Are you busy being busy without anything to show for it? That's exactly where Teresa Hunt found herself over a year ago. In this episode, I take an in-depth look behind the scenes of my signature programs with Teresa's help. Teresa, a counselor specializing in grief and a passionate photographer from Willamette Valley, Oregon, shares her journey of struggling with time management before joining the TOP Program and Plan-a-Palooza. Through our candid discussion, Teresa describes how she used to plan every minute of her day, leading to constant stress and a feeling of busyness without concrete accomplishments, and then shares where she is now. 

In this episode, we cover:

• Teresa's struggles with time management
• Implementing weekly, monthly, quarterly, and annual planning strategies
• Challenges and realizations of learning and practicing the TOP Framework 

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Or watch the episode here!

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FULL TRANSCRIPT:

[00:00:00] Megan: I am thrilled today because today we're going to kind of pull the curtains back a little bit on the behind the scenes of my signature programs, the top program in Planopalooza, , and introduce you to a student of mine. I love to talk about the programs.

[00:00:15] Megan: Obviously, I believe in them. I put my heart and soul into this, but I think it's far more powerful when you can hear from people that are passionate Learning and implementing my entire time management framework to hear what are some of the wins they have. What's been, what's been tough. What's been easy.

[00:00:30] Megan: And that's exactly what Teresa is going to do here for you today. So without further ado, I'm going to welcome you to Teresa.

[00:01:01] Megan: Hey everyone, welcome back to Work Life Harmony. It is not often that I have the pleasure of bringing guests here on the show that have been students of mine and still are. And so today I am thrilled to introduce you all to Teresa Hunt. Teresa, rather than me introducing you, I'm going to let you do that yourself and let people know a little bit about you, where you live, what you do, all that good stuff.

[00:01:26] Teresa: Yeah. So thank you for having me. This is really exciting. It's my pleasure. I live in Oregon's beautiful Willamette Valley. It's gorgeous here. . I am actually a counselor by day.

[00:01:38] Teresa: Grief is kind of my specialty, and I also do photography on the side. That's kind of one of my passions. Also, I have been thinking about starting a grief, , social media channel as well. , just for grief education and stuff, so that's partly why I joined the T. O. P. program originally was because I had so many things that I was trying to cram into a small space.

[00:01:58] Teresa: I was kind of driving myself crazy, so.

[00:02:00] Megan: First, before we even dive in anything else, I just have to say, I think that the work that you're doing and supporting people, especially around grief is I admire it greatly because I have to imagine that that's a lot sometimes to, to sit in for a while. So thank you for what you do.

[00:02:16] Megan: That's tremendous.

[00:02:18] Megan: So obviously you don't have a lot of free time. Given all the things that you are juggling. So before you joined into the top program, before we started working together, how were you managing, how you were trying to get everything done, your calendar, et cetera, what did that look like?

[00:02:36] Teresa: I was kind of driving myself crazy. Really. I would sit down and I would plan out my day or my week and I would block every, every second of time off. And then when something didn't happen, or if somebody called me up and said, Hey, you want to hang out? Or, you know, somebody would call me on the phone.

[00:02:52] Teresa: I want to talk for 20, 30 minutes. I would just get all tense and stressed about it. Cause I've got all these things to do. And then I, I was constantly busy and had all these things to do, but I was never actually getting anywhere. And I was so tired of saying, I'm busy, I'm busy, I'm busy, but then never having anything to show for it.

[00:03:08] Teresa: Or going places and being stressed and tense. I could be home doing this. I could be home doing this. And in fact, when I was in grad school, I I had sat down. I had so much homework. I had sat down and I'd written out a schedule for myself for the day. And I like had it down to the minute, every, every minute of the day.

[00:03:24] Teresa: And about an hour later, I looked at it and I realized, I didn't schedule time for to eat

[00:03:29] Megan: or go to the bathroom,

[00:03:30] Teresa: go to the bathroom. Like there was literally no lunch or dinner on that. And that's kind of just how it's always been.

[00:03:35] Teresa: It's just constant stress and busyness, but it's not like getting me anywhere.

[00:03:40] Megan: Yeah. And it's interesting. I think I don't know if you felt this way or not, but I feel like society at large really almost rewards that go, go, go, go, go, make every minute count.

