“Reward Yourself” and Other Productivity Life Hacks

Make the most of your most precious resource: Time

From the #WomenInvested Speaker Series

With

Jen Auerbach-Rodriguez

Head of Strategic Growth Markets, Merrill

Jenny Evans

Founder and CEO, PowerHouse Performance

And Laura Vanderkam

Author and Time Management Expert

Please see important information at the end of this program.  Filmed on October 1, 2019

Jen:                  Jenny, you also talked about kind of figuring out purpose. Are there micro-purposes that you wake up to every morning that allow you to find mindfulness in your day, as opposed to “what is my purpose on this Earth?”

Jenny:              I often encourage all of us multiple, multiple, multiple times throughout the day, even if it's every hour, what is my purpose right now. So if you're going into a meeting, to ask yourself, "Well, what is the purpose of this meeting? Is it for me to be on my phone and to be distracted?" Or when you have time at home with your loved ones, , is it to be fully present with the people that I care about or is it to also unload the dishwasher and be on the phone and do that third thing.

So I love the idea of just checking in with yourself multiple times a day because you have lots of different roles, you have lots of different goals, a lot of different needs and outcomes to ask yourself over and over, just right now “what is truly the most important thing.”

Laura:               Well, I love that question, what is my purpose here, because it can be this huge question, "What's going on my tombstone?" What is my purpose here? But it's also, yes, as you're walking into a meeting, “what is my purpose here, why am I here, why am I going into this meeting, should I be going into this meeting?” Interesting question, maybe we need to think about that.

Jenny:              Even just taking 60 seconds to reflect on our purpose and our beliefs of who and what should really be getting my full and best energy; that is my most precious resource. Who should really be getting it, and I think just that first thought of, "How do I really need to spend my day?  How do I want to spend my day?”

Merrill Logo
For more tips and insights, visit ml.com/Women

Bank of America Logo

IMPORTANT INFORMATION

This video features a third-party not affiliated with Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith Incorporated ("Merrill") and is for information and educational purposes only. The opinions and views expressed do not necessarily reflect the opinions and views of Merrill or any of its affiliates.

Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith Incorporated (also referred to as “MLPF&S” or “Merrill”) makes available certain investment products sponsored, managed, distributed or provided by companies that are affiliates of Bank of America Corporation (“BofA Corp.”). MLPF&S is a registered broker-dealer, Member SIPC, and a wholly-owned subsidiary of BofA Corp.

Merrill Private Wealth Management is a division of MLPF&S that offers a broad array of personalized wealth management products and services. Both brokerage and investment advisory services (including financial planning) are offered by the Private Wealth Advisors through MLPF&S. The nature and degree of advice and assistance provided, the fees charged, and client rights and Merrill’s obligations will differ among these services. Investments involve risk, including the possible loss of principal investment.

The banking, credit and trust services sold by Private Wealth Advisors are offered by licensed banks and trust companies, including Bank of America, N.A., Member FDIC, and other affiliated banks.

Investment products:

© 2019 Bank of America Corporation. All rights reserved.  3305754

To be more productive, think 168 hours a week, not 24/7

From the #WomenInvested Speaker Series

With

Jen Auerbach-Rodriguez

Head of Strategic Growth Markets, Merrill

And Laura Vanderkam

Author and Time Management Expert

Please see important information at the end of this program.  Filmed on October 1, 2019

Jen:                  So you mentioned a couple of really great numbers about how much time we have that's not dedicated to sleeping or working either a 40-hour workweek, a 50-hour, even a 60-hour. Can you, one, remind us of what those numbers are and then I really want to dig into time management. What does that mean?

Laura:               168 hours a week, that's 24 times 7. If you work 40 hours and sleep 8 hours a night, that leaves 72 hours for other things, and I'm not saying that none of them are committed, they're free. You can be in the spa the whole time. I mean, I have kids. I'm sure many people here do or have other relatives that you're caring for or other things that you're committed to in your community.  But there is some time.             

And one of the reasons I suggest people track their time is that you do start to see that and see that that time is there. People have this idea that time management is about doing something “productive,” in quote marks, every single minute. If what you want to be doing is watching some show that you enjoy, by all means do it and enjoy it. But the problem is when we don't think we have time and then we start spending it mindlessly.

Merrill Logo
For more tips and insights, visit ml.com/Women

Bank of America Logo

IMPORTANT INFORMATION

This video features a third-party not affiliated with Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith Incorporated ("Merrill") and is for information and educational purposes only. The opinions and views expressed do not necessarily reflect the opinions and views of Merrill or any of its affiliates.

Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith Incorporated (also referred to as “MLPF&S” or “Merrill”) makes available certain investment products sponsored, managed, distributed or provided by companies that are affiliates of Bank of America Corporation (“BofA Corp.”). MLPF&S is a registered broker-dealer, Member SIPC, and a wholly-owned subsidiary of BofA Corp.

Merrill Private Wealth Management is a division of MLPF&S that offers a broad array of personalized wealth management products and services. Both brokerage and investment advisory services (including financial planning) are offered by the Private Wealth Advisors through MLPF&S. The nature and degree of advice and assistance provided, the fees charged, and client rights and Merrill’s obligations will differ among these services. Investments involve risk, including the possible loss of principal investment.

The banking, credit and trust services sold by Private Wealth Advisors are offered by licensed banks and trust companies, including Bank of America, N.A., Member FDIC, and other affiliated banks.

Investment products:

© 2019 Bank of America Corporation. All rights reserved.   3305802

Can money buy you more time—and less stress?

