Here’s the Inside Scoop on Morning Rituals of 5 #GirlBosses

When it comes to morning rituals, the word “ritual” really hits the nail on the head. It’s something you do every day, it’s almost meditative and if it doesn’t happen (gasp!), it can make or break your day. There are not many other parts of life where we stick so adamantly to our habits, but for those of us who hit snooze EVERY SINGLE MORNING, a day without that additional 10 minutes under the covers really makes a difference.
We love hearing about morning rituals (especially rituals that boost creativity), which is why today we’ve teamed up with Folgers® Coffee to chat with five #Girlbosses about their morning rituals. From morning workouts to coffee with just the right amount of milk to that must-hear morning song, we’re excited to share their morning-time protocol with you. Read on for the scoop.
Alexis Monson, Founder of Punkpost
Alexis is the founder of Punkpost, a community of writers, artists and designers that create and send handwritten notes. They are bringing back this form of communication and making it fun again!
Tell us about your morning ritual. What does it entail?
“Besides running with my dog, it involves a big bowl of old-fashion oatmeal and fruit (otherwise I get HANGRY by like 11am) and a cup of coffee. I write a few Punkpost cards, then quickly tidy up my place and do the normal getting ready stuff (shower, makeup, put on grownup people clothes).”
Do you have a coffee ritual every morning? If so, what is it like?
“Um, yes. And it’s elaborate… or so our house guests always tell me. I boil water, hand grind beans and use an aeropress for every cup. I started my coffee ritual when I started camping a lot. I kind of loved how ridiculously long it takes to make breakfast over a campfire, so I think that’s the reason I try to mimic the way I make coffee when I’m sitting in the dirt… only in my SF apartment.”
Any morning game-changers?
“My morning routine is pretty slow (which is why I need to get up early). So there’s no real time-saving tips in there. It’s kind of the only part of the day where I feel at peace, so I take advantage of that. But an important element is listening to super low-key records while making breakfast. Mississippi John Hurt, Ella Fitzgerald + Louie Armstrong and Bob Dylan are regulars in my morning music rotation.”
Any beauty hacks?
“CUT OFF ALL OF YOUR HAIR. Pixie cuts are kind of the bomb. You only have to wash your hair like once or twice a week (water-saving tip too. WIN!), and you just rub some hair product through it in the morning and you’re done. I literally spend like less than a minute on it every morning.”
What can you *not* live without every morning? Any indulgences?
“ALL OF IT. I’m kind of an all-or-nothing person. So I’m kind of unwilling to give any of this routine up. But if I had to pick one thing… oh God, I hate picking one thing! I’d probably have to pick coffee, because I’m just a bear without it. (The addiction is real). The only thing I really indulge in in the morning is the time. I try to keep pretty healthy otherwise, since there are plenty of temptations to indulge in during the rest of the day.”
Anjelika Temple, Executive Creative Director at Brit + Co
Anjelika is the Executive Creative Director and first employee at Brit + Co. Her endless abundance of creative and innovative ideas has brought beauty to the B+C brand like no one else could.
What time do you usually wake up?
“7:30am.”
What’s the first thing you do when you wake up?
“I give my husband a kiss! Then I turn on the shower and do a quick phone check while the water heats up.”
What is your favorite morning ritual? What helps you get up on the right side of the bed?
“I LOVE hitting the snooze button. I know a lot of highly effective people are against it, but having that extra 10 minutes of rest really helps me start my day. Sometimes I use the time to just lie there and map out the day. My husband and I also have a rule against phone use in bed. Starting the day immediately on screen tends to put us in a stressed-out work mode right away, which isn’t productive for anyone!”
What do you usually have for breakfast? Do you eat it at home or work?
“Uh oh, I’m going to get in trouble here. I don’t always eat breakfast, and I should! When I do make time for it, I eat it at work and typically have either a bagel with cream cheese and tomato or a granola bar. I also generally have one cup of coffee, and I love adding Folgers Flavors® Coffee Enhancers, especially the vanilla flavor.”
Any morning game-changers?
“Choosing my outfit the night before is a major game-changer. I used to waste tons of time pulling clothes out of my closet each morning, making a big mess and ending up wearing something I only feel so-so about. Now I try to plan my outfit the night before, and my mornings are way less scattered.”
Sarah Jones, Founder of Miss Jones Baking Co.
