May 27, 2024 • 13 mins
While many look forward to the fun adventures of summertime, it can present challenges for entrepreneurs. On this solo episode, Renae shares some of her own summer strategies as a busy mom of two and business owner.
Have your own work life balance strategies? Share them on Instagram and tag us @subscriptionboxbasics.
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
(00:00):
So you want to launch asubscription box and don't know
where to start, girl, you are inthe right place.
I'm Julie ball and I'm ReneeGonzalez, your host here at
subscription box basics, apodcast for new and aspiring
subscription box entrepreneurswanting to avoid overwhelm.
So grab a coffee, some pen andpaper, and let's have some fun.
Renae (00:23):
Welcome back to subscription box basics, the
podcast.
I am Renee Gonzalez, yourmarketing coach here at
subscription box basics.
And today we are going to talkabout finding a work life
balance during the summer.
This is going to be a soloepisode.
It is just me.
(00:43):
We're not going to talk too muchabout marketing.
We're really going to talk aboutthe shift that you may be
starting to have.
No matter what your situationis, if you've listened to past
episodes, you know, that I am amom of two girls summer for me
is right in the middle of mybusy season of parenting, which
(01:06):
I absolutely love, but.
It takes some preparing for, andI know that we have listeners
who are also have families andhave Children.
There may be some peoplelistening who have a partner, or
you are ready to hang out withfriends all summer long, but you
still are a box owner, andUnfortunately, we are no, no
(01:29):
longer in elementary or highschool where we have summer
breaks.
We're in the thick of it asadults.
So this is an episode that willhopefully help you a little bit
when listening and find somepreparation in getting ready for
the next couple of months.
So you can still work on yourbox business, but you can also
(01:50):
have some fun with in life too.
So we're going to dive into it.
If you are experiencing a summerslump, this is just a little
disclaimer.
If your box business is startingto dip whether it is because of
summer coming up or just, Beingin the thick of it and
struggling finding sales.
(02:11):
I wanted to make sure that Ireminded you to go back.
We have past episodes at leastone or two where Julie says.
talk specifically about a summerslump and slumps in specific
parts of the year.
So definitely go check thoseepisodes out too, cause those
will give you some more tips.
And then today I'll just kind ofbe talking a little bit about
(02:33):
how you can prepare and reallymake the most out of the next
couple months, both in business,but also in life too.
So definitely go check out somepast summer slumps.
Slump episodes.
So the first thing I am going totalk about today is really in
order to prepare, you need tofirst goal set.
(02:53):
And this is just like any otheraspect of business.
If you've listened to episodesfor a while, you know, I love
vision boards.
I love goal setting the.
The beginning of the year, anynew quarter just brings new life
because it's, it's a newopportunity to set some goals
and to get after those goals.
(03:14):
And summer is no different.
So I want you to sit down and toreally think about both the
business side and a life sideand, and get some goals down.
What maybe for your subscriptionbox that looks like just kind of
keeping an, an even keel numberfor subscribers.
(03:35):
You're not going to try andstretch yourself and, and really
grow during summer because youknow typically the summer months
do drop off, so you just kind ofwant to keep it even keel and
get the same amount ofsubscribers you have that you're
losing.
That would be a great summergoal.
Whatever your goal is for yourbusiness, maybe it is to sell
(03:58):
excess inventory.
Now is a great time to puttogether some summer bundles, no
matter what.
Type of client you have thatsubscriber you have their summer
is probably shifting too.
So if you have a craft businessor a business that caters
towards kids, the kids are home.
So it's a great time to puttogether specialized bundles and
(04:19):
really move some excessinventory.
So in summer, sometimes you haveto get a little creative, but
before you can get creative, youneed to have goals so you can
help.
Reach those goals.
So put together some goals foryour subscription box, but also
put together what an idealsummer would look like.
As far as life goes to, arethere any vacations you want to
(04:41):
take?
Is there anywhere local you wantto hike or take advantage of the
good weather?
Our family really loves doingthe, but like summer bucket
lists.
So we get a big piece of posterboard and we all take turns and
we just write down just go to anamusement park.