From the #WomenInvested Speaker Series

With

Jen Auerbach-Rodriguez

Head of Strategic Growth Markets, Merrill

Jenny Evans

Founder and CEO, PowerHouse Performance

And Laura Vanderkam

Author and Time Management Expert

Please see important information at the end of this program.  Filmed on October 1, 2019

Jen:                  The one thing we haven't really talked about, I think it's a bit of an elephant in the room – money! Where does this fit into purposefulness, mindfulness, time management? Is this a daily priority? Is this a weekly priority? When do we check in? When do we just let things ride? We've got to unpack this question just a little bit.

Laura:               Well, I think money is a tool for building the life you want and so part of that, of course, is building a future that you want, whether that's retirement, saving for college, what other priorities you have that you're saving and investing for. It can also be a tool in the here and now for getting some of our time back, perhaps. And I always encourage women to really think about the value of their time.

I joke that you can lower your standards for free.  But if you would like to outsource various things, that might be a great use of your time, not just so you can work more but so you can relax. And so you have more energy for all of the things of your life.

Think about if there's something that is really weighing you down, there's something that you are spending your time on that you're unhappy about, is there some way you could use money as a tool to make it better? And if you can, that would probably be a very good investment alongside other more traditional investments.

Jenny:              Money is a huge source of stress for a lot of us. As an entrepreneur, my income is completely unpredictable. I have realized what helps me is to just try to live well below my means and I try to put away as much money as I possibly can because, for me, I'm like, "Well, why would I sign up for more stress by you know having expensive habits and living?" I'm all about we need to enjoy our lives, but whose standards are we using? 

So why put myself in a more financial stress than life already creates, so live below your means and put as much money into savings because you never know, and there has been times where something has happened when I think, "Thank goodness there's money socked away because we're okay."

Merrill Logo
For more tips and insights, visit ml.com/Women

Bank of America Logo

IMPORTANT INFORMATION

This video features a third-party not affiliated with Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith Incorporated ("Merrill") and is for information and educational purposes only. The opinions and views expressed do not necessarily reflect the opinions and views of Merrill or any of its affiliates.

Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith Incorporated (also referred to as “MLPF&S” or “Merrill”) makes available certain investment products sponsored, managed, distributed or provided by companies that are affiliates of Bank of America Corporation (“BofA Corp.”). MLPF&S is a registered broker-dealer, Member SIPC, and a wholly-owned subsidiary of BofA Corp.

Merrill Private Wealth Management is a division of MLPF&S that offers a broad array of personalized wealth management products and services. Both brokerage and investment advisory services (including financial planning) are offered by the Private Wealth Advisors through MLPF&S. The nature and degree of advice and assistance provided, the fees charged, and client rights and Merrill’s obligations will differ among these services. Investments involve risk, including the possible loss of principal investment.

\The banking, credit and trust services sold by Private Wealth Advisors are offered by licensed banks and trust companies, including Bank of America, N.A., Member FDIC, and other affiliated banks.

Investment products:

© 2019 Bank of America Corporation. All rights reserved.  3305674

Tips for the procrastinator in you—watch this video now!

From the #WomenInvested Speaker Series

With

Jen Auerbach-Rodriguez

Head of Strategic Growth Markets, Merrill

Jenny Evans

Founder and CEO, PowerHouse Performance

And Laura Vanderkam

Author and Time Management Expert

Please see important information at the end of this program.  Filmed on October 1, 2019

Jen: Tips against procrastination. Should we do a lightning round? Like, what are your top two or three tips … anti-procrastination?

Jenny: Yeah. Rip that Band-Aid right off. Like do it first thing while you're fresh, while you still have self-discipline and willpower. I like your idea too of don't say you're going to do it for an hour. Do it for five minutes. .

Laura:  You can also reward yourself profusely. (Laughter).

Jen:                  Say more. Say more.

Laura:               I mean I remember I had to make a phone call that I really, really, really did not want to make. And so I was going to do it on the time when I have the most energy,   Monday morning first thing, and once I've done it, I'm going to take the morning off the rest of the time.

And so I've been building this thing up. I make the call at 9:05. It went shockingly well. I was off the phone with what I wanted to have happen by about 9:10. And I was like, "Well, A, why did I put that off for so long when it only took five minutes because the mental cost was weeks." But then I did go take the rest of the morning off and it was great. (Laughter).

Jen:                  Love it.

Merrill Logo
For more tips and insights, visit ml.com/Women

Bank of America Logo

IMPORTANT INFORMATION

This video features a third-party not affiliated with Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith Incorporated ("Merrill") and is for information and educational purposes only. The opinions and views expressed do not necessarily reflect the opinions and views of Merrill or any of its affiliates.

Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith Incorporated (also referred to as “MLPF&S” or “Merrill”) makes available certain investment products sponsored, managed, distributed or provided by companies that are affiliates of Bank of America Corporation (“BofA Corp.”). MLPF&S is a registered broker-dealer, Member SIPC, and a wholly-owned subsidiary of BofA Corp.

Merrill Private Wealth Management is a division of MLPF&S that offers a broad array of personalized wealth management products and services. Both brokerage and investment advisory services (including financial planning) are offered by the Private Wealth Advisors through MLPF&S. The nature and degree of advice and assistance provided, the fees charged, and client rights and Merrill’s obligations will differ among these services. Investments involve risk, including the possible loss of principal investment.

The banking, credit and trust services sold by Private Wealth Advisors are offered by licensed banks and trust companies, including Bank of America, N.A., Member FDIC, and other affiliated banks.

Investment products:

© 2019 Bank of America Corporation. All rights reserved.  3305777