I work from 5 a.m. to 2 p.m. for a remote European company. I have time to relax and to grow my 6-figure side business.

• Ashley Couto shifted to a 5 a.m. to 2 p.m. schedule for better collaboration at her European company.
• The schedule change facilitated her promotion and improved her work-life balance.
• She’s also enjoying the benefits of a positive work culture and travel opportunities.

After years of working remotely for companies in North America, I landed a remote role as the head of growth at a European creator tech company in January. I wanted to move back into sales and join a tech company, and this role checked both of those boxes.

My original team operates almost entirely out of North America, but the rest of the company operates on Central European Time. I was allowed to work 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Eastern, but all the other team leads live in Europe.

After about two weeks, I realized that working a normal 9-5 schedule left me little time to work with them, build key stakeholder relationships, and ensure I was bringing my best to the role, so I switched my schedule from 5 a.m. to 2 p.m. Eastern.

I’ve been an early riser since I turned 30

Shifting my schedule from a 6 a.m. to a 4:30 a.m. wakeup wasn’t a big deal. The first month and a half was exhausting, but I adjusted. I’m in bed by 9 p.m. most nights.

In August, I was promoted to head of plus (professional services), and I now direct the work of four teams, three of which are based mostly in Europe. I’m glad I switched schedules when I first joined, as I believe it made my professional advancement easier.

Switching schedules is the best thing I’ve ever done for my career

The difference in my mornings is in how I spend my time. Before I started work at 5, I’d often spend my morning scrolling or have an extra leisurely start, and I’d get nothing productive done. Now, I’m often in a meeting at the beginning of my day or coworking with another team lead.

About an hour before my teams in North America log on, I review everyone’s calendars so I know what they have going on in their day and can shift work around so nobody is overburdened. I also review our active deals so I can help things close and ensure we hit or exceed our weekly target.

By the time we have our morning team huddle at 9:30 a.m., I’ve solved problems, set a clear road map for the day, and done most of my own stuff so I can be available to them for whatever they need.

I keep Slack open until my team finishes for emergency questions

I stop working on work things somewhere between 2 p.m. and 3 p.m. most days. I do my best to leave at 2 p.m., but management is never a 40-hour-a-week job.

I keep my Slack open in case my team has emergency questions. I get maybe two or three messages a day after 2 p.m., and it takes me less than five minutes to get to whatever the team’s asking me for, so I really don’t mind having to hop back in briefly.

Working for a European company opened me up to a different way of life

I wasn’t sure how working for a predominantly European company would go, as most of what I knew about work culture in Europe came from TV, but it’s been overwhelmingly positive. My colleagues have dedicated lunch breaks, so I started taking one for the first time. It’s made my back-half-of-the-day decision-making so much sharper.

The company has menstrual leave and a flexible sick days policy, so I also never feel the pressure to show up if I’m not well. At North American companies I’ve worked for, I was expected to do calls the day after a hip replacement while still in the hospital and work through having COVID-19.

Many of my colleagues take their vacation days without logging into work at all. I always had to leave a method of communication at North American companies, and people reached out to me frequently. I’m still not as chill about disconnecting, but I did spend two weeks in Paris and only checked Slack and email twice, which I consider a win.

On occasion, I also travel for work. I went to the Berlin headquarters in September to work with a few colleagues, so I had the joy of seeing a bit of a new city, collecting a stamp on my passport, and racking up significant airline miles. I love to travel, so this is a huge perk of the job.

Leaving early lets me run my own business and still have plenty of time to relax

My full-time job is just one of my income streams. I have a six-figure revenue stream in career coaching and fractional C-level AI consulting services. In the current market, I’m busy reviewing and rewriting résumés and LinkedIn profiles, helping out-of-work job seekers prep for interviews, and helping current employees set themselves up for a promotion in the next fiscal year.

I write for publications about careers, leadership, AI, and travel, and I’m a coach in a program that helps people grow their LinkedIn following with strategic content. I also occasionally do B2B LinkedIn brand deals to promote products to my 100,000-person audience.

When I worked from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., I used to work 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. on my other income streams, which meant my weekends were my only free time.

Now, I work from 2 p.m. to 6 p.m. on those revenue streams. My evenings are mine again, and I can give my clients and my audience my best every day.