We have a couple amusement parkscause I'm.
(05:03):
East of the Bay Area inCalifornia.
So we have a lot of amusementparks and water parks that we
can go to.
So we always jot a couple ofthose down as goal bucket list
items for summer.
We like to go on hikes.
We like to camp a lot.
So we come up with a bucket listof what our ideal summer would
(05:23):
look like.
And that kind of gives a goalwhen you're planning both for
work and for Summer with yourfamily, you know, specific
things that you all want to do,or you want to do.
And that can help you kind ofplug and play when you're
looking at your calendar.
So step number one to asuccessful summer for you is
create some goals and getstarted on, on the bigger
(05:47):
picture.
What does the bigger picturelook like?
So then you can piece thattogether and see what you need
to do for both business and forlife.
And then step number two isGonna you're going to create a
schedule based off of thosethings and based off of your
summer availability.
So Again, your availabilityduring summer, no matter what
(06:12):
life looks like for you is goingto be probably a little
different than your availabilitythe rest of the year.
So for me, I Every other time ofthe year.
I do the majority of my workfrom 9 a.
m.
My time to 2 p.
m.
Because that is when I'm home.
I'm all alone except for ourlovely dog that that likes to
(06:34):
make sure I take a little lunchbreak to take her for a walk.
But I have a pretty decent chunkof time in the morning where I
can get.
All of my work done.
And then I'm done for the restof the afternoon.
I become mom taxi or Ruber asJulie likes to call it Renee
Uber.
So I know that most of the yearI work in the mornings, my
(06:55):
summer.
It gets flipped on its head.
We wake up early.
The, I take both my girls eitherto swim.
Or to gymnastics because both ofthose, both sports that two of
the three sports they do move upto the morning time.
So until from 7 15 until twoo'clock, I am a ruber.
(07:17):
I'm going to Sport events forpractice.
And then my chunk of time that Ihave to work shifts back a
little bit.
I try, I try to work in betweenthat, but I really have a good
set of time in the lateafternoon where I'm able to sit
down and then do my work or doany office stuff I need.
So my schedule and myavailability during summer is
(07:40):
shifted completely.
As far as time each day goes, soI have to schedule calls a
little later or be available ifI'm keeping schedules that are
the same.
I have to make sure that I am ina set spot that I am able to
take a meeting.
So your schedule is going tolook a little different.
Maybe you want to go places onspecific days, so you have to
(08:05):
block off that day completely.
So really look, sit down andlook at what your availability
looks like.
From day to day, but also withinthat day, and then you can start
to plug and play.
All of your tasks as a businessowner.
When will you write emails?
(08:25):
When will you pack boxes andmake sure all of those important
things that have to get donethis summer are still getting
done, but your have a plan.
So when the day comes, you'renot like, Oh, I'm supposed to go
hiking today, but it's alsopacking day and you're not
scrambling last minute.
So really adjust your schedule.
schedule for what works for you.
(08:48):
And then my next tip is to havesome flexibility in that
schedule too.
So really there are things thatare going to come up that you
want to be able to do, or theremight be spontaneous invitations
to go places.
If you have flexibility in yourschedule within the week, you
(09:08):
will be able to shift thingsover if something comes up.
If not, if you're justabsolutely killing it and
working all week, if Fridaycomes around and that was your
spontaneous open ended extratime, then you can dive even
further into your business andreally conquer those goals.
So give yourself some grace thissummer, cause things are going
(09:29):
to Be unpredictable sometimes,but if you have that flexibility
already worked into yourschedule as some flex hours or a
flex day, then you'll be able tosay yes to more things, both
business wise and life wise,cause you'll have a plan around
it.
And then this is going to be ashort little episode because I
(09:49):
want you to jump in after.
And getting your head wrappedaround what summer will look for
you, like for you.
I want you to be able to reallydive deep into ways you can get
creative and in your businessand in your life.
So my last little tip today isjust to remember your why a lot
(10:11):
of times as business owners, youcreate this business to free up
time for yourself.
