#165| Why the 5AM Club Won’t Save You — Plus What Will *Actually* Increase Your Productivity: Overwhelm, Productivity, Time Management & People Pleasing

Ever tried the 5AM club and felt like a failure when it didn’t stick? What if the problem isn’t you, but the system itself?

So many working women try to boost productivity by copying someone else's "perfect" routine—only to end up overwhelmed, exhausted, and frustrated. This episode reveals why one-size-fits-all productivity hacks don’t work and how to start designing a system that actually supports your energy and life.

In this episode, you will:

• Learn why popular productivity methods often fail—and why that has nothing to do with your worth or willpower.
• Discover how to find your personal productivity rhythm by asking 3 simple questions.
• Understand how to balance flexibility and structure in a way that supports your unique brain and lifestyle.
  
  

Press play now to finally stop forcing yourself into rigid routines—and learn how to build a productivity system that actually fits your life.

Featured on the podcast
Ep #10: How To Achieve A Truly Fulfilling Life by Reducing Overwhelm with Kari Kaiser
Book a free discovery session with Michelle

Wondering why you're overwhelmed? Take my "why am I overwhelmed" quiz to find out the source of your overwhelm, and what to do about it.

Send Me a Message - Have a question, comment, or just want to say hi? Message me here, I'd love to chat!

Work With Me - Interested in working with me 1-on-1, taking a class, or joining one of my coaching groups? Message me here to get the scoop.

Want More? - If you love the content of this podcast, you'll love our Simple Sunday newsletter too. When you sign up, you’ll receive a simple dose of inspiration, practical tips, and a little fun—designed to help you start your week with simplicity and intention. Sign up here

Life can be overwhelming, but on this podcast, you'll discover practical strategies to overcome overwhelm, imposter syndrome, and negative self-talk, manage time effectively, set boundaries, and stay productive in high-stress jobs—all while learning how to say no and prioritize self-care on the Overwhelmed Worki...

Episode Transcript

Michelle Gauthier (00:15):
If you've ever tried them and felt like a
failure.
When they don't stick, you'renot the problem.
The system just wasn't made foryou.
You're listening to OverwhelmedWorking Woman, the podcast that
helps you be more calm and moreproductive by doing less.
I'm your host, MichelleGauthier, a former Overwhelmed

(00:36):
Working Woman and current lifecoach.
On this show, we unpack thestress and pressure that today's
working woman experiences, andin each episode you'll get a
strategy to bring more calm,ease and relaxation to your life
.
Hi friend, today we're talkingabout productivity and why the

(00:56):
5am club won't save you.
If you don't know what the 5amclub is, it's essentially the
concept that if you want to beat all successful in life, you
need to do it by getting up at 5AM every morning and doing very
specific things.
Now I'm not saying that thatdoesn't work.
That may very well work and Ithink, does work for lots of
people, but if that doesn't workfor you personally, then it's a

(01:19):
waste of your time and energyto try to implement something
like that.
So today you're going to learnwhy no productivity method works
for everyone, why copyingsomeone else's routine usually
backfires, and then I'm going togive you some key questions to
ask yourself to find out whatactually works for you and how
to stop forcing yourself into asystem that doesn't fit your
life or your energy.

(01:41):
Why doesn't this concept of the5am club work for everybody?
Every system, any system outthere you pick one, works for
some people with a certain kindof brain.
If you've ever tried them andfelt like a failure when they
don't stick, you're not theproblem.
The system just wasn't made foryou.
It doesn't take intoconsideration what kind of brain

(02:05):
you have.
Do you have a neurotypicalbrain?
Are you super creative?
Do you need more structure?
When do you have the mostenergy?
Are you a morning person?
Are you an evening person?
Two of the clients who I workedwith in this past week were
feeling sort of defeated andoverwhelmed and feeling like
they weren't getting up earlyenough and just weren't getting
enough done.
So I'm going to give you acouple questions that you can

(02:27):
ask yourself to figure out whatworks for you.
Question number one is when doI naturally have energy?
So, for example, you will knowright off the bat if you are a
morning person or an eveningperson.
Earlier this week, my clientwas telling me that her most
energetic time of the day is 10pm, and I almost fell out of my

