How to Design a 1% Career and Life

How many times in the last few years have you thought: Maybe I should be my own boss?

The internet told us there are only two options: stay in the rat race with a 9-5 job that will make you miserable, or take the plunge and become an entrepreneur to finally achieve real freedom.

But if there was a third option?

What if you could be an entrepreneur and have a full time job?

What if you could design your career to support the lifestyle you dream of and your 9-5 wasn’t a rat race, but rather a growth journey that unleashed your potential?

It can be.

You don’t have to work just to make a living, you can design a career that empowers the life you want and vice versa.

Building a great career isn’t just about the money or title, it’s about how you spend your time, how much you grow, the impact you make, and the fulfillment you experience.

I’m here to tell you that you can decide what your ideal career looks like - and build it.

Starting your own business isn’t the only way to gain financial or mental freedom. Your job can provide all of the above if you design it to fit your life, and vice versa.

What is a 1% life?

Okay Maya, what does it mean to have a 1% career and life?

Having a 1% career and life means designing the career and life you want and dream of. It is an extraordinary way of living by design with specific habits, with a specific energy, and a specific strategy. It’s a lifestyle and a practice that will allow you to consistently maximize your potential and become a better, bigger, bolder version of yourself.

It’s called a 1% life because most people DON’T have this life.

(and no this is not about becoming a millionaire of owning a Lamborghini…).

Anyone can have a 1% life, but the problem is most people don’t know it’s an option.

No one teaches you how to design your life. There is no class in school on how to become successful on your own terms, so most people stay wrapped up in the day to day and never take a minute to ask themselves: am I living my best life? Is this the best I can do?

Living a 1% life and leading a 1% career means you don’t let life dictate where you end up, you create the reality you want to live in.

Like waking up to this view...

How to start your 1% journey

I know, I know, it sounds great in theory but how is it going to be possible for you?

Building a 1% career and life is a process. It doesn’t happen overnight, but you can take the first steps toward the future you dream of.

First, you need a vision. What do you want your life to look like? If what you have right now isn’t ideal, what is?

What do you want to do? How do you want to spend your time? How do you want to feel?

Do you want to become an executive or build your own business?

Do you want to spend more time with your family or invest in fitness?

Do you want to have long walks everyday, or spend time with friends and loved ones?

Whatever your dream is, you can’t build it until you can see it.

The next step is to assess the gap between where you are and where you want your life to be.

Ask yourself: what is stopping me from living my best life?

Your goal is to map out some of the obstacles so you can start working on removing them.

You’ll also find out that some of the limitations you thought were stopping you were actually fake.

And lastly, you’ll need to start making some changes to prepare and to accommodate your new life.

Here are a few 1% life changes I've made:

1. Going from working 24/7 and feeling drained and exhausted to managing how I spend my time.

How? Defining my ideal day and then setting boundaries and redesigning my schedule to fit my dream. For example, no calls for the first half of Wednesday, not working after 5 pm, scheduling international call days, and batching similar activities to manage my energy (I explain how to do it here).

2. Going from 2 years with NO vacation time to having at least 2 vacations every year.

How? Scheduling vacations at the beginning of every year to make sure I have R&R time.

3. Replacing 5 hours of cooking every week (which I hate) with a prepared meal service so I don’t need to cook, but we can eat healthy.

I used to get annoyed every week, but I kept telling myself that the only way to have fresh healthy food is to cook it. Not true!

4. Moving from a city that didn’t feel safe anymore (I was scared to walk outside after dark) and a tiny apartment where my husband and I had to work from the kitchen and fight over who gets to have a business call to buying a house where we both have offices and we have a a big back yard.

We thought we were getting the best return for our money renting in San Francisco, but when we allowed ourselves to question that assumption and check what our money can buy elsewhere it blew our minds. It was a fake limitation!

5. Going from feeling alone and lost to feeling empowered and supported.

I thought I had to build my business alone. But at the end of my first year, I felt so lonely. I had no one to talk to and learn from and it made me start questioning if I should be a business owner. I asked myself: do you really have to do this alone? And the answer was no! So I started connecting with other coaches on LinkedIn and found a community of kick ass business owners. I can’t tell you how good it feels to have a support team.

Those are just a few examples that worked for me. Your 1% life may look completely different, but that’s not the point. We all have different dreams. Living your 1% life doesn’t mean you have to follow in my footsteps or copy what some random influencer is doing on Instagram. It means designing the life YOU want.

I don't cook, but I sure like to eat...

Yes, you can

It is hard to imagine a 1% life when you are stuck in the mud, doing the things you think you have to do.

So here is my advice: take a break. Take a day off or a couple of hours and go somewhere you can disconnect. Get out of your environment and change your perspective. It will help you think outside of your current limitations.

Ask yourself two questions:

1) In an ideal world where everything is possible, what would my 1% life look like?

2) What needs to happen for this to become a reality? What will need to change?

When you have the answers, you’ll have a roadmap to a 1% career and life.

I believe in you and I’m rooting for you.

Maya