If you’ve ever looked at your calendar and thought, “Why am I this tired when nothing looks that overwhelming?”, this episode is for you.
In this solo episode, Courtney pulls back the curtain on how she structured her workweek during her corporate years – not as a productivity flex or a blueprint to copy, but as a real-life case study in what happens when your calendar actually reflects what you value.
This conversation is especially for executive-ready women and working moms who are tired of being constantly “on,” over-reliable, and quietly drained by invisible expectations at work and at home.
Burnout doesn’t usually come from doing too much. It comes from giving yourself away in ways you don’t even realize, and your calendar often tells that story first.
💡Inside this episode, we explore...
- Why this episode is not a blueprint, and why that distinction matters
- The link between calendar chaos and your nervous system
- How owning your calendar reduces reactivity and emotional exhaustion
- The difference between work-life balance and work-life integration
- Why burnout is not failure, but exceeded capacity
- How “B-minus standards” create breathing room without sacrificing impact
- The subtle ways over-functioning becomes rewarded and expected
- Why predictability and control are regulating, especially for high performers
- How small, intentional trade-offs add up to sustainable energy
📅 A real look at Courtney’s corporate workweek
Courtney walks through:
- Why she intentionally chose Wednesday–Friday office days (yes, even Fridays)
- How she planned workouts, commutes, and high-stakes meetings around energy, not optics
- Why she blocked mornings before 10:00am
- How batching meetings and focus time protected her most valuable work
- Why she never outsourced control of her calendar
- How walking meetings, commutes, and even “internet chores” fit into her system
- What she didn’t do and why those choices mattered just as much
This episode is a reminder that your schedule doesn’t work because you’re doing everything; it works because you’re deciding what not to do, too.
Who this episode is for:
✔️ Working moms navigating demanding careers
✔️ High performers who feel constantly “on”
✔️ Leaders who want sustainability, not survival
✔️ Anyone whose calendar looks fine on paper but feels heavy in real life
🔗Resources mentioned in this episode
🎙️ Episode 71: How work rewards over-functioning and exhausts women
🧭 Boundary Self-Check Quiz
A quick, 3-minute self-assessment to help you identify where you may be leaking time and energy.
📆 Calendar audit / strategy call
Courtney’s 1:1 support to help clients rearrange the puzzle pieces with clarity and without shame
🎧 The Life Management System podcast
Explore more snack-sized episodes on boundaries, burnout, and sustainable success
🧠 Key reframes to remember
- Burnout is not failure, it’s exceeded capacity
- Calendar overwhelm is a nervous system issue, not a discipline issue
- Boundaries aren’t about rigid rules, they’re about protecting what you value
- Awareness comes before strategy
- A good schedule doesn’t make you impressive, it makes you present
If this episode resonated – especially the parts about being the reliable one, saying yes out of habit, or feeling quietly drained – be sure to listen to Episode 71: How work rewards over functioning and exhausts women next.
And if nobody’s told you lately: you’re doing a great job. 💛
📈 Keywords
burnout prevention for women, working mom burnout, calendar management, work-life integration, executive burnout, overfunctioning at work, boundaries and burnout, values-based scheduling, mental load, high-performing women, sustainable leadership, life management system, Courtney Cecil
