I am often asked how I accomplish everything I do within a given day, or even within a given week. People question how my days seem as if they are 36 hours long. Without sounding too cliché there is truth to the principles of time management and delegation. I utilize a self-designed system to keep everything in order. I also have the best group of people around me, from my right-hand, Ashley Mercurio to our newest interns. The other semi cliché, but equally as true answer is that Anthem fuels me. I don’t get tired (physically, mentally or emotionally) very easily. In fact I like being over scheduled, staying busy, and in constant movement. From the second I wake up to the second I go to sleep there isn’t a minute to lose. With that said, I’ve been asked several times to delve into more specifics on what a typical schedule for me would look like. Still interested? Here is what ten days of my schedule being Anthem’s President looked like last month.
Although Anthem is headquartered in Boston, my work is global. My work week could begin across the country and end back in Boston or vice versa.
Day 1 begins with my arrival back from my 12-day trip to California. The trip started, and concluded, with a few meetings in the Bay Area. After leaving San Francisco, my team and I headed to Stockton to see months of hard work come to fruition. My team worked diligently on all of the planning and logistics for the Stockton Scholars Launch and Media Event. While in Stockton, I had several meetings related to the Scholars program and other city programs. Following the event, I traveled up to Mariposa for the second half of my trip to conduct research and meet regarding a landmark placemaking and tourism campaign to vitalize the region. Upon my arrival back home, I spent the night catching up on emails and preparing for the upcoming week.
Day 2: The next day I take the time to review, in various depths, the weekly reports from the different areas of Anthem. I then take a visit to one of our properties, The Charles River Bistro, for a welfare check because of the winter storm that had hit while I was away. I then find a quiet space so that I can participate in a conference call with a company that I am on the Board of Directors with. This is when my day really starts to pick up as I shift from phone calls and emails to a variety of meetings. I first meet-up with an entrepreneur that I am mentoring and then right after with clients that have traveled into Boston. I spend the rest of the day on site visits before a lengthy dinner, which more members of my team join in on. Following dinner, I end my night by traveling to watch a concert where one of Anthem’s favorite artists is performing. Post show, I connect with her about an upcoming album and potential performance dates. After heading home, I always ensure that I review any outstanding tasks, clear out emails, messages, and set up the following day. If I have not already run and worked out, I will make sure that I fit my daily routine in – regardless of the time of day.
Day 3: I wake up bright and early and meet my team and friends at Cherry Farm Creamery (a local small business that we support) to celebrate National Ice Cream for Breakfast Day in support of the Boston Children’s Hospital Concussion Prevention and Research Center. After an already chilly start to the morning I am headed to my next task of the day, which is taking on the Rotary Club’s Annual Polar Plunge to put an end to Polio! One of the things that I love about what I do is that I get to meet so many people with such amazing causes, which I try to support as much as possible. After a prolonged swim in the sub-zero water on a 15-degree day, I have a lunch meeting to discuss upcoming projects and strategy. I then head back to my house and begin working on emails and following-up with anyone who I was out-of-touch with while I was out. It is well known that my typical bedtime is around 3:00am.
Day 4: Come Monday starts the beginning of a new work week for most, although I find mine doesn’t have much of a start and finish, so it is just another day for me! This Monday starts with Anthem’s Vice President, Ashley Mercurio and me meeting with a few different strategic partners that we are entering into joint ventures with. Following that I take the time to either meet up with or jump on a phone call with a couple of my interns to check in on their progress, update them with any new projects or tasks, or talk through and brainstorm new ideas. Mixed in throughout the day are a couple personal appointments as well. Then I head to a dinner meeting regarding the potential establishment of a new community based organization in the Caribbean.
Day 5: Some days require a little more running around than others, especially those that are booked with meetings. I begin by tackling a morning meeting with one of our financial institutions, then get on the road and head to a lunch meeting with a community outreach specialist for the FBI. Following lunch I head to afternoon coffee with one of Anthem’s non-profit partners and then make my way to dinner with a former intern that I continue to mentor. Finally, I end my day of meetings with a late night call to the west coast regarding signing/booking talent for one of Anthem’s upcoming events. Days like these, while busy, tend to keep me more energized than those that I am just sitting on my computer because I am so actively engaged.
Day 6: The middle of the week can be tough for some, but I like to find motivation in every day because with every new day comes a new opportunity. I start off with a morning call with one of our newer clients in the energy industry to discuss future collaboration. Then I am out the door headed to a site visit regarding the possibility of a new restaurant and venue space. As the afternoon approaches, I meet up with a media outlet for a requested interview and then find myself with a little downtime, which I utilize to catch up on emails. Of course there are days where I don’t have a set amount of time to read hundreds of emails, which can push some less urgent messages back until late at night/into the morning. This is why I try and keep up with my inbox constantly, so if there is something that I can provide a quick response to, I can do so almost immediately. Being able to work no matter where I am is one of my biggest blessings. As the evening rolls around I make my way to my final meeting of the day which is a site visit to a venue that could lead to potential collaboration with Anthem Hospitality. From there I am on my way to an art exhibit to support our friend and colleagues at JJ Artworks who host our Paint Party programming at The Bistro.
Day 7: Today begins with a few meetings, the first one being with a former engineering consultant that helped on a previous Anthem project, followed by a board meeting for an advisory board that I sit on. Throughout the rest of the day I continue to work from my computer, intermittently participating in different scheduled calls ranging from a possible acquisition Anthem is considering, to a prospective client, to speaking with another CEO of a company that I am involved with. The afternoon ends with a meeting in Boston City Hall and then I head to the arena to entertain a client at a Celtics game. (I do get to have fun too!)
Day 8: There are some days however that are not slammed with meetings, phone calls or site-visits. These are the best days where I can sit down, catch up on work, and schedule a meeting or two with one of our internal employees to talk about future projects and/or touch base on what they’re been working on. Following a day of catch up, that evening I head back to the airport where I take off to Frisco, TX for the 2018 National Sports Forum where I am to receive this year’s OM Foundation Award.
Day 9: The second day of the National Sports Forum was filled with a variety of breakout sessions and keynote speakers, thus providing a number of great networking and relationship building opportunities. I sat in on a few sessions that focus on corporate partnership, strategy, and technology. I also participated in the facility tours which provided me with excellent looks inside of the three incredible facilities, including The Star (highly recommend!). While attending a conference such as the NSF, I try to stick to the philosophy of being the first one at breakfast and the last one to go to sleep at night, that way I can take advantage of every opportunity that the forum offers. That afternoon is when I was awarded with the NSF OM Foundation Award, which was an incredible personal and professional honor.
Day 10: The final day of the National Sports Forum continued with much of the same breakout sessions, but the highlight of the day had to be attending the 2018 NSF Gala which was an incredible experience as well as a wonderful capstone to the entire forum. It provided a good opportunity to recap the conference, hear a few great words from the featured speakers, and see both familiar and new faces one last time in a friendly setting. Post event, I had a scheduled call to Hong Kong (mid-day for them, and nighttime for me!), caught up on messages briefly and then attended the end of a reception and continued to socialize with some of the brightest minds in the sports industry until near sunrise. Despite the late night, I awoke for a breakfast meeting a few hours later before heading back to the airport.
As you have read, I stay busy and surround myself with new people and opportunities that provide the energy to keep me going every day. I try to incorporate learning and experiences for everyone on my team and make sure there is fun in what we are doing. Yes, I work many hours, but to me it is never work and always what I enjoy doing.
Founder, The Anthem Group