Yesterday I asked Pete if he’d seen my debit card which I’d misplaced somewhere around the house. This came after my keys disappeared and I couldn’t find my library book. These are all signs, as he knows far too well, that there’s too much on my plate and my brain starts imploding.
Now, lots of people will tell me that we can’t possibly understand truly being busy because we don’t have children – yep, that’s been said to my face (a little insulting, but hey ho!) and whilst I appreciate that our life isn’t full of school diary planning and the non-stop loveable chaos that children bring with them, we lead pretty hectic lives for being “just” a couple. 
For starters, we both work full-time in London and that in itself is not a peaceful existence – jostling for space on packed trains, no lunch breaks, long hours that leaves us both feeling pretty knackered.
Then there’s my online business DaisychainBaby where I sell children’s clothes for 0-6 year olds which I started in 2008, and now our epic 1930s house renovation and the subject of this blog and not forgetting of course our beloved but oh-so hyperactive one year old Springer Spaniel who needs serious amounts of exercise.
We were joking just the other day that sitting on top of the DVD player gathering dust is the last DVD I was sent from my Love Film subscription, received in June. But not June this year dear reader, oh no – June 2014! Still unwatched because I just don’t feel that I can settle down for 2 hours to watch a film – there’s just SO much that needs doing! We fall into bed around 1am most nights and the alarm goes off at 5.30am – thankfully we’re not great sleepers and have happily got by on just a few hours sleep a night for years.
Don’t get me wrong, I love being busy and actively thrive on it but there is a limit and when the craziness sets in it’s time for something to change because right now that whole work/life balance is very definitely all out of kilter.
I’ve often thought about getting some help with DaisychainBaby, especially on the areas which aren’t my strength such as marketing, creating original content for the blog that isn’t salesy, making active use of social networks. Whilst I use some of the networks, there’s so much more benefit to be gained from them and there just isn’t the time for me to fully get to grips with what they offer.
New-ish professional network Hiive offers a potential solution to my overworked issues. Unlike LinkedIn (which I use in my day job and is a very “traditional” professional networking tool), Hiive specifically focuses on the creative industries, offering a platform for ideas, collaboration, inspiration, job opportunities and access to careers resources.
The website is brilliantly easy to navigate and I love the appearance and style, a world away from the formality of LinkedIn. Creating a profile is straightforward and you can see job vacancies as well as “Talent” – those who have creative skills to offer.
My favourite areas are “Swarms” which can be used to group together users for a variety of purposes, to share interesting content, discuss industry topics, or even plan an event or project together, and “Knowledge” which offer tons of articles on everything from ‘how to make an animated gif’ to ‘surviving as a freelancer’.
Even just reading some of the profiles of the platform users is enough to inspire me to continue forging forward with my growing business and developing blog and when I’m lacking ideas or need a bit of advice, Hiive is a great resource to help rejuvenate my passion. If you’re a blogger or business owner then you really need to get swarming!
In association with Hiive
Click here to visit our webshop, DaisychainBaby
Whenever I read your blog I wonder how you manage to fit it all in. I used to work in London and I used to be an ecommerce manager so I have an understanding of part of what you do & and we have a dog too. As for the house t notations on top wow no wonder you struggle x
I definitely think some of it is therapy for me that’s for sure, and it’s crazy to think that up until this year we were doing markets most Sundays too! So I do know how to stop in some ways, getting our weekends back has been the best decision I’ve made recently. I still take my hat off to parents though, I definitely don’t know how I’d manage! X
Wow you seriously pack a lot in! Hats off to you, not sure I could survive on so little sleep! I know sitting down to watch a film doesn’t work for everyone but I hope you manage to fit in some moments to relax and let all the crap float away.
I’d love to hear the story behind you starting your own business – have you ever posted that before? Very inspirational xx
I can’t believe someone said that to you about not knowing what it’s like to be busy as you don’t have kids!! That’s absolute nonsense. Before we had the boys, my husband and I both had quite demanding jobs that involved lots of travel and we were way busier than we are now. Children can make you feel like you don’t have an ounce of energy in your body and no space left in your brain but so can an demanding lifestyle without kids too. Hope you can find some space and time to relax a little soon x
Thanks Rachel for your lovely words – it can definitely be tough in this culture at the moment where Mums have an almost god-like status *sighs*. We carry on regardless 🙂 X