Sarah Jones is the founder and CEO of Miss Jones Baking Co., a viral brand that produces and sells the first-ever organic, ready-to-use cake mixes and frostings.
Tell us about your usual morning ritual. What does it entail?
“Wake up, drink coffee, answer emails, drink more coffee, shower, get ready, start the day!”
What can you *not* live without every morning? Any indulgences?
“Brownies. JK… but not really. There is always a lot of recipe testing happening at our house. Other than that, it’s coffee.”
What are your thoughts on phone-in-bed etiquette?
“I’ve given up on trying to put my phone down before bed. Often it’s the only time I have during the day to catch up on news and social media.”
What’s your relationship with the snooze button?
“I don’t allow myself to have a relationship with the snooze button. Once you hit it, you can’t quit it.”
How do you prepare for the extra-crazy work days? What part of your morning ritual do you NOT sacrifice?
“I *try* to get a workout in almost every day. It helps keep me positive and motivated during those extra-crazy days.”
Francesca Bean, Marketing Manager at Brit + Co
Francesca is one of the OG senior staff members at Brit + Co — and one of the youngest, too. She’s the resident social media pro here at HQ and manages our Instagram, Facebook and Twitter channels.
What is the first thing you do when you wake up?
“Brush my teeth. (Isn’t that what everyone does when they first wake up?)”
Tell us about your usual morning ritual. What does it entail?
“I wake up at 5:30am every morning, throw on workout clothes and head to a 6am yoga class. After yoga, I go home to shower, check emails/Slack, scan the morning news, B+C social channels and eat breakfast. I try to leave for work by 8am.”
What can you *not* live without every morning? Any indulgences?
“Coffee. The good stuff. No decaf.”
What is your favorite morning ritual? What helps you get up on the right side of the bed?
“Yoga, yoga, yoga. A little namaste goes a long way.”
Any morning game-changers?
“Multitasking is key for a quick morning. I actually blow dry my hair while I read emails *and* eat breakfast. I try to meal prep when I can, too. I’ll hard boil a big batch of eggs before the week starts or whip up a few jars of overnight oats.”
How do you prepare for the extra-crazy work days? What part of your morning ritual do you NOT sacrifice?
“I never sacrifice my early morning workouts. When I’m stressed to the max, exercise is the one thing that keeps me sane and centered. It also helps me start each day with a positive mindset.”
Emily Smith, President and GM of Media at Brit + Co
Emily is the President and GM of Media at Brit + Co, former VP at Disney, *and* a mother of three. Her accolades here include overseeing B+C’s Snapchat Discover Channel and helping us TRIPLE our video viewership.
What time do you usually wake up?
“5am.”
Tell us about your usual morning ritual. What does it entail?
“I try to work out most mornings before the kids get up. After a run, I’ll head straight to the kitchen to brew some coffee, then try and work in some planks and a few sets of lunges, push-ups, etc. By 6:15 I’m back in the kitchen to get the kids’ lunches started. I wake everybody up at 6:45 and the chaos begins! Showers, breakfasts, squabbling, permission slips, backpacks, jackets and we are off to the car. I drop three kids off at school (hugs, kisses) and head to work. If my husband and I need to coordinate, we’ll often talk on speaker phone as I’m driving away from school and off to BART.”
Do you have a coffee ritual every AM? If so, what is it like?
“Definitely. Two strong cups of black Folgers Classic Roast® Coffee before I leave the house. I love having that first cup when the house is dark and quiet and peaceful.”
What do you usually have for breakfast? Do you eat it at home or work?
“Plain yogurt with cut-up apples and homemade granola. Pretty much every day. I eat while I am in my bathroom getting ready for work. I never have time to sit down.”
Do you think mornings affect the rest of the day? Why or why not?
“I always have a better day when I have gotten up early and had some time to myself. Some early mornings I will convince myself that I need sleep more than I need exercise — but that is a lie! I’m always happier and more energetic (and, I think, smarter!) on days when I work out early.”
Thanks for sharing, ladies!
What are your morning rituals? Tweet us your answers @BritandCo!
This post is in collaboration with Folgers® Coffee.
Author: Roxy Taghavian
Production + Photo Styling: Anita Yung
Photography: Chris Andre
Welcome to Selfmade Finance School, our new money series with Block Advisors to help small business owners with their tax, bookkeeping, and payroll needs year-round. This week, we explore the tax implications of bringing family members into your business.
