business ethics and priciples

As I say in Tend to It: A Holistic Guide to Intentional Productivity, “Productivity as a concept is beneficial when adapted to each person’s goals and tasks. However, what I call Productivity Culture™, or the culture of perfectionism and obsession with standard definitions of ‘success,’ can be problematic. When we view productivity as a depoliticized action or assume everyone is seeking the same standards of accomplishment, we ignore the fact that our cultural obsession with perfectionism is rooted in institutional systems of oppression. Productivity does not occur in a vacuum, and it is absolutely tied to access, privilege, white supremacy, classism, and ableism” (18).

As a Productivity Coach, I endeavor to break down this normalized approach to productivity, encouraging my clients to prioritize rest and set boundaries around their availability or capacity to overwork. I commit to help clients develop step-by-step achievable approaches to push back against workaholism.

As a small business owner, my income comes from coaching sessions, running workshops and programs, and book sales. I donate a portion of my business income each month to organizations that will have felt effects for those most marginalized due to systems of white supremacy, homophobia, transphobia, and income inequality. These organizations include The Loveland Foundation and Trans Asylum Seeker Support Network. I value the labor of independent contractors, and I commit to paying a living wage to anyone I hire to do labor for my business. I charge a higher rate for institutions such as universities and businesses to supplement the costs of my services for individuals, especially students. I offer free resources via my blog posts, free workbooks, and my newsletter, and I share exercises that I teach during coaching sessions in my low cost book, Tend to It: A Holistic Guide to Intentional Productivity.

I am working to expand my research on productivity and personal development to include BIPOC voices through recognizing the proliferation of white supremacy in the productivity and personal development business and publishing realm. Finally, I welcome feedback and suggestions to my process of continuing to be an inclusive and equitable business.