Do It Different: Leveling Up In Life and Career Without the Hustle

Aug 18
3 min read

By Calvalyn Day MsEd, TICC

I don’t remember the day I started settling, but I did.

I had left college after a year, eager to settle into what I thought would be a normal family life. As a teen mom, I craved stability, marriage, kids, and the kind of routine that felt safe. Years later, with four children and barely enough time or money to catch my breath, I went back to school to finish my bachelor’s degree.

One day, a professor looked me in the eye and asked, “When are you going to grad school?”

I laughed…loudly. Grad school? Me? I was juggling carpools, grocery lists, and overdue bills. But her question stuck with me.

Up to that point, I had been tolerating life, accepting inconvenience, discomfort, and believing that “good enough” was all I that I could expect. But that conversation planted a seed.

That moment was the start of a mindset shift that changed everything. I stopped seeing myself as “just” a wife and mom and started thinking that there could be more.

Fast forward to today: I’m now a single mother, a business owner, a nationally published author, speaker, and coach. And here’s the part that surprises people, I built all of this without buying into the hustle-and-grind culture we’ve been sold.

Yes, the same can be true for you. No magic wands, inheritances from long lost relatives or Ponzi schemes needed.

This didn’t happen automatically. There were conscious choices that got me here.

Like leaving my full-time job in favor of a couple part time ones so that I could use the extra time to build my business without burning out.

And you know what? When I slowed down enough to heal, I made better decisions. I created offers that aligned with my strengths and values. I became more creative, more focused, and more profitable, without sacrificing my peace or my family.

When I first started growing my business, there were two distinct camps, the ‘sleep when you die’ approach or the hobby business while the kids are sleeping version. Neither one looked like what I wanted. So, I created what I wanted to see.

For the record, healing work doesn’t mean you’re less ambitious.

If you’re serving clients, raising a family, or leading a team, you have to show up the way you want to live. One of the best business decisions I’ve ever made is treating my own care like a success strategy, not a luxury.

For me, that looks like:

Working with my own coach or therapist consistently
Journaling and reflecting so I make good decisions
Scheduling my care like a CEO instead of just a couple times a year

Now, I see a shift happening as other entrepreneurs, especially women, are doing the same.

Instead of wearing the overwhelm and overwork like a badge of honor, they are taking their own well-being seriously, unapologetically.

This is what I call the Do It Different approach. building a business that doesn’t require you to trade your well-being or personal values for financial progress.

And here’s the best part: it works.

I had no idea that I would be a 40-something single mom building a business at this point in my life, but I’m grateful that I made the right choice to move in this direction.

If you’re tired of hustling yourself into the ground, consider this your permission: healing isn’t what you do after you succeed; it’s how you build a business worth having.

So ask yourself this: What would change if you believed you could do it different—and still grow?

Then do it and shoot me a message to tell me how good it feels.

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