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Balancing the Grind with Naomi White, Founder of Metamorph Co

Naomi White is an expert in transforming leadership and culture, and the Founder of Metamorph Co (recently rebranded as Naomi White), a consultancy that works with leaders who want to influence and drive transformational change in their business.

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1) To kick things off, could you tell us a little about your career background and current role?

My background is as a HR Director in Financial Services. A few years ago I wanted to leave the corporate world behind and establish my own business.

I called it Metamorph Co with the mission of empowering leadership teams to maximise the potential in their business by turbo charging their leadership, culture, and strategic alignment.

I am also an executive coach and mentor, team developer, facilitator, speaker, connector and people strategist.

2) What does a day in the life look like for you? Can you take us through a recent workday?

I start my day with school drop off followed by some exercise – either walking, yoga or personal training. Then I make a breakfast smoothie followed by a coffee whilst perusing the papers.

During the social isolation of COVID-19, I started up a YouTube series called Corona-cation, interviewing women from around the globe to share stories and advice for getting through COVID, so I will often be interviewing someone during the day, followed by coaching sessions with clients.

I now also run virtual lunch networking sessions once a week so there is often organisation associated with that.

3) Does your current role allow for flexible or remote working? If so, how does that fit into your life and routine?

I mostly work out of my home now. I did try having office space for a while but I found home worked better given the confidential nature of my work.

However, as an extrovert, I find if I need to write a blog, I’m better off in a coffee shop as the stimulation of having others around me helps me be creative. I love that working for myself allows me the freedom to work from anywhere so if I go away, I just take my laptop with me.

4) What does work-life balance mean to you and how do you work to achieve that goal?

Work life balance means all aspects of my life are in balance. I feel like I am being intentional about how I allocate my time and I am in complete control of how I spend my days. I like to think of it as a pie chart with all the pieces being equal – health/fitness, love, work, family, leisure.

Working from home and need inspiration? Grab a copy of our Workflow book, featuring beautiful photos and inspiring stories from workspaces around the world.

5) In the past 12 months, have you started/stopped any routines or habits to change your life?

I stopped scrolling social media before bed and checking my phone first thing in the morning. Also COVID-19 meant I was now working in my home office all the time and as such, I found my office set up wasn’t working as well for me.

So I cleaned out my office, improved the ergonomics, and I’m now very disciplined about getting up for breaks. I also have a very clear start and end to my work day as I found I was getting exhausted as I wasn’t ever switching off.

6) Do you have any favourite books, podcasts or newsletters that you’d like to recommend?

I love podcasts and have eclectic taste in them. I’m currently enjoying Glambition Radio with Ali Brown, The Rich Roll Podcast, The Marie Forleo Podcast, and Under the Skin by Russell Brand.

I love books and I’m often reading 5 books at once (which means I take a while to read them!). I often return to The Joy of Genius by Gay Hendricks and I’m currently reading Intuitive by Craigh Wilson.

7) Are there any products, gadgets or apps that you can’t live without?

I couldn’t function without my iPhone. In terms of apps, I love Insight Timer for daily meditations, Later for Insta posting in advance, LinkedIn for keeping in touch with my client base, and I couldn’t live without my coffee maker!

8) If you could read an interview about work-life balance by anyone, who would that be?

Brené Brown. I love the work she does in the world and she seems very clear on her values and boundaries.

9) Do you have any last thoughts on work, life or balance that you’d like to share with our readers?

There is power in being clear on your values and designing your life and work around that. Setting intentions in advance for the year, month, week ahead, and regularly checking progress against that, keeps you on track.

Ultimately, no one is going to tell you to work less or get more balance in your life, that’s your responsibility. Be clear on your boundaries, communicate them, and stick to it.

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About Author

Hey there! I'm Hao, the Editor-in-Chief at Balance the Grind. We’re on a mission to showcase healthy work-life balance through interesting stories from people all over the world, in different careers and lifestyles.