On Daily Routines, we profile successful leaders, entrepreneurs, artists, executives and athletes to explore their routines, schedules, habits and day in the life.
Bozoma Saint John is someone who has achieved so much at a young age, but seems to be only getting started; she balances youthful energy and passion with the experiences and wisdom of a veteran.
A quick recap of her marketing career: spending most of her early years at PepisCo, Bozoma was personally recruited by Jimmy Iovine to join Beats Music in 2014, before joining Apple as the Head of Global Consumer Marketing, Apple Music & iTunes, following the company’s acquisition of Beats Music.
In 2017, Bozoma joined Uber as their Chief Brand Officer, before spending time at Endeavor as their Chief Marketing Officer. Most recently, Netflix named Bozoma as their new CMO.
Despite these major transitions in her career, Bozoma’s daily routine has a few non-negotiables that will never change. As a whole, she is extremely protective of her time and energy, making sure to set boundaries wherever possible.
Do I work hard? Hell, yeah. Am I passionate about what I do? Yes. Do I hope I have a future in this? Absolutely. Do I hope nobody gets in my way? They better not.
Apple Music’s Bozoma Saint John: It’s About Passion, Not Algorithms | Fast Company
“My daily routine changes because I travel so much, but there are some philosophical things that never change,” she told Marie Claire. “I give myself a chance to really get into my own day, to set my purpose, before engaging myself in something that someone else wants from me.”
Bozoma dedicates the mornings to self care, family and exercise. She starts off her day with a prayer and spending time with her daughter, and never touches her phone. Only after her morning routine will she touch her check emails.
“Whatever emails or text messages have come in during the evening or in the early morning are usually not in service to me,” she told Arianna Huffington on a Thrive Global Podcast interview. These emails are typically negative and demanding — “Can you fix this? Can you do that? Why did this happen?” — so she makes sure she reads them after her self care routine.
Bozoma’s tech boundaries also extend to her work, particularly meetings. She makes it a point to never bring her laptop to a meeting and always puts her phone away. People staring at laptops typing away during meetings is actually a pet peeve of hers, “I found it really annoying when people would be in meetings with their laptops open and typing away.”
Widely known for her fashion sensibilities, Bozoma spoke to Marie Claire about how her outfits contribute hugely to how she feels on the day, “I don’t plan my outfits. Every morning I look at my closet and I wear whatever is going to make me feel the most powerful that day. Sometimes it’s denim, sometimes it’s a blazer, sometimes it’s sequins—it depends on what I want to say. Whatever I put on that day though, my outfit is definitely my armor.”
When asked by Tim Ferriss about her sleeping habits, Bozoma revealed the secret to balancing her high powered career and having enough energy — naps.
I sleep. Or rather, I nap. There’s no conundrum that a 20-minute nap can’t help me unpack. It’s like a refresh button for my mind. I wake up clearer and more able to make the “gut” decision because I’ve stopped thinking. Whatever I’m feeling when I wake up is the feeling I go forward with.
4 Short Life Lessons From Bozoma Saint John | The Tim Ferriss Show
Before you go…
Check out more daily routines from Barack Obama, Joe Rogan, Jeff Bezos, Michelle Obama, Sheryl Sandberg, Richard Branson, Warren Buffet and plenty others.
