Last week was my daughter’s last week of school. My son’s last day isn’t until later this month. Then, we have vacation, which means it’s officially Summer-Cat season.
This is not the season when the most work gets done, and that’s okay.
Many productivity experts talk about this idea. Kendra Adachi often encourages people to plan for the season they’re actually in rather than the season they wish they were in. Others intentionally structure their year around periods of intense work followed by periods of recovery.
I’m feeling that shift right now.
A few years ago, this transition would stress me out. I’d feel pressure to make summer magical while also trying to maintain my normal routines and productivity.
Now I try to plan for it instead.
The kids are going to be home.
We’re going on vacation.
My schedule is going to look different.
June will not be my most productive month, at least not if I measure productivity by my work to-do list.
And that’s okay.
Accepting the season, though, doesn’t mean giving up on structure.
I still approach summer with the same over-prepared ridiculousness I bring to everything else.
While some people embrace spontaneity, that’s not me.
If left to my own devices, my daughter and I would probably spend the entire day at home because my spirit animal is a hermit crab reading a good book.
Instead, I make a plan.
This week, I pulled out my calendar and started time-boxing our days, just like I do for work: farm day, children’s museum day, playdates.
The details aren’t important. The point is that I know we’ll have more fun if I intentionally create opportunities for it.
The activities filling my calendar may change, but the process doesn’t.
Summer-Cat still likes plans.
Back in January, I wrote about creating a time budget. It’s a super useful tool for allocating our time among work, family, health, and personal goals, but it works for seasons, too.
When life gets busy, whether because of summer break, a major project at work, a new baby, a move, or something else entirely, the first step isn’t trying to do everything.
It’s identifying what absolutely needs to happen.
Schedule those first, then build everything else around them.
For me, that means balancing work commitments, writing, speaking engagements, family time, exercise, and making sure two energetic children don’t spend too much time indoors in front of screens.
I do have a constraint, though: My son will still be in school and has requested that my daughter and I have fun, but not too much fun. Luckily, she enjoys trips to Costco and Target.
Sometimes these slower weeks make me feel surprisingly anxious.
I like momentum and making progress, and when my schedule changes, part of me worries I’m falling behind and not doing enough.
But seasons aren’t interruptions. They’re part of the plan, if you allow them to be.
Summer-Cat isn’t competing with Work-Cat.
She’s solving a different set of problems. Work-Cat will be back, more restored, because sometimes the best way to refuel your creativity and motivation is to switch it up.
Office Hours Update
Speaking of adjusting to seasons, I’m making a change to office hours.
I’ve always held office hours as an open group session, but I want to experiment with a format that offers a little more flexibility for everyone.
Going forward, office hours for paid subscribers will primarily be one-on-one sessions.
Subscribers will be able to book a short conversation directly through a scheduling link. Whether you want to talk about entrepreneurship, marketing, career growth, public speaking, or how to keep a three-year-old and six-year-old entertained during summer break, I’m happy to chat.
I know some of you enjoy the group format as well, and I’m not abandoning that completely.
From time to time, I’ll continue hosting group sessions focused on specific topics. Think of them more like mini workshops or behind-the-scenes deep dives, like my “How I Actually Use AI” session, and I’ll open those up to all subscribers.
If you’re a paid subscriber, look out for the link later this week.
