Tobi Skovron is the Co-Founder & CEO of CreativeCubes.Co, a company which converts buildings into collaborative communities with workspaces including culture & services.
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1) To kick things off, could you tell us a little about your career background and current role?
This video really provides a lot of colour to my career to date:
2) What does a typical day in the life look like for you? Can you take us through a recent workday?
- I’m awake at 4:44am every day.
- Kick off my day with a session at OrangeTheory Fitness
- I’m showered and at my Mac or on conference calls by 7:30am
- I am super-efficient with my time (because I have a lot to do and never enough time to get it all done) and super disciplined.
- Lunch is always scheduled for 12pm and I take 30 mins to get the right food into my system to ensure I’m well powered for the rest of the day (think about a pro athlete and how they optimise their nutrition. I do the same only my sport is entrepreneurship and business)
- 12-5pm I get through my schedule and execute without distractions. I have a team that block people / unsolicited emails + calls so I can stay hyper focused.
- 5pm on last conference call of the day, typically done from the car.
- 5:30pm home with my wife and kids to be the best father I can be.
- 8pm my wife and I have downtime, we catchup and by 9pm I’m in bed reading for the last hour of the day ready to get enough sleep to attack the next day at 4:44am.
3) Does your current role allow for flexible or remote working? If so, how does that fit into your life and routine?
Totally, we have multiple buildings, so I work from which ever location suits directly relating to what I need to do that day. I don’t typically have a “desk” so long as I’m connected to the web, it’s go time!
4) Do you have any tips, tricks or shortcuts to help you manage your workload and schedule?
Yes, I have a great team that I lead, and they block out all the background noise so I can stay 100% focused on the task at hand and our big growth opportunities.
I NEVER miss an OrangeTheory session.
I NEVER compromise my wife and kids for my work.
I stay structured and hyper focused.
5) What does work-life balance mean to you and how do you work to achieve that goal?
It’s not all about work, work, work. Sitting at the desk or in front of your computer grinding.
I’ve learned a lot about how the balance can actually improve the goal (e.g. getting there quicker for less or being able to do more in the same amount of time).
For me, it’s about the consistent routine and schedule I have in place. Missing an OrangeTheory class during the week actually creates lethargy during my day and doesn’t keep me focused when I go to choose what I’m going to eat for lunch. So, if for nothing else, keeping the scheduled class on my schedule helps me continue to elevate during the day.
The same thing can be said for any other routine on my schedule. Taking out or skipping on a commitment has an impact on the whole schedule and thus the result.
For me, the balance keeps everything in check.
From left to right: Gawin Fernando, Andy Fernie, Tobi Skovron, George Garth.
6) What do you think are some of the best habits you’ve developed over the years to help you strive for success and balance?
Failure and embracing those failures as lessons have kept me honest at all times. They’ve kept my habits honest and they’ve kept my routine in check.
Breaking down my BHAG (big hairy audacious goal) into daily KPI’s has been the best habit. Making each day accountable for itself without relying on a win from the day before or last month has been a really short, fun and measurable way for me to stay in gear and on focus.
A clear daily focus every day across the board is critically important.
7) Are there any books that have helped you improve over the years?
Honestly no. I’m not a big book person. That said I do read blogs, articles and news every night in key areas that I’m interested in.
I’m married to a beautiful woman who taught me very early on in our relationship (we got together when we were 23, now 39) that two ears, one mouth is the way to lean forward into everything and anything. Simply put, listen twice as much as you speak and that’ll be your superpower, it’s worked well for me and our organisation.
8) What is the number one thing you do to make sure you get the most out of your day?
The entire day. Most look at one thing for the week, but I’m motivated to squeeze everything I can out of every single day. I optimise everything and remain hyper focused and efficient giving everything that comes into my path the time and focus it deserves.
That’s across the board by the way. My wife, kids, colleagues, friends, everything that I’m in focused on, I am giving it 100%. Relationships can’t be anything less than that
9) Do you have any last thoughts on work, life or balance that you’d like to share with our readers?
I think holding yourself to a core set of values that you live and breathe everyday can make a massive impact over 365 days, then compound on them as the years flow. The second you become lazy or shift from those values everything goes wobbly.
Here are our values for people to reflect on for themselves.
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