How do you spend your days? Working from home means you don’t necessarily have the same rituals as someone doing the 9-5 daily commute, but it’s still important to structure your day in the most productive way that works for you. Finding out what that is is a personal journey, but you can still take inspiration from those who have been successful and discover how they have done it. When you get a glimpse at their daily rituals, it’s worth taking note.
That’s what is so exciting about the revelation of what the daily routines of some of the most famous and successful women of all time are. Now we can see what time they got up in the morning — or the afternoon — and when they were at their most productive, as well as how they spent their downtime and how much sleep they needed to be at their best. From Jane Austen to Ronda Rousey, here’s how they did it.
When to go to bed (and when to wake up)
Early to bed and early to rise? Not if you’re a dancer or choreographer it would seem. Martha Graham, for example used to not go to bed until 2am and still woke at 7am, though she’d also fit in some sleep after breakfast if she didn’t have any morning appointments. Josephine Baker meanwhile wouldn’t be in bed till most of us are sitting down for breakfast and would sleep right through til mid-afternoon, while Pina Bausch only caught a few hours’ sleep after dancing into the early hours.
Most of the other successful women on the list had fairly routine schedules, which isn’t a huge surprise as it’s generally easiest to be awake during the daytime both for social reasons and because we’re not by nature nocturnal creatures. However, the lesson here is that you need to shape your day by what you need to achieve and when you need to do it. If you’re working in a different timezone to your customers, you may need to sleep at unusual times.
When to have your meals
Mealtimes are another habit most of us get into at regular intervals, whatever we call them. However, if your daily routine is as unconventional as some of those mentioned above, the concept of when breakfast takes place can be equally unusual. Coco Chanel’s habits involved working late into the night, which meant that she didn’t wake up until midday, having her breakfast at lunchtime, as did visual artist Marisol.
Having a square three meals a day also isn’t for everyone. Pop star Lady Gaga’s rituals when she’s on tour include an incredible five meals a day, with two coming in quick succession before she goes on stage to give her the energy she needs. She then eats the final meal of the day after her performing and associated duties are over, even if that’s after midnight and before she has to head off to her next show.
Getting the work done
Of course, if you want to be successful, you need work to be at the heart of your daily routine, ideally taking place at the time of day when you have the most energy. Being your own boss means that you can also schedule your work for however long you need to get it done, rather than fitting into the routine hours of a workplace, and the best example of that can be found in Jane Austen.
We all know what she achieved in her lifetime as a novelist, but she didn’t slave away all day and night writing the likes of Pride and Prejudice. Instead she did around five hours a day of work, filling the rest of her time by playing the piano and entertaining guests. Flannery O’Connor managed to get her writing done in even less time, so you should never feel like you need to work long hours for the sake of it.
That’s not to say all of these successful women managed to work short hours, with dancers, visual artists and reality TV show stars alike all putting in the time to achieve and sustain their dreams. That’s a lesson we can all take from finding out the rituals of those who have made it — you can set your day up however you need it to be, as long as it’s working and helping you be successful.
