“Don’t feel like you have to choose between career and life” said Lizzie Alberga to MBA alums and guests from Beta Gamma Sigma Los Angeles and Loyola Marymount’s Women’s Leadership Council on the evening of September 17th. At an event organized by the LMU MBA Alumni Association, Alberga general manager for UrbanSitter and a mom of three, shared her methods to help people manage it all – climbing the corporate ladder while living their life.
How to Have It All
According to Alberga, having it all is knowing what you want and forgetting the rest. She asked people in the audience: “What do you want for your life? How do you want to feel? What experiences must you have?” Knowing the answers to these questions guides a person’s decisions and the ability to have it all. You can only have it all when you know what all is clearly defined. A breakdown of Lizzie’s philosophy:
- Resources: You have limited resources. Invest your time, capital and energy in what is important to you. Figure out what you want and go for it.
- Time: Time is your most precious resource. If you do not respect your time, others won’t either. Take your vacation, leave on time and always ask for the agenda before you agree to a meeting to make sure it’s worth your time.
- Self-confidence: Don’t wait until you’re 100% ready to do something because you are never going to be 100% ready. Self-confidence is key to conquering fear. Your level of fear is a direct reflection of your level of self-doubt. To build confidence, start with something small and try it out.
- Control: You do not have as much control in your life as you think. So, release control – it reduces stress and increases happiness. The chips are going to fall where they fall!
- Perfection: Get rid of perfection! Strive for excellence