Making the Most of My 5-9 (Without Making It Another Job)

There’s been a lot of talk lately about the “5–9” — those hours before and after the workday that supposedly hold the key to building the life you want outside of work.

I love the idea in theory. In practice? My 9–5 is frequently more like an 8–6.

Some weeks I spend a lot of time traveling. Other weeks I’m working from home, which sounds easier until I realize I’ve spent most of the day bouncing from one Teams call to another. There is always something else that needs my attention, and by the time 5:30 or 6:00 rolls around, sometimes it’s all I can do to remember to actually turn off the laptop.

I’ve been working on getting my mornings back. A little exercise, journaling and some peaceful moments before the workday begins. When I actually do it, I know how much better I feel.

My evenings are another story. Dinner is one routine I wouldn't change. My husband and I actually sit down at the dining room table together every night, and I love that we still do that. But after dinner? There is usually some scrolling, followed by the couch and TV until it's time to get ready for bed.

And I understand why. My brain is tired. I spend my workdays making decisions, solving problems, talking to people and staring at screens. By evening, I don't necessarily want another goal to accomplish. Sometimes I just want to switch off.

Ironically, my healthiest evening habit happens right before bed. I read for about 30 minutes every night before turning out the lights around 9:30 — and it's honestly something I look forward to all day.

So maybe my evenings aren't really about needing to do more.

Maybe they're about being a little more intentional with the time that's already there.

The Weekend Cram

The downside of completely checking out during the week is that everything else gets saved for the weekend. And these days, "everything else" is a lot.

My newest addition - Hand Painted Journals

I'm two weeks away from my first Second Saturday Art Walk in my new studio. I'm finishing paintings, working on hand-painted journals and ornaments, thinking about displays, updating my website, writing this blog, trying to keep up with social media...and continually coming up with more ideas I'd like to try.

I love all of it. But when Saturday morning arrives carrying an invisible list of 47 things I need to accomplish before Sunday night, even the things I love can start to feel a little bit like work. And lately I've been wondering if there might be a better rhythm.

What If 20 Minutes Counts?

I think one of my problems is that I tend to think I need a big block of time to accomplish anything meaningful. If I'm going to paint, I want a few hours. If I'm going to work on my art business, I want to sit down and really work on it. If I'm going to exercise, surely it needs to be a full workout.

But what if it doesn't?

What if I took a 20-minute walk after dinner instead of scrolling? What if I spent 30 minutes painting a journal, updating something on my website or preparing something for the studio? Not every night. And definitely not all night.

Just enough to move something forward — and maybe take a little pressure off my weekends.

My New 5–9 Experiment

I'm not interested in turning my evenings into a second shift. In fact, that's exactly what I don't want to do. But I also don't want to look up one day and realize that five days out of every seven became something I simply needed to recover from.

So I'm going to experiment with a few small changes. I'd like to get outside for a walk at least three evenings a week. I'd like to spend 20–30 minutes on my art or art business three or four nights a week. Not hours. Just enough time to finish one small thing or move something forward.

I want one analog night each week — less scrolling, less TV, less screen time. Maybe I'll paint, read, journal, sketch, sit outside or do something else entirely.

And I want one night when I intentionally do absolutely nothing. No guilt attached.

Because I don't think the goal is to squeeze every last drop of productivity out of my day.

I'm trying to build an art business and a creative life alongside a career that I still care very much about. I'm also trying to exercise, take care of myself, spend time with the people I love, read good books, get enough sleep and occasionally just sit on my couch.

That's a lot of life to fit into seven days.

Maybe making the most of my 5–9 isn't really about accomplishing more.

Maybe it's about making sure those hours actually feel like mine.

And that feels like something worth working on.

Shutting down at the end of a day is sometimes all I can handle.