The question for today is this: Does hiring your family members make sense for your business? Let me be clear. This is not a piece about whether hiring your family members makes sense for your relationships with those family members. As someone who is part of a family business, I could fill up a lot more than 600 words on my opinions about that. For today's purposes, we focus on whether it makes sense from an overall "good business and tax implication" perspective. As it turns out, there is a decent amount of tax nuance when it comes to employing your family. Let's break it down based on relationship to the employee:
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Spouses Who Are In Business Together
Personally, if I had to be in business with my husband, it would not go well. However, many couples build viable, strong businesses together and I say, good for them! Depending on how you have your business entity structured, it will make a big difference on the tax treatment of you and your spouse working as partners. Because a business jointly owned and operated by a married couple is generally treated as a partnership for Federal tax purposes, the spouses must comply with filing and record keeping requirements imposed on partnerships and their partners. The election to file two Schedule C (Form 1040) forms, (one for each spouse) permits certain married co-owners to avoid filing partnership returns, provided that each spouse separately reports a share of all the businesses' items of income, gain, loss, deduction, and credit. Under the election, both spouses will be subject to self-employment tax and on net earnings from self-employment and receive credit for Social Security earnings.
One Spouse Employs Another
If you have a dynamic where your spouse is an employee of your business, then your spouse's wages are subject to income tax withholding, Social Security and Medicare taxes. If you are self-employed (not a corporation or a partnership), your spouse's pay does not have to be included in your federal unemployment tax account (FUTA) contributions and payments. However, if your business is a corporation or a partnership you must include that spouse's pay in your unemployment tax contribution calculation.
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You Employ Your Child
First, let's be clear. I work in my family business, but I am an adult, so I am treated just like a normal employee. However, if you, for example, run a family restaurant and want to hire your children under 18 to work for you, there are some tax benefits. But first, you should check with your state for rules on how many hours minors can work (in non-agricultural jobs) and reference the Fair Labor Standards Act for information on limitations on the kinds of work children can perform.
"This is an often overlooked or under-utilized strategy. Paying your children for true services they provide in your business can be a powerful tax-saving tool," says Cathi Reed, Block Advisors Regional Director. "If you are a sole-proprietorship or single member LLC, and the child is less than 18 years of age, the business is not required to withhold FICA or payroll taxes. The child can use his or her standard deduction against income you pay."
You Hire Your Parent
Oh dear. If you are brave enough to do this, know that you will need to pay Social Security and Medicare taxes on your parent's wages and make the appropriate withholdings, but you don't have to pay unemployment taxes. Now all you have to do is convince your parent that you are the boss. Have fun with that!
Is Hiring Family Members Worth It For The Tax Benefits?
"There are some positive tax advantages to hiring family members. It's important to treat a family member like any other employee. Hiring your children can result in substantial savings for businesses. Make sure your child has real, age-appropriate work to do and a reasonable pay rate, comparable to other employees. Consult with a Block Advisors small business certified tax pro to ensure that you are complying with all requirements," advises Reed. "Block Advisors, a team within H&R Block, is dedicated to meeting the tax, bookkeeping and payroll needs of small business owners year-round. To start working with the tax experts at Block Advisors, visit blockadvisors.com."
In my opinion, you should not hire a family member solely because of the tax benefits. You should always hire based on whether that person is right for the job and keep in mind how this hire could materially impact your relationship with that person and others in your family. Finally, as I mentioned, make sure you have a tax professional on your team when making these determinations. As you can see, things can get a little tricky!
*All details were sourced from IRS.gov and blockadvisors.com
The opinions expressed in this commentary are those of the author and may not necessarily reflect those held by Kestra Investment Services, LLC or Kestra Advisory Services, LLC. This is for general information only and is not intended to provide specific investment advice or recommendations for any individual. It is suggested that you consult your financial professional, attorney, or tax advisor with regards to your individual situation. Comments concerning the past performance are not intended to be forward looking and should not be viewed as an indication of future results. Securities offered through Kestra Investment Services, LLC (Kestra IS), member FINRA/SIPC. Investment advisory services offered through Kestra Advisory Services, LLC (Kestra AS), an affiliate of Kestra IS. O'Keeffe Financial Partners and any other entity listed herein is not affiliated with Kestra IS or Kestra AS Investor Disclosures: https://bit.ly/KF-Disclosures