(02:48):
chair because if I had to doanything that required my brain
at 10 pm, it just absolutelywould not work.
I naturally have energy in themorning I'm a good fit for the 5
am club, in fact and she wassaying, oh, I probably should
get up earlier.
But no, what we ended updeciding is she should not get
up earlier.
She should take betteradvantage of the time at 10 pm

(03:09):
when she does naturally haveenergy.
So think about that when isyour best energy?
And then plan your hardesttasks where you need to use the
most creativity or the mostbrainpower around when you do
have that energy.
The next question to askyourself is what is working
about my current routine?
So, even if you're feelingfrustrated like you're not

(03:31):
getting enough done, it's veryunlikely that you're literally
getting nothing done during theday.
So what is working and whatshould you keep during your day?
So, for example, one of thethings that I do I have a whole
system for managing my email,which I will tell you about in a
separate episode, because it'ssomething that I've been talking
to my clients a lot about too,and I want to talk about that

(03:52):
specifically.
But, for example, I go throughmy email inbox on Mondays and I
have a whole process that I gothrough and that really works
for me.
So that is totally working.
Another thing that really worksfor me is that I schedule my
clients.
When you're my client, you havea specific time that we meet
every week.
So you know every Wednesday at10 o'clock you're having a

(04:14):
meeting with me and if thatneeds to change you can text me
and we'll move it.
But that level of structureworks for me, you know, with the
exception if we need to changethings.
So when I think about thosethings, I really have the vast
majority of my week is alreadyin the working no-transcript.
As you're trying to figure outwhat type of routine works for

(04:35):
you, focus on what is alreadygood and what you should keep.
And then the last question toask yourself is how much
flexibility do I need?
And what I mean by that is Ithink people need a certain
amount of structure.
When I have tried in the pastto do a complete time blocking,

(04:57):
where every single thing on myto-do list has a time on the
calendar very specifically and Ican break it down by 15 minutes
, that is too much structure forme, but I really like and need
structure.
So for me I would say I'm aboutlike an 8 out of 10 on the
structure scale, but I want tohave some flexibility built in
there.
I had a client named Kari.

(05:17):
There's an episode that sherecorded on the podcast.
We'll link that in the shownotes.
She's an artist, she's agraphic designer, so she has a
very creative mind.
So when she came to me she wasfeeling stressed about how much
work she was and how much morework she wanted to get done, but
feeling resistant to thestructure.
And what we figured out was,even though she's an artist, it

(05:40):
was good for her to have about afive out of 10 structure.
So we came up with rules forwhat time she should get to her
office in the morning.
The first thing she did was amorning routine.
When she gets new clients andthey want an estimate from her,
she puts an hour on her calendarto get started on that, because
the getting started part washard.
So she implemented structure tothe level that felt good to her

(06:03):
.
So are you a 2 out of 10structure person?
Are you a 10 out of 10structure person?
Another client who I wastalking to just today said I
really have always wanted to bea 10 out of 10 structure person,
but I think I'm actually a 5.
So I spent all this time tryingto create this structure, but I
really crave just a little morefreedom in my day.
So think about for you, if a 10is the ultimate totally

(06:27):
structured and a one is nostructure whatsoever, which one
actually works for you in termsof productivity, and then what
does that mean for the kind ofwork that you do in the kind of
life that you lead?
The moral of the story today isthat the 5am club totally works
for some people and that the9am club also totally works for

(06:48):
some people.
There is a structure out therethat works for you, and it
starts with you knowing a couplethings about yourself.
When are you naturally mostenergetic, how does your brain
work best and how much structuredo you feel like you need?
I help my one-on-one clientswith this all the time.
If this is something that youfeel like you're struggling with
, set up a discovery sessionwith me to learn more about

(07:10):
one-on-one coaching.
Thanks for listening today anddon't forget, by the way, that I
have a quiz.
The link is in the show notes.
I have a quiz that will helpyou figure out why you're
feeling overwhelmed.
Time management may be thereason why you're feeling
overwhelmed.
Take the quiz and find out more.
Not only does it tell you whatthe problem is, but it gives you
some potential solutionsworksheets, videos.

(07:34):
You can watch podcast episodesthat I recommend to solve your
problem.
Thanks, and have a great week.
Thank you for listening to theOverwhelmed Working Woman
podcast.
If you want to learn more aboutmy work, head over to my
website at michellegauthier.
com.
See you next week.