The 90 Minutes I Lost to Daycare Pickup

Ever feel like you're constantly in "waiting mode"? Last Thursday at 3 PM, I found myself staring at my screen, completely frozen. I had 90 minutes before daycare pickup—plenty of time to finish the project I'd been working on. But instead of diving in, I refreshed my email, checked the clock, scrolled my phone, and checked the clock again. Ninety minutes, completely wasted. My brain had decided that "pickup at 4:30" meant "stop working at 3."

This is why my wife now handles afternoon pickups. It's not because I don't want to see my daughter (morning drop-off is actually my favorite part of the day). It's because I finally admitted something crucial: that 4:30 PM pickup doesn't just cost me 30 minutes; it costs me the entire afternoon.

Sound familiar?

We're halfway through 2025. If you're still battling your natural work rhythm, still forcing yourself into a schedule that doesn't align with how your brain actually functions, let's fix that before Q3.

What changed everything for me was learning that our brains approach work in two fundamentally different ways. Once you identify your type, you can stop fighting your natural rhythm and start working with your brain instead of against it. Let me show you how to figure out which one you are—it takes just 30 seconds.

The Two Types of Workers

I used to think something was inherently wrong with me. My wife can seamlessly jump from call to call, efficiently tackling her to-do list between meetings. She thrives on days packed with conversations and connections. Meanwhile, a single afternoon appointment would lead me to mentally write off the entire day.

Then I discovered the two distinct types of workers:

• The Manager Brain: This type thrives on what appears to be chaos to others. They view their calendar like a game of Tetris, expertly fitting tasks into 30-minute slots. An empty hour feels like a missed opportunity. They gain energy from variety, switching between tasks like a DJ mixing tracks. Back-to-back meetings? That's their happy place.
• The Maker Brain: (That's me, and likely many of you.) We require something entirely different. We need long, uninterrupted blocks of time to perform our best work—two to four hours where we can immerse ourselves deeply in a project without constantly checking the clock. We see an empty calendar and feel relief, not anxiety. But introduce just one meeting in the middle of our day, and our productivity is often derailed.
  

Here's the critical insight: most workplaces are designed for Manager Brains. The constant meetings, the "quick syncs," the open-door policies—they all assume everyone can work effectively in 30-minute increments. No wonder so many of us feel exhausted.

Quick Self-Assessment:

When you see a completely empty day on your calendar, what's your immediate thought?

If it's, "Finally, I can get real work done," you're likely a Maker trapped in a Manager's world.

The Cost of the Wrong Schedule

Remember my daycare pickup disaster? That 4:30 PM commitment didn't just cost me 30 minutes; it cost me the entire afternoon. Here's the simple math that prompted me to re-evaluate everything:

One "quick" interruption costs a Maker:

• The waiting time before: (90 minutes for me)
• The actual time away: (30 minutes)
• The refocus time after: (studies show a minimum of 23 minutes)
• Often, the rest of the day: (because who starts deep work at 5 PM?
  

   

   

Total damage: 3-4 hours lost to a 30-minute task.

Multiply that by every errand, meeting, and appointment in your week. This is precisely why you might feel perpetually tired yet have little to show for your efforts.

Design Your Schedule for YOUR Brain

Here's what I implemented after my daycare epiphany, and what you can start doing tomorrow:

If You're a Maker:

• Batch everything. And I mean everything. Schedule doctor appointments, errands, and calls all on the same days. Yes, those days will feel chaotic, but the remaining days will be pure gold for deep work.

• Protect your deep work days. I completely block off Wednesdays and Thursdays. No calls, no "quick chats," nothing. My team understands these are my deep work days, and my productivity has soared. On other days, I batch calls in the morning to get them out of the way, then salvage what I can of the afternoons.

• Question every meeting. My secret weapon is constantly asking myself, "Does this really need to be a meeting?" (Remember in WW #13: The Meeting Trap: Reclaiming Your Time from Unproductive Gatherings when Shopify canceled all recurring meetings and their productivity skyrocketed? There's a reason for that.) Are we truly collaborating, or could this be a Slack message, a Loom video, or an email with clear questions? Most "meetings" are merely status updates in disguise.

If You're a Manager:

You're likely already adept at navigating standard work structures. To level up, use your superpower to protect the Makers around you. Before scheduling that "quick sync," ask yourself: Am I about to disrupt someone's entire morning? Could this information be conveyed via email instead?

Here's a counterintuitive tip: your energy thrives on variety, so lean into it intentionally. Theme your days by types of interactions. For example, Mondays for team check-ins, Tuesdays for external meetings, and Wednesdays for strategic planning. You'll still get your variety fix, but with greater purpose. The key is to own your Manager style without apology.

The Reality for Most of Us:

While I wish I could operate in pure Maker mode all week, I also recognize the need for some structure. The goal isn't to choose one type over the other, but to be intentional about when you wear each hat.

I communicate clearly with my team: "Wednesday and Thursday are my Maker days," and "I batch calls on Monday and Tuesday mornings." This sets clear expectations and protects everyone's time, eliminating confusion, guilt, and destroyed productivity.

However, let's be honest: some weeks, this system inevitably falls apart. Life happens. But having this structure in place means I can quickly get back on track instead of spiraling into constant chaos.

Your Mid-Year Schedule Reset

Time: 15 minutes

1. Look at your next 3 days.

2. Count how many 2+ hour uninterrupted blocks you have.

3. Pick ONE block and protect it fiercely:

• Mark it as "Deep Work - Do Not Book."

• Inform one person about this boundary.

• Turn off ALL notifications during this time.

Make it easier: Start with just 90 minutes tomorrow morning. Experience how it feels to work without the constant anticipation of interruption.

🤔 Reflection Prompt

"We're 6 months into 2025. What would the rest of your year look like if you designed your schedule around how your brain actually works instead of how you think it should work?"

📚 Reading Corner: Paul Graham's essay "Maker's Schedule, Manager's Schedule"

This seminal essay, published in 2009, was the first to articulate this concept and profoundly changed my perspective on the workday. It's a quick, 5-minute read.

🔍 Cool Find: Brain.fm

Science-backed music specifically engineered for focus. I use their 'Deep Work' mode during my Maker blocks; it's like noise-canceling headphones for your brain. Use this link to try it free for 30 days.

Here's to protecting your brain's natural rhythm,

Cheers,
Cathryn