How female entrepreneurs can take a blessing from a curse

Today’s piece is aimed squarely at the ladies. Sorry gents. Although you can have a read too if you like. It might help you to support the women in your life.

Many women experience something every day that they don’t take the time to utilise and if they did they could increase their productivity like nothing else. This natural phenomenon has been seen for generations as a curse and a burden. But the truth is, this ‘curse’ is truly a blessing.

What am I talking about?

The menstrual cycle.

Using your monthly cycle as a productivity tool has possibly never occurred to you.

While some of you may already be flowing with your cycle through intentional practice or having instinctively tapped into it.

In any case, most women could benefit from this unique opportunity to identify the ‘optimum times’ during her cycle which give her specific strengths to help in certain ways. I take the phrase ‘Optimum Times’ from Miranda Gray’s classic book: ‘The Optimized Woman.’

In recent years there has been an upsurge of interest in this topic and no doubt numerous blogs, books and Facebook groups abound. But I wanted to just turn your attention to this subject if you weren’t already aware.

The optimum times are:

The Dynamic (pre-ovulation or follicular phase),

After your period and before ovulation, women experience a resurgence of energy and vitality. It is likened to the spring coming after winter. You feel full of energy, experience high levels of confidence, are strong in your body, with clear thinking. It is the best time to start a new project, strategise your work, plan, set goals, and accomplish all the little tasks that get missed.

The Expressive Phase - (ovulation)

This is the more mothering loving energy. Your strengths are the ability to give love and to care for others.

You naturally experience a positive feeling of wellbeing and high self esteem. It’s the best time at work to nurture your projects and to reflect on your successes.

It’s also the ideal time to ask for a raise or help a colleague or network.

The Creative Phase: (Pre-menstrual or luteal phase)

After ovulation comes another high-energy time, but unlike the dynamic phase when we are clear thinking and rational our thinking is more creative - think ‘blue-sky thinking.’

There can be a tendency to become grumpy and impatient at worst. But at best this is an amazing opportunity to brainstorm new ideas and to create from the subconscious.

This is the time I personally find it easiest to write and come up with ‘the goods’ that I planned during my dynamic phase.

The Reflective phase: (Menstruation)

Menstruation comes. It can be a difficult time for women as they may experience cramps and tiredness.

(My favourite remedy for cramps is to lie in child’s pose and have my 6-year-old sit on my back).

So while I don’t want to minimise the impact of the physical discomfort, the arrival of your period can be a relief from those strong creative phase hormones as the wave crashes and you are left calm and ready to reflect inward.

It is the ideal time to let go. Because we are too tired to really manage everything, we happily let the plates we’ve been juggling fall, and you know which ones are left?

The most important ones.

It is the time when we slough off the bullshit.

In our society as working women, it can be tricky to take even a few hours to sit quietly and reflect.

But if we make use of this time, then when the dynamic phase rolls around we start the month with vitality, renewed excitement for our projects and clarity on where we focus this precious energy.

I understand that not all women have a cycle as such, perhaps due to birth control, hysterectomy, breastfeeding, menopause etc. (I do not claim to be a knowledge on these things!)

But it is worth considering the idea of cycles. If we observe nature, she has her cycles.

Truly if we have been given this gift of different strengths throughout the month, we should accept them as a blessing.

The benefit of this for your business is that you can plan tasks in accordance with when you are most suited and achieve the best possible outcome.

For example, I do my accounts and admin during my dynamic phase, where I am able to focus on dry facts and details.

So through a little self-awareness, you can increase productivity and general well being.

I just find that amazing! Especially now when many people work from home and can plan their work a bit better to suit their life.

This brings an opportunity to tap into our natural powers to help us at work like no other time in recent history.

So here are some practical tips:

Dynamic Phase: (days 7-13)

To do: Plan your month, create strategies for your business, catch up on those unfinished tasks, speak up for your rights at work, start a new project.

Remember: watch your not overdoing it, even though you have all this energy you don't want to burn out. Avoid having a heart to heart - you might come across as blunt,

Expressive phase (days 14 - 20)

To do: Nurture projects, enjoy feelings of success, network with other professionals, nurture others, mentor, ask for a raise, wear floaty skirts around the office and give your man (or children, pets) a kiss! :-)

Pro tip: get your profile photos taken during this time as you'll naturally look more attractive!

Remember: avoid spending too much time alone on projects, give yourself some of the love. I personally have a tendency to feel guilty during this time as I find it hard to be ‘productive’ in the narrow sense of being desk meat cranking out work.

But as the cycle moves round I am unstoppable in my output which brings us to…

Creative Phase (21-27)

To do: Brainstorm ideas for your business, write the first draft of any report, business plan or other documents. Identify things that aren’t working.

Check what annoys you - sure, you're more touchy than normal but anger means boundaries are being tested. This is the ideal time to identify things that no longer serve.

Remember: don’t throw out anything yet - wait until the next phase. Take time for yourself, watch for signs of frustration.

Reflective Phase (1-6)

To do: Drop the load, schedule downtime, ask others to pick up the slack (ahead of time), review projects, take time to reflect upon how things are going, take time in nature and just be!

Remember: Your life will still be there in a few days and you will have so much more energy, enthusiasm and insight to help you move forward.

Like a boss!

Don’t worry if you can’t always arrange your tasks for the optimum times and remember: there’s always next month!

Even if you don’t manage to accommodate your strengths and weaknesses completely during your optimum times - hey we live in a complex imperfect world - even just considering the benefits and impact of your cycle as it flows can help just a little bit.

I hope this was useful to you.

Ladies, maybe we don’t necessarily run the world the way men do, but if we focus on our strengths we can achieve our dreams and goals while serving one another and participating in this world in our own way.

Rachel x

Source: The Optimized Woman: Using Your Menstrual Cycle to Achieve Success and Fulfillment by Miranda Gray