Facilitating operations with Dropbox helps the founder of Southern Lights Electric prioritize family.
The Common Belief About Parenting and Entrepreneurship
The common belief about parenting and entrepreneurship is that there are no days off. But we would like to challenge that: while both are responsibilities 24/7, there are ways that parents and business owners can spend more of those hours living rather than just doing.
Facilitating Work Without the Need for In-Person Communication
Lighting designer Adam Gachil leveraged this approach when he became a father. As a co-founder of Southern Lights Electric, he focuses on eliminating the excess work for all four members of his team in Nashville, Tennessee. (SLE is known for crafting luxurious yet understated handmade lighting.)
Using Dropbox to Streamline Company Infrastructure
This is largely achieved through the use of Dropbox to run the company’s infrastructure, such as using Dropbox Sign to track project details and budgets. This allows Gachil to be fully present with his wife (SLE co-founder and project manager Jamie) and their two children, aged two and four. He challenges the notion that family time is reserved for holidays and weekends or, most often, during those short spans between tasks.
Documented Communication and Organizational Support
There is also room for analog organizational support, like the cards he uses to jot down the top four items on his to-do list and four things he is grateful for: “Adding a little gratitude to the morning to-do list, I think that’s good and healthy.”
Eliminating Late Nights and Burnout
Late-night work and burnout are no longer a thing of the past for Gachil. Southern Lights Electric remains the award-winning benchmark for industrial and contemporary lighting. But now, he is the one setting the pace.
Balancing Work and Family Life
Gachil says: “At this time, in this season of life, we are trying to spend as much time as possible at home. So, any efficiencies we can achieve to stay on top of tasks without working every day… we do them.”
Learning to Create Boundaries at Work
Gachil spoke to Dropbox about how he learned to create boundaries in his work and the tools he uses to enforce those boundaries.
The Importance of Knowing What You Want
Gachil says: “Figure out what you want, not what others want from you. At the start of my business, we were very reactive, and our course of work was largely dictated by what the market wanted from us. At that time, custom lighting was in demand, and it included all these different projects. It was fun to feel needed, but it didn’t really serve what I needed and wanted, which was financial and home stability… I just try to think, how can that apply to your question?”
The Importance of Saying No
Gachil says: “I think that saying yes to too many things is a warning sign. Saying no is a muscle that we need to exercise. For many people, it’s hard to say no: you naturally want to be someone who pleases others. But you have to practice saying no. Usually, there are some experiences and trials.”
Practicing Gratitude
Gachil says: “We had a new employee starting this week, so I’m really grateful for that. And this morning, I was able to take my kids to school and meet some of their friends for the first time, which is really nice. After we pick them up from school, we will go for some ice cream, and that will be very special. In fact, we do that a lot; I call it special, but the kids think it’s pretty normal. If we’re not getting ice cream, they think something is off.”
Contains
This article contains valuable information on how to streamline work and achieve a balance between work and family life. Parents can work on balancing their family and professional responsibilities by using tools like Dropbox to simplify processes, improve communication, and organize files. These tools can help achieve efficiency and organization, saving time and allowing parents to be fully present for their families and enjoy their time together.
Source: https://blog.dropbox.com/topics/customer-stories/southern-lights-electric
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