How to (actually) plan your week

Secrets from a productivity unicorn

January 24, 2022

Hey there —

Have you ever met a productivity unicorn?

You know, the type of person who’s spinning 50 plates yet manages to execute it all with poise. These people are effective (not just efficient) and see challenges as opportunities – not obstacles.

But how does a productivity unicorn actually get stuff done?

To find out, we asked serial entrepreneur Tina Roth Eisenberg how she plans her week.

Photo by Julia Robbs

Tina, a Swiss native turned New Yorker, believes in labors of love. She’s the visionary behind Swiss Miss, TeuxDeux, the CreativeMornings event series, FRIENDS, and Tattly.

Behind her impressive roster of projects is her infallible life rule – “Instead of complaining, fix it.” This philosophy is how Tina takes inventory of her life – and we can all learn a thing or two from her.

As best explained by Tina:

“I set goals around a level of joy and excitement I want to feel around what we are building in the world. If I sense I am not engaged and enthusiastic about what’s happening, that’s a red flag.”

When we’re passionate about our projects, optimal creativity and productivity follows. Because as it turns out, productivity unicorns aren’t an elusive rarity. You can be one, too, if you’re mindful about the work you’re doing and how you go about organizing your time around it.

The Secret to Success? Self-Loathing.

Article | by Jules Evans

Self-development is a double-edged sword.

On one hand, there’s nothing wrong with finding new ways to improve yourself. But if you’re not careful, this pursuit can turn into a treadmill of self-optimization, where there’s always something else to improve.

And that’s when self-loathing shows up.

We start to believe we’re never good enough as we are, leading to a skewed idea of “success.” But what if success actually means accepting ourselves regardless of external achievements? In this article, Jules Evans explores this exact question.

How to Say “No” After Saying “Yes”

Article | by Melody Wilding

We’ve all been there. It’s 4:42 PM and you said you’d help your co-worker by coming to their Fundraiser Happy Hour, but you’re dealing with 62 Slack messages and 36 DMs.

Are you going to do the reasonable thing and tell them you’ve stretched yourself too thin and can’t make it?

Nope. Out of fear of being perceived as lazy or unreliable, you’ll show up, despite the cost to your own wellbeing.

Let’s not do this again, mkay? This article by Melody Wilding gives you great advice on how to not take on too much by “uncommitting gracefully.”

Giant Phantom Jelly

YouTube Video | by MBARI (Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute)

Wanna see something weird? Of course you do. Behold – the Giant Phantom Jelly. Yes, it’s as cool as it sounds.

Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute (MBARI) captured rare footage of this fantastical creature at the bottom of Monterey Bay, which is a cool 3,200 feet below sea level. For context, that’s roughly three Eiffel Towers stacked on top of one another.

Fascinating? Terrifying? Decide for yourself.

Written by Alice Lemée