The Weekly Rhythms That Keep Me From Burning Out
If your schedule is unpredictable, you need structure somewhere else. Here are the weekly guardrails that have kept me steady for 25 years of leadership.
Most founders do not work nine to five.
Your calendar is shaped by other people’s availability. Investor calls. Team issues. Customer needs. Sometimes emergencies.
Early in my leadership journey, I had to confront something uncomfortable: I could not build a successful organization at the expense of my family. I am deeply mission driven. I care about the work. But I also knew that if my organization did well while my marriage or my kids suffered, I would not feel successful. I would feel like I failed.
The problem was not my commitment. It was my schedule.
When I led a nonprofit, Sundays were heavy workdays. Some mornings were wide open. Some evenings ran until midnight. I had kids. I was married. There was no clean way to say, “I’ll just work eight to six and call it done.”
So I built guardrails.
Guardrails are simple weekly rhythms that keep you on a healthy path when your schedule is unpredictable. They are not rigid rules. They are boundaries that protect what matters most.
Here are the ones that have kept me steady.
Most founders do not work nine to five.
Your calendar is shaped by other people’s availability. Investor calls. Team issues. Customer needs. Sometimes emergencies.
Early in my leadership journey, I had to confront something uncomfortable: I could not build a successful organization at the expense of my family. I am deeply mission driven. I care about the work. But I also knew that if my organization did well while my marriage or my kids suffered, I would not feel successful. I would feel like I failed.
The problem was not my commitment. It was my schedule.
When I led a nonprofit, Sundays were heavy workdays. Some mornings were wide open. Some evenings ran until midnight. I had kids. I was married. There was no clean way to say, “I’ll just work eight to six and call it done.”
So I built guardrails.
Guardrails are simple weekly rhythms that keep you on a healthy path when your schedule is unpredictable. They are not rigid rules. They are boundaries that protect what matters most.
Here are the ones that have kept me steady.
One Full Day Off Every Week
First, I take one full day off every week. At least twenty four consecutive hours. Not “mostly off.” Not checking email between errands. Off. No work. No replies. No quick calls. It is harder now that email lives on our phones, but I almost never respond on my day off. That boundary resets my mind and reminds me that the organization does not own me.
A Cap on Weekly Work Hours
Second, I cap my weekly hours. There were seasons when I worked seventy or eighty hours a week. That is not sustainable. For me, fifty to fifty five hours is a healthy rhythm. Closer to fifty is better. More than fifty five starts to cost me clarity. You might be able to grind for a while. Most founders can. But long term leadership requires energy management, not heroics. Know your number and respect it.
A Weekly Date Night
Third, my wife and I have a weekly date night. Almost every Friday or Saturday we go out. Sometimes it is a walk and ice cream. Sometimes it is something more expensive and involved. The point is not the activity. It is the intentional time. We are about to celebrate twenty five years of marriage, and that relationship has been one of the most stabilizing forces in my life and leadership. It’s awfully hard to build a strong company while dealing with drama from unhealthy primary relationships.
Family Night
We have also tried to maintain a weekly family night. That has become more complicated as the kids have gotten older and their schedules have filled up. Right now Wednesday works because my son does not have swim practice. So I avoid work meetings that night whenever I can. You do not drift into a healthy family culture. You schedule it.
No More Than Two Evenings Out for Work
Another guardrail is limiting how many evenings I am out for work. I try not to be out of the house more than two evenings a week for work related commitments. That one decision has shaped hundreds of smaller decisions. If I already have two nights booked, I usually decline the third. Not because the opportunity is unimportant, but because my life outside work matters too.
A Sleep Floor
Finally, I protect my sleep. I aim for seven or eight hours a night, but I have a floor. Unless it is a true emergency, I do not go below six hours. Emergency means a flight or a time zone issue. Not “I want to finish one more thing.” I will cancel a meeting. I will shift a workout. I will stop mid project. Sleep deprivation leads to poor thinking, irritability, and burnout. There is research comparing sleep deprivation to being drunk. One leader once said, “If you would not take the meeting after two beers, do not take it after four hours of sleep.” I know founders who operate on four or five hours for years. It is not wise, and it eventually shows up in your decisions.
Why Guardrails Matter
Guardrails give structure to a life that would otherwise feel reactive. They protect your relationships. They protect your thinking. And they make long term leadership possible.
Ownership culture starts with owning yourself, with taking control of your own schedule and how you show up. If you cannot lead your own rhythms, you will not sustainably lead an organization.
Take a minute and ask yourself: where are you drifting right now?
Then pick one guardrail. Just one. Set it this week.
That is where it starts.