Make Work Feel Good Again: A Flexible Structure for Creative Brains

If the word “structure” makes you think fluorescent lighting and cubicle life… hard pass. In this episode of This Rad Life Unfiltered I’m talking about the kind of structure that gives freelancers, founders, artists, and entrepreneurs freedom. The kind that smooths out the feast-or-famine cycles, calms the whack-a-mole chaos, and helps you feel ahead for once. Imagine that.

Recently, I subbed in to coach a group of filmmakers and—my kind of people—creative, scrappy, allergic to the corporate ladder. Over and over I heard the same thing I hear from private clients: “I’m playing catch-up all day. No rhythm. No structure. I’m constantly reacting.”

Here’s the truth: there is no one-size-fits-all blueprint. Your brain, season, and life are uniquely wired. But there is a way to create flexible structure that fits you—and gets results.

Why This Matters (Beyond Your To‑Do List)

Entrepreneurship is a stock market chart: zoomed-in peaks and valleys; zoomed-out upward trend. We can’t eliminate the ups and downs, but we can smooth them. Without an adaptive structure, you slide into:

• Overwork followed by crash-and-recover

• Marketing sprints followed by disappearing for months

• Feast-or-famine cash flow

• Constant firefighting

We don’t need more hustle. We need a simple way to direct our time and energy intentionally, so the work third of our lives actually works for us.

Nothing Is Wrong With You

If time-blocking made you cringe, your bullet journal ghosted you, and Pomodoro just made you hungry—cool. You’re not broken; you’ve been trying to run someone else’s operating system.

Your brain is designed to:

• Seek pleasure

• Avoid pain

• Conserve energy

So yes, of course Instagram feels easier than QuickBooks at 9:07 AM. That’s biology. Our job as entrepreneurs is threefold:

1. Be the boss: set the vision and game plan.

2. Be the employee: execute or hire.

3. Be your own R&D: learn how you’re wired—energetically, psychologically, even astrologically—and work with it, not against it.

Astrology and Human Design have been absolute cheat codes for me and my clients when it comes to working rhythms and “right work.” Many of you are not wired for Monday–Friday, 9–5. Seeing that in black and white releases a shocking amount of shame and frees up real bandwidth.

A Core Principle Anyone Can Use

Mornings are for output. Evenings are for input.

• Output = create, write, design, lead, make decisions. Use your highest-quality energy window (for many, that’s morning; for some, it’s late morning or early afternoon).

• Input = consume: meetings, email, DMs, admin, learning, responding, social.

Most people start their day in input, which flips you into reactive mode, and climbing out is uphill. Protect your output hours like your business depends on it—because it does.

Pro tip: When you catch yourself scrolling and spiraling, do a silly reset. I literally stand up and turn counterclockwise a few times like a kid. It breaks the trance and lets me restart the day on purpose.

Rituals > Habits

“Habits” feel like punishment. “Rituals” feel like magic.

Rituals are how you thread your days together. There’s no magic bullet, but there is magic in consistency. My daily ritual: a quick journal brain dump—worries, ideas, to-dos, weird dreams—out of my head and onto paper. It’s like closing the 27 tabs slowing your brain-browser.

From there, I choose my Top 3 priorities and block them into my calendar with ridiculous clarity:

• 60 min: research the proposal

• 30 min: outline the proposal + Canva graphics

• 10 min: send proposal email

I’m not trusting my future self to figure it out. I’m bossing her up so the “employee” can just execute.

The Hour Zero Method

This is the backbone of my approach: simple, flexible, anti-rigid system for creative entrepreneurs who hate rules. It blends time blocking, neuroscience, and self-respect. You can learn it in a private mini masterclass (a short podcast-style series)—perfect for walks, school runs, or “I’m avoiding my inbox” moments. It’s one of the tools my private clients use to stop playing whack-a-mole and finally feel in control.

Because most of you already know what to do—you’re just not doing it. Not because you’re lazy, but because you’ve made “structure” feel like punishment. Add dopamine back into your workflow. Put on music. Work from the bougie coffee shop. Make it lovely for your future self.

Progress, Not Perfection

If I hit 60–80% of my systems in a week, that’s a win. Life is lifey. Perimenopause brain. Family needs. Seasonal funks (hello, Mid-Atlantic February). Success is a spectrum, not a checkbox.

Find your spectrum:

• Did you stick to two task-batching blocks out of ten? Celebrate.

• Did you stay off your phone for a 90-minute deep focus sprint? Celebrate.

Working for yourself means you also have to be the one who throws yourself the party. Flowers on your desk. The fancy latte tomorrow. A mid-day walk. Small celebrations smooth the rollercoaster more than you think.

Client Snapshot: The Woodworker Dad

Joe, a custom furniture maker and primary weekday parent during the school year, felt scattered and behind. The real drain wasn’t time—it was shame from trying to force a 40-hour M–F rhythm that didn’t fit his life. Once we aligned his weeks to his actual energy and family schedule (and stopped the mental beatdown), he stopped stalling in the truck, stopped “preparing to work” for an hour, and started finishing projects faster with more ease.

Boundaries That Buy Back Your Brain

One of my favorite email signatures said: “I only reply to emails between 11–1, Mon–Thurs. Text if urgent.” Permission granted. You do not need other people’s inputs in your brain at 7 AM.

Try:

• Output-only mornings (no email/slack/social until 10 or 11)

• Meetings after lunch

• One admin block late afternoon

• A 15-minute “close the tabs” journal at day’s end

Two Ways I Can Help You Right Now

1. Astro Human Design Business Blueprint (Your Right Work) A 90-minute deep dive into your working rhythm, decision-making, and business model alignment. If you’re at a ceiling, on the fence about a pivot, or stuck in whack-a-mole mode, this will clear the fog fast.

2. Live Workshop: Unf*ck Your Business A 90-minute rebuild to save you years of burnout. If you’re fantasizing about burning it all down, come here first. We’ll rework your model for balance and profit, subtract the busywork, and give you your life back—without starting from zero.

• Date: Tuesday, November 18

• Time: 12:00–1:30 PM ET

• Live coaching + 30-minute Q&A

• Seats limited

• Investment: $15

Your Micro-Next Step

• Pick one output window to protect this week

• Choose one ritual to thread your mornings (journal brain dump, movement, music, or walk).

• Plan one tiny celebration for completing a focus block.

Make work feel good again. Close your tabs. Take the walk. Do the next right thing toward your version of successful nonconformity. And for the love of all things decaf, be kind to your future self—the one running the play you’re calling today.

See you next time, friend.

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