BOTAO Ep 160

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[00:00:00] So with the CEO of you, which is the women's program. So we're, we have a cohort of six people in right now. We'll finish in November. The idea is to do a masterclass the week of the 17th, a Black Friday event. And then start the program and well, and then program starting January, the next cohort. So the interesting thing, though, is I feel like I have these two large contracts right now.

And then these partnerships that I don't know when I'm gonna have time to work on the CEO of you. So part of me is afraid of. I just replaced my employer. With a different kind of employer in a way, um, and so I don't know if you had anybody that's had, I mean, it's great. I mean, you are a contractor, but it's still business for somebody else.

I'm still doing somebody else's stuff. Well, I think that what's going to be important is very early on in September when you first get started. Because the one contract is someone you previously worked for, what's going to be really important is [00:01:00] for you to reestablish boundaries and reestablish availability.

Because what I see happen too often is contractors being almost taken advantage of, um, and being kind of owned as an employee, even though you've stepped out of that space. So I would encourage you to have kind of your, you know, operating hours, your turnaround time, Your times that you're available, right?

Um, and. You reestablishing expectation of boundaries, um, and the number of hours that you're working for them, right? Um, because if you're in contract with them, is it for a number of hours per month? What, what is it, what is it like? The, the employer, the past employer is for sessions. So I have like 21 sessions that I'm facilitating for them and they already have their days and they're already on the calendar for the larger contract.

I've contracted out 20 hours a week. Okay, perfect. [00:02:00] So what I would suggest you do is, um, with the one that you're both of them, um, with the one that you're doing 21 sessions with, and in general, I would set your calendar up and stick to it to when you're doing contract work and when you're working on the CEO of you.

Um, and so that way, um, it doesn't get messy, right? So you may, and this is just my two cents. If you really want the CEO of you to really take off, I would suggest you literally block off an entire day once a week, once a week to solely focus on it so that you're not fire drilled into other things and other people's needs.

Um, and you can even set up your email that way, right? Um, if you, have you read the four hour work week by Tim Ferriss? I'm reading it right now. Okay. Awesome. He talks about this, right? Setting up boundaries in your inbox, right? Like for these clients, you can say, you know, Hey, you [00:03:00] know, here's, um, this is, you can have an auto response on your CEO, CEO of you day, right?

That says, Hey, You know, um, I'll I'm working on on these days. I'm working on X project, but I'll be back in the office tomorrow. Um, you know, like condition them now, you know what I'm saying? Because the more you respond quickly like an employee. They're going to feel like they're still in charge, and this is going to be kind of an energetic shift of, for lack of a better word, control of time here by you setting the boundary of here's when I'm available.

Here's when I'll be checking my inbox. Right. I mean, I have a fractional CFO she has automated email comes out to me that says basically. I'm not working right now on, on your stuff, but I got your, I got your email and I'll be back to you when I'm back in the office working on your stuff. Right. Um, and it's a constant reminder that she's not my employee.

Right. [00:04:00] I like that idea, Melissa, because that is, that is true. And then to your point about just kind of combining this with your other thought about when you're first starting out and you're getting these opportunities, you don't feel like you can turn anything down. So you don't feel like I didn't feel like I could like, block a whole day because what if one of my partners wants to book me for that day?

Right. And so just having that discipline. The discipline is hard, especially when you're first getting started because it's like, you just want to take on everything and I appreciate that. Like, there is a point in entrepreneurship where we do just have to, like, ride the momentum, but then there is a point at which we have to recalibrate that momentum and create boundaries, but you want to, I don't want to go ahead.

I mean, although it's been great for the transition, Melissa, what I didn't set out to do was to buy myself a job, right? I want to own a business. I don't want to buy myself a job. So, yeah. Yep. So set those boundaries. I mean, September 1st, right? You've got a couple of days. See how much you can get through the Tim Ferriss book [00:05:00] and like, think to yourself, how do I set boundaries?

How do I create clear boundaries around my calendar and expectation with these clients? Now that the pendulum has shifted, right? And now I'm consulting and how do I level set that now? Yeah. Thanks. Yeah. Yeah.