[00:03:52] Megan: And it's almost like shaming if you watch TV at night or whatever things might actually help relax you and things that we enjoy doing.

[00:04:03] Teresa: Yeah. And for me, it was the word hustle. Cause I read a lot about small businesses and stuff like that because that's kind of one of my goals is to, to have my own photography studio someday.

[00:04:13] Teresa: So I'm reading all this stuff on small business and it's all about the hustle. You gotta hustle. You gotta hustle. And it just amped up all this anxious energy in me and it. I don't remember where, where I finally heard it, but hustle wasn't meaning be busy, busy, busy, busy, busy all the time.

[00:04:27] Teresa: But that's how I was taking it. And hustle is more about just, like, I don't even like the word anymore. And I can't remember really what, what, what switched it for me, but just realizing that you got to slow down and focus on one thing and just do that thing to the best of your ability. And then, you You know, and it's hustle is a different thing than what it comes across in society.

[00:04:49] Megan: Yeah, I feel like , the picture of hustle is Like exhaustion. And it's funny. I love, I've always loved the show shark tank. But I have this love hate relationship. They will sometimes when an entrepreneur is on and they'll start asking them, like, how'd you grow the business?

[00:05:04] Megan: And they'll be like, I was sleeping on my friend's garage and I was knocking door to door. Like they're painting this picture of like, Barely surviving and that gets rewarded. They're like, yes, that's what it takes. I'm thinking, but it doesn't have to be that way . So you've been through the top program and then you've also been through my annual Planapalooza events as well.

[00:05:26] Megan: What would you say, thinking specifically about Planapalooza where we do our annual planning and learn that bigger picture there, what would you say were some of your biggest light bulb moments or takeaways that you've had from approaching planning that way?

[00:05:45] Teresa: I would say it's probably similar to the light bulb moment I had even with just the top program is that you can't do it all like I can't do every idea I have in my head. And what I loved about planet Palooza was. It's been teaching me how to break down a goal and schedule it out and like the different steps to, okay, this is what you want to accomplish in a year.

[00:06:10] Teresa: Okay, now let's figure out what how that looks for a quarter. And then how does that and that's something I've Always struggled with, , I'm just starting to feel like I'm getting a handle on it and , I've been doing this for, with you for a year now and for me that has been the most rewarding because it's helping me to realize how much time I actually have versus how much time I think I have and it's, it's, it's both eye opening and discouraging at the same time because Cause I want to do this and I want to like, I, the amount of things I have in my head that I want to do is like, there's no way I could ever do them all.

[00:06:44] Megan: The list of things we want to do never really gets any shorter, right? Like, mine's always growing. It's always growing. Prior to developing this planning system, my list was always growing, but progress was slow. Core on everything. Whereas now I feel like my list is always growing, but I'm actually seeing things through to completion.

[00:07:09] Megan: And so I, I, I am making progress even though I can't do everything in ways that are su sustainable. And it makes me feel like, hey, more is possible instead of never really making progress on 500 things at the same time, if that makes sense.

[00:07:27] Teresa: Yeah, like I started off this year, I was going to build this Etsy store to try and make money with my photography. And I, I worked on it the whole first quarter and then never made a sale and I got really discouraged.

[00:07:37] Teresa: So I gave it up. So now I'm working on building a newsletter. And the thing I've always struggled with. It's like being consistent with social media marketing. And through, through this process, I'm kind of learning, okay, this is, you have to actually schedule the time to do the things to make the content.

[00:07:54] Teresa: And this is helping me see like, this is how much time I have to schedule to do it. And so the newsletter is something that I think I'm going to be able to keep going because I'm starting to see how once I can figure out how to streamline that process, that then yes, after I do that, I'll be able to add something else in.

[00:08:11] Teresa: But I'm still kind of at the beginning stage of, okay, let's figure it out. What you can, what you actually can do and then how can I make it as efficient as possible

[00:08:19] Megan: perfect. Now, what would you say has changed for you the most over the last year?

[00:08:26] Teresa: Being able to be present with friends and family and not be stressed about it. I think that has been the biggest thing. I, I have a, I have a pretty difficult story. And so being able to spend time with, with my family and with my friends and my kids friends even is, is huge for me.

[00:08:46] Teresa: Because life is short and we don't always have tomorrow. And before all of this, I would like, if someone would call me and then, you know, my sister will call sometimes it will spend 45 minutes on the phone. And if that happens that I'm, I'm like the whole time I'm like stressing, I'm like, I gotta, I gotta be doing this.

[00:09:02] Teresa: I gotta be doing this. And now that I'm like building in the, I think you call it the CYA time. So, so that when people call, I'm like, okay, I can just move this around. Like for example, my sister's birthday was this last Saturday and I had my Saturday planned out. And I found out the night before, cause they planned pretty much on the fly.

[00:09:20] Teresa: I found out the night before that they were going to do a little party for her. So I had to look at my schedule and say, okay, how can I do this and rearrange things and still be able to go? And it, because it was at the end of the week for me, this basically meant not doing something specific, but that something specific wasn't deadline.

[00:09:39] Teresa: And, you know, there wasn't a deadline attached to it. It's just, I just had to move it to a different day. And I actually ended up being able to do it the next day. When I hadn't planned on like my Sundays are usually my free days, but I had a, you know, I ended up going hiking and I got back earlier than planned.

[00:09:53] Teresa: So I was able to do it then anyway. So, I

[00:09:56] Megan: love how you're highlighting that because I think there's such a belief of. Hesitation for people to plan is either 1 because they think every minute of every day has to be booked. Right? Which is what you were talking about how life used to be

[00:10:09] Teresa: 2nd.

[00:10:10] Megan: They're like, well, then I can't be flexible, but you just illustrated beautifully.

[00:10:15] Megan: No, the point of planning is seeing here's everything. And then when we plan the right way, where we're building in the amount of flexibility or uncertainty that we need to, then when something comes, it shows you, okay, in order to do this, just need to move these few pieces around and we can create a new plan and it might look a little bit different, but without that.

[00:10:37] Megan: From the beginning, I think a lot of people fall into what you were sharing, which is, of course, I'm going to say yes, because it's my sister and it's her birthday, but then when you're there, you're not enjoying yourself. Because you're thinking about the things that you're not doing right now to be present there.

[00:10:53] Megan: And that's why I always like to say, structure creates freedom. It's that kind of, the planning process by itself then gives you the freedom to be able to enjoy where, where you're actually spending your time.

[00:11:05] Teresa: So

[00:11:05] Megan: what would you say some of the biggest challenges have been for you?

[00:11:09] Teresa: I would say I still struggle with trying to cram too much into a week.

[00:11:13] Teresa: It's, you know, my, because of my job I, my energy level kind of waxes and wanes. I know you have us do that energy tracker, but my energy is all over the charts because if I have, you know, an easy day with clients, I have more energy, if it's all difficult clients in one day, then my energy isn't really trackable in a way, I mean, some of it is, but.

[00:11:34] Teresa: So I still sit down and I'll start like where I'm going through the weekly process of the different steps you have lined out. I'll get down to like the checklist. And once I put in the checklist of like everything is full and I'm like, but I still have this other stuff I want to do. And so I'm still trying to cram in a lot of stuff.

[00:11:52] Teresa: And that, I think that's still my biggest challenge. And it just comes down to not always being able to gauge how much paperwork I'm going to have left over at the end of the week with my clients. And then how much. energy I'm going to have to get something done and, and stuff like that. So I think that's still what I'm struggling with.

[00:12:09] Teresa: And I think

[00:12:09] Megan: you highlighted something that's pretty common for a lot of people when they first come in the program and they do planning for the first time, I'll get questions and go, well, what happens if when I get to this step, all my time's gone?

[00:12:19] Teresa: And

[00:12:20] Megan: they usually don't like my answer, which is guess what?

[00:12:23] Megan: All your time's gone, right? Like now that means we have to make tough choices, but without it, we don't see it. And so we continue to think we're going to get more done than we do. We continue to overbook. And this is why I always give the example of it's no different than money. If you're planning a budget for yourself for the month, that by the time you put in all your mandatory expenses, if there's no money left, there's no money left.

[00:12:49] Megan: But I think it's so important that, that you're seeing. That as you're mapping out your week and creating plans for yourself to be able to know, okay, look, I'm, I'm kind of got all my time spoken for. Now I get to make decisions about what I'm going to do about that.

[00:13:07] Teresa: And, and that's, that's basically what I've really been learning the most is just like, you have to be realistic with your time. Like you said, you have to be realistic with your money, you have to be realistic with your time. I think this year has kind of been a year long journey of being realistic with my time.

[00:13:23] Teresa: And sometimes it's been kicking and screaming. I still have that sometimes, too.

[00:13:29] Megan: Like, I want more. Yeah. So if anybody was, you know, thinking about, we have the annual Planapalooza event coming up, the live event. For anyone that hasn't gone, what would you suggest for them if they're considering joining us in October?

[00:13:45] Teresa: I honestly I would say be prepared to feel overwhelmed and be okay with that. Because I was I'm actually really looking forward to this year because last year I was so overwhelmed That I I just like my head was spinning and that this year after doing this for For the whole year, I'm just like, okay, I'm really excited to see what I can take out of it this time.

[00:14:05] Teresa: Because the first time was just like, it was like drinking from a fire hose. And, and I hadn't even, I hadn't even gotten into the top program. Like I think I bought the top program right before Planet Palooza or something. They got them really close together. And so I hadn't even started in the top program yet.

[00:14:20] Teresa: And so it was, it was overwhelming. And I know that you kept saying, this is okay. And the people in the chat kept saying it's got, it was, it was like that for me last year, so it's easier. And I've learned that with the top program. Cause when I did the top program, like I got to the, the, like that weekly planning and at the end of that, I was so overwhelmed at the end of that.

[00:14:40] Teresa: You say, okay, stop now. And I was so glad you did that because I would have moved on. And, and it took me a couple weeks and then I was able to go back and like, why was this so overwhelming.

[00:14:50] Megan: And so I love that you bring that up because I think we live in the world of.

[00:14:54] Megan: Everything's so instant and Amazon and easy now and people talking about hacks and all of that. And I think that the hard truth is when we're learning something brand new that we've never been taught that we've never done before. It is overwhelming no matter what it is. I mean, one of the, I was recently trying to get back into knitting, which I haven't done in 30 something years.

[00:15:18] Megan: And I mean, how long it took me to get the first row and the frustration and the anxiety and all of that. And then, you know, a week later I'm like, Oh my gosh, like, what was that all about me? It's almost like mini temper tantrums, but, and I think some of it's true too. The older we get. The more overwhelming it can feel when we're bringing something new in.

[00:15:37] Megan: So, you know, if any of you listening are going to be joining us for the first time in Planopalooza, it's okay because you're going to be seeing stuff you've never seen before. You're going to be having a kind of cold hard truth about here's what your time looks like next year. But then it starts to become very empowering and it starts to give you the information that you need.

[00:15:59] Megan: To make good choices, to set up boundaries, to know what's realistic, to not beat yourself up when certain things aren't getting done. But we are learning new stuff and it can, it can feel daunting at first.

[00:16:12] Teresa: I'm actually really excited about it. I'm excited to see what I can learn. this year that I missed last year because I was so overwhelmed.

[00:16:20] Megan: Yeah. Yeah. Oh, I'm excited for you with what's to come with your business and with your goals for next year and all of that.

[00:16:27] Megan: Is there any parting words that you would want to share with anyone?

[00:16:31] Teresa: This has been just a really great experience for me. I usually, I buy a lot of these kind of trainings and, and I've, I followed a lot of time management people and this is the first one that stuck. And I don't know what it is about your formula.

[00:16:44] Teresa: But it's the first one I've actually gone through all of the times I've gone through the whole top program. This, the core of it, I'm going through all the residual stuff now. But it's also the first time I've used my planner every single week of the year so far. Usually there's like a couple of weeks where things just kind of blow up on me

[00:17:00] Teresa: but this has just been a really, a really great experience the, this whole year. So,

[00:17:06] Megan: well, and I want to give you a shout out for consistently doing it and showing up and also supporting other students as they are going through it as well.

[00:17:13] Megan: Because I think that's one of the things I love the most is seeing that kind of level of support. So thank you for being here, Teresa. I look forward to seeing your beautiful face at Plantapalooza in October and hearing about your upcoming goals for the new year.