What’s in your “9–5 with a Side Hustle” Toolkit? — Nicole Amma Twum-Baah
I decided to do something different with the October tool kit stories; I am sharing one storyteller a day starting with Nicole Amma Twum-Baah.
I met Amma almost a decade ago in 2011/2012. I had just moved back home from Washington D.C. to Minnesota and she was in the D.C. area looking to hire an assistant. She was running a monthly online magazine, Afrikan Goddess, alongside her full-time job at a D.C. law firm. I got the job, had a blast, and learned a lot.
She taught me about writing from the heart, investing in the things you believe in, and giving your best to what you do. I deeply respect Amma, and when I think of her, I think Brave and Grounded.
Many years after, she is the formidable owner and editor at The Brielle Agency.
Tools: Prioritizing and Time Management
For several years, many years ago, I worked a 9–5 plus a side hustle. That side hustle is now my main hustle. The tools that helped me survive then (and now) were knowing what was most important to me career-wise and managing my time effectively to get the results I wanted to see. Productivity has been the by-product of both.
Because I remained committed to my priorities, it’s been 7 years since I was able to quit my corporate job to focus solely on my work as an editor. The process was not an easy one, I remember waking up at 4 every morning to work on my side hustle (which was a monthly online magazine) before heading in to work at 8:30, leaving at 6 in the evening, and then sitting behind my laptop when I got home for another 2–3 hours, before heading to bed. Then I would wake up at 4 the next morning and do it all over again. Which brings me to time management.
Time management goes hand-in-hand with knowing your priorities. It is a skill that is not acquired overnight but is a process of mindfulness and persistence. Do I always hit the mark? No. It’s a constant struggle because so many things are fighting for my attention daily. I’m now a wife, a mother, a freelance editor, an assistant kindergarten teacher, and so many other things to several other people. I have had to learn how to constantly prioritize and manage my time effectively. Ninety-six percent of the time, I am on task and thriving. I forgive myself for the other 4% and get back on track. I strongly believe that in almost everything we do here on earth, our time goes where our attention is. And with so many things increasingly fighting for our attention, prioritizing is no longer a should-have, but a must-have. And so is time management because time is a commodity we can’t get back. We lose a little bit of it with each passing day.
So that’s it for part 1, stay tuned for parts 2 and 3 coming this week from two other incredible women.
What are your thoughts and your tools? I’d love to hear them all!
FEBRUARY: What’s in your Mental Health Toolkit? MARCH: What’s in your Feminist Toolkit? APRIL: What’s in your Entrepreneur Toolkit? MAY: What’s in your Faith Toolkit? JUNE: What’s in your CAREER Toolkit? JULY: What’s in your FRIENDSHIP Toolkit? AUGUST: What’s in your MOTHERHOOD Toolkit? SEPTEMBER: What’s in your ROMANCE Toolkit?
Originally published at https://www.adeolafadumiye.com on October 20, 2020.