But when we get stuck in thegrind of daily being a business
owner, It is so easy to forgetthat lie and so easy to just get
stuck in your work and have tosay no to things and have to, to
(10:33):
put your box business as apriority.
And I'm not saying they're Thatyou shouldn't never do that.
There are definitely times whereyou have to do that, but if you
can be prepared and you canremember your why that you
started this business, probablyto give yourself a little
flexibility, like now is thetime to take advantage of that
(10:53):
reason and that, that urge inyour heart to be your own
business owner.
So you want to.
Be able to live life to thefullest as your own business
woman, but, but also as yourselftoo.
So really remember your why, ifthat is to free up time for
yourself, for your kids, this isthe time to do that.
(11:16):
If that is to, Be able to takesome staycations or vacations
because you don't need to throwa lot of money at whatever
you're doing this summer It canstill be done in your own town
then take some time and reallydo that connect with people In
the sunshine get yourself outthere Julie and myself have said
so many times that we both Findso much creative freedom when we
(11:43):
are removed from the workplaceand we're not in our office
where we're going for a walk orgoing for a hike or poolside at
the beach, which we both love.
You will find creative freedomin stepping outside of your day
to day hustle.
So if summer provides younothing more than an excuse to
(12:05):
get outside and get and limityour work hours or shift your
work hours so you still havetime to do other things.
Just think of it as apossibility that creativeness
will spark and give you an ideafor your box business that you
wouldn't have had if you werestuck doing the grind.
So, That is my short littlespiel for you to definitely take
(12:32):
time to plan for summer, butalso to not feel like you have
to miss out on summer completelybecause you can go outside Even
if it's just taking a walk forthe day give yourself some, some
time to really step outside yourbusiness.
And myself and Julie are bothhere for you.
(12:53):
I know, businesses are difficultfrom, from the day to day, and I
know summer Can feel evenheavier when subscription
unsubscribes get higher at somepoint.
So if you need any one to talkto Julie and myself are here.
If you need anyone to bounceideas off of, we are here.
(13:15):
You can find us at subscriptionbox basics on Instagram.
That is the easiest place to getahold of both of us.
And we will talk to you soon.
Definitely.
Stay tuned for a next episode ofsubscription box basics and have
a great rest of your day.
Bye.
So you want to launch asubscription box and don't know
where to start, girl, you are inthe right place.
I'm Julie ball and I'm ReneeGonzalez, your host here at
subscription box basics, apodcast for new and aspiring
subscription box entrepreneurswanting to avoid overwhelm.
So grab a coffee, some pen andpaper, and let's have some fun.
Renae (00:23):
Welcome back to subscription box basics, the
podcast.
I am Renee Gonzalez, yourmarketing coach here at
subscription box basics.
And today we are going to talkabout finding a work life
balance during the summer.
This is going to be a soloepisode.
It is just me.
(00:43):
We're not going to talk too muchabout marketing.
We're really going to talk aboutthe shift that you may be
starting to have.
No matter what your situationis, if you've listened to past
episodes, you know, that I am amom of two girls summer for me
is right in the middle of mybusy season of parenting, which
(01:06):
I absolutely love, but.
It takes some preparing for, andI know that we have listeners
who are also have families andhave Children.
There may be some peoplelistening who have a partner, or
you are ready to hang out withfriends all summer long, but you
still are a box owner, andUnfortunately, we are no, no
(01:29):
longer in elementary or highschool where we have summer
breaks.
We're in the thick of it asadults.
So this is an episode that willhopefully help you a little bit
when listening and find somepreparation in getting ready for
the next couple of months.
So you can still work on yourbox business, but you can also
(01:50):
have some fun with in life too.
So we're going to dive into it.
If you are experiencing a summerslump, this is just a little
disclaimer.
If your box business is startingto dip whether it is because of
summer coming up or just, Beingin the thick of it and
struggling finding sales.
(02:11):
I wanted to make sure that Ireminded you to go back.
We have past episodes at leastone or two where Julie says.
talk specifically about a summerslump and slumps in specific
parts of the year.
So definitely go check thoseepisodes out too, cause those
will give you some more tips.
And then today I'll just kind ofbe talking a little bit about
(02:33):
how you can prepare and reallymake the most out of the next
couple months, both in business,but also in life too.
So definitely go check out somepast summer slumps.
Slump episodes.
So the first thing I am going totalk about today is really in
order to prepare, you need tofirst goal set.
(02:53):
And this is just like any otheraspect of business.
If you've listened to episodesfor a while, you know, I love
vision boards.
I love goal setting the.
The beginning of the year, anynew quarter just brings new life
because it's, it's a newopportunity to set some goals
and to get after those goals.
(03:14):
And summer is no different.
So I want you to sit down and toreally think about both the
business side and a life sideand, and get some goals down.
What maybe for your subscriptionbox that looks like just kind of
keeping an, an even keel numberfor subscribers.
(03:35):
You're not going to try andstretch yourself and, and really
grow during summer because youknow typically the summer months
do drop off, so you just kind ofwant to keep it even keel and
get the same amount ofsubscribers you have that you're
losing.
That would be a great summergoal.
Whatever your goal is for yourbusiness, maybe it is to sell
(03:58):
excess inventory.
Now is a great time to puttogether some summer bundles, no
matter what.
Type of client you have thatsubscriber you have their summer
is probably shifting too.
So if you have a craft businessor a business that caters
towards kids, the kids are home.
So it's a great time to puttogether specialized bundles and
(04:19):
really move some excessinventory.
So in summer, sometimes you haveto get a little creative, but
before you can get creative, youneed to have goals so you can
help.
Reach those goals.
So put together some goals foryour subscription box, but also
put together what an idealsummer would look like.
As far as life goes to, arethere any vacations you want to
(04:41):
take?
Is there anywhere local you wantto hike or take advantage of the
good weather?
Our family really loves doingthe, but like summer bucket
lists.
So we get a big piece of posterboard and we all take turns and
we just write down just go to anamusement park.
We have a couple amusement parkscause I'm.
(05:03):
East of the Bay Area inCalifornia.
So we have a lot of amusementparks and water parks that we
can go to.
So we always jot a couple ofthose down as goal bucket list
items for summer.
We like to go on hikes.
We like to camp a lot.
So we come up with a bucket listof what our ideal summer would
(05:23):
look like.
And that kind of gives a goalwhen you're planning both for
work and for Summer with yourfamily, you know, specific
things that you all want to do,or you want to do.
And that can help you kind ofplug and play when you're
looking at your calendar.
So step number one to asuccessful summer for you is
create some goals and getstarted on, on the bigger
(05:47):
picture.
What does the bigger picturelook like?
So then you can piece thattogether and see what you need
to do for both business and forlife.
And then step number two isGonna you're going to create a
schedule based off of thosethings and based off of your
summer availability.
So Again, your availabilityduring summer, no matter what
(06:12):
life looks like for you is goingto be probably a little
different than your availabilitythe rest of the year.
So for me, I Every other time ofthe year.
I do the majority of my workfrom 9 a.
m.
My time to 2 p.
m.
Because that is when I'm home.
I'm all alone except for ourlovely dog that that likes to
(06:34):
make sure I take a little lunchbreak to take her for a walk.
But I have a pretty decent chunkof time in the morning where I
can get.
All of my work done.
And then I'm done for the restof the afternoon.
I become mom taxi or Ruber asJulie likes to call it Renee
Uber.
So I know that most of the yearI work in the mornings, my
(06:55):
summer.
It gets flipped on its head.
We wake up early.
The, I take both my girls eitherto swim.
Or to gymnastics because both ofthose, both sports that two of
the three sports they do move upto the morning time.
So until from 7 15 until twoo'clock, I am a ruber.
(07:17):
I'm going to Sport events forpractice.
And then my chunk of time that Ihave to work shifts back a
little bit.
I try, I try to work in betweenthat, but I really have a good
set of time in the lateafternoon where I'm able to sit
down and then do my work or doany office stuff I need.
So my schedule and myavailability during summer is
(07:40):
shifted completely.
As far as time each day goes, soI have to schedule calls a
little later or be available ifI'm keeping schedules that are
the same.
I have to make sure that I am ina set spot that I am able to
take a meeting.
So your schedule is going tolook a little different.
Maybe you want to go places onspecific days, so you have to
(08:05):
block off that day completely.
So really look, sit down andlook at what your availability
looks like.
From day to day, but also withinthat day, and then you can start
to plug and play.
All of your tasks as a businessowner.
When will you write emails?
(08:25):
When will you pack boxes andmake sure all of those important
things that have to get donethis summer are still getting
done, but your have a plan.
So when the day comes, you'renot like, Oh, I'm supposed to go
hiking today, but it's alsopacking day and you're not
scrambling last minute.
So really adjust your schedule.
schedule for what works for you.
(08:48):
And then my next tip is to havesome flexibility in that
schedule too.
So really there are things thatare going to come up that you
want to be able to do, or theremight be spontaneous invitations
to go places.
If you have flexibility in yourschedule within the week, you
(09:08):
will be able to shift thingsover if something comes up.
If not, if you're justabsolutely killing it and
working all week, if Fridaycomes around and that was your
spontaneous open ended extratime, then you can dive even
further into your business andreally conquer those goals.
So give yourself some grace thissummer, cause things are going
(09:29):
to Be unpredictable sometimes,but if you have that flexibility
already worked into yourschedule as some flex hours or a
flex day, then you'll be able tosay yes to more things, both
business wise and life wise,cause you'll have a plan around
it.
And then this is going to be ashort little episode because I
(09:49):
want you to jump in after.
And getting your head wrappedaround what summer will look for
you, like for you.
I want you to be able to reallydive deep into ways you can get
creative and in your businessand in your life.
So my last little tip today isjust to remember your why a lot
(10:11):
of times as business owners, youcreate this business to free up
time for yourself.
But when we get stuck in thegrind of daily being a business
owner, It is so easy to forgetthat lie and so easy to just get
stuck in your work and have tosay no to things and have to, to
(10:33):
put your box business as apriority.
And I'm not saying they're Thatyou shouldn't never do that.
There are definitely times whereyou have to do that, but if you
can be prepared and you canremember your why that you
started this business, probablyto give yourself a little
flexibility, like now is thetime to take advantage of that
(10:53):
reason and that, that urge inyour heart to be your own
business owner.
So you want to.
Be able to live life to thefullest as your own business
woman, but, but also as yourselftoo.
So really remember your why, ifthat is to free up time for
yourself, for your kids, this isthe time to do that.
(11:16):
If that is to, Be able to takesome staycations or vacations
because you don't need to throwa lot of money at whatever
you're doing this summer It canstill be done in your own town
then take some time and reallydo that connect with people In
the sunshine get yourself outthere Julie and myself have said
so many times that we both Findso much creative freedom when we
(11:43):
are removed from the workplaceand we're not in our office
where we're going for a walk orgoing for a hike or poolside at
the beach, which we both love.
You will find creative freedomin stepping outside of your day
to day hustle.
So if summer provides younothing more than an excuse to
(12:05):
get outside and get and limityour work hours or shift your
work hours so you still havetime to do other things.
Just think of it as apossibility that creativeness
will spark and give you an ideafor your box business that you
wouldn't have had if you werestuck doing the grind.
So, That is my short littlespiel for you to definitely take
(12:32):
time to plan for summer, butalso to not feel like you have
to miss out on summer completelybecause you can go outside Even
if it's just taking a walk forthe day give yourself some, some
time to really step outside yourbusiness.
And myself and Julie are bothhere for you.
(12:53):
I know, businesses are difficultfrom, from the day to day, and I
know summer Can feel evenheavier when subscription
unsubscribes get higher at somepoint.
So if you need any one to talkto Julie and myself are here.
If you need anyone to bounceideas off of, we are here.
(13:15):
You can find us at subscriptionbox basics on Instagram.
That is the easiest place to getahold of both of us.
And we will talk to you soon.
Definitely.
Stay tuned for a next episode ofsubscription box basics and have
a great rest of your day.
Bye.
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