Making Plans (Artskaf)

[Lore]

Lore just sort of blinked at the fact Cadence did not have PA or a proper diary. She hadn’t meant a journal for thoughts, but an actual concrete planner for things like meetings – or even just people’s birthdays! And it was no good at home either. Didn’t she have a Wallet? (she did!) Much better to sync it all to something most people carried everyday.

Though Lore seemed genuinely surprised she didn’t seem at all phased, just considerate of how best to offer her help. That was a given, and something she didn't even pause to consider might not be wanted to the degree she would give it. There were plenty of people in her life who preferred spontaneity (well, that being Damien again), and whatever Lore’s own preferences for living life she generally just got on with things. Chaos didn’t stress her. She just liked to roll up her sleeves and organise it.

“Hm, okay. So Work and Creative might overlap but they have very different fuels. Or, uh, spoons as you put it. Creative is all the things that energise you – the ones you get to do and are probably the reasons you became a musician. And work is all the necessities which go into the thing you love also being your business. So think of your categories that way – in terms of energy. Your balance needs to be between the things that recharge you, the things that drain you, and the things that can be both, dependent on what the rest or your day or week looks like. The colour coding works as a visual aid for that information at a glance, not necessarily a hard and fast rule in this case. Scheduling isn’t about timings, or not only – it’s about translating it all into a format that works the best for you, so you get the most out of it.” She was typing as she talked – inputting the information Cadence gave her into a barebones document. “So your PA definitely needs to know that about you. Your spoons, I mean. That way they can arrange things better to suit your needs, and make sure to preserve decompression time when you need it most. While also making sure you don’t become a hermit. And, uh, laundry and chores we definitely delegate. You don’t need to be worrying about those.” She paused for a fraction of a moment, thinking. “Well, unless folding laundry also comes under recharging. But otherwise, if it’s taking unnecessary spoons, it goes. Makes sense, yes?”

[Cadence]

"Lore," Cadence said, her voice genuine. "I think you are an absolute godsend."

Lore was completely changing her way of thinking on this. Things now made a lot more sense than they had. Her complete crashes on the weekends being the biggest concern. Ezvin had helped with that. The social time with him had done more than reveal that she could have emotions that weren't freaking out. She had actually felt recharged. It was all about energy consumption and recycling.

Cadence also knew she didn't want to be a hermit. She liked being with people, and thought that was maybe part of what had been nice about going to the nest. There had been people there. Becoming a hermit was not something she wanted, but she knew she needed alone time too. That was just as important. Cadence also had to smile at the mention of chores.

"Yes - it makes sense. Chores have to go away. Definitely not a recharge. By delegate, I assume you mean that my PA does it, or at least makes sure it gets done?" cleaning had actually in many ways become a detriment to her health. Ezvin had called it something like a "Cinderella impression." He wasn't off the mark on that. It had been a stressful way to just fill time that she didn't know what to do with. That also brought something else to mind. "You seem to be a very professional woman, so please keep this here, but I have significant emotional and mental health issues. I'm assuming my PA should know about those too and how to handle it. It's also a part of the reason things are messy. Sometimes, it's just hard to keep my head above water if that makes sense." Cadence didn't go into details. She didn't think she needed to at this point.

"I think now it seems like there is a definite imbalance. Work is very high, creative is low, and social is abysmal. It's difficult to make a change directly to balance that out - at least during recording season. But then again, you're the expert. Maybe I'm missing something. I can't cut my recording time down. It just doesn't work that way. But I feel like there has to be something I can do better," Cadence continued to spin her rings and sighed. "There is another problem too. I don't know if I have the knowledge to train someone else in this." Lore would probably be a perfect PA for her, but Cadence wasn't one to poach and Lore seemed completely happy in her position. She wasn't going to ask or even joke about trying to take her away from it, but maybe she could help the person Cadence found.

[Lore]

Cadence made her beam. And Lore was utterly unselfconscious about it.

“By delegate I mean you get a housekeeper or cleaner for chores,” she explained. “Your PA can help with the hire, and they will be the one to liaise and keep things running smoothly.”

She shifted a little, clearly enjoying herself. She hadn’t even realised the coffee had arrived. “See, this is why we start with the blocks of time which are non-negotiable. Then you can see what's left.” She pointed at the information she had input. The colours were chosen arbitrarily for now, just for illustration purposes.

“This is your rough work week now. And this is where you're trying to recharge at the end of each day – but it's just to repeat the same cycle the next day, not true rest. And the weekend is just more of the same – a frantic attempt to fit everything else you need to before it's Monday again. You're living on depleted. Obviously this is a temporary situation for recording season, and it's okay to do that sometimes – really push yourself. But that doesn't mean we can't be more efficient with it.”

She swiped the screen.

"And this is your week without the things we don't need. Creative and Social at the weekends, with extra decompression as and when you need it. I would say your workweek blocks are long and it might benefit you to break those down further, visually speaking I mean. And perhaps look at ways your lunch break can be used to help keep things more balanced. This is where you look at the overlap too – which part of the day is most draining, and which has elements of creative fulfilment. Sometimes order matters. Flexibility is going to be key for you I think. Though it's also important to remember that sometimes a bad day is just a bad day.”

She didn’t pause or seem phased by the confidential admission. “Oh and absolutely. Mental health challenges have one of the biggest correlations with unproductivity. I did some work with the displaced and homeless in New York, helping people get back on their feet. Most people want to help themselves, they just get stuck in cycles which make it difficult. Less spoons you could call it I suppose. Think of your PA as your defender of spoons. I do like that analogy by the way.

"Of course given you're high profile I wouldn't put it on your job spec or anything. But someone you can trust with that information needs to be high on your list of priorities. Speaking of."

She opened a new document, this one just a blank page.

“Let’s decide what qualities you are looking for. Essential, desired, willing to compromise shall be our headings-” she added that as she spoke “-and I’ll help you interview of course, because I completely agree, this is nuanced work and you need someone right.”