laundry and throwing the dishwasher or the dishes in the dishwasher and be more productive and not have so many things I feel like I have to do at the end of the day. So I'm going to give myself permission to take that and run with it.
Speaker 10:I need to allow others to help me and I live in a multi-generational household, like my mother-in-law and my great aunt live with me and my husband lives with me and I have a 16-year-old, so a lot of it is control of my household and so I need to give that control away so I don't have to feel certain. You know, feel bad about not doing A, b and C.
Speaker 2:If you enjoyed this episode, share it with a friend and don't forget to leave us a review. And if you're ready to take your career to the next level, consider joining our community of women professionals. Go to wwwvestherco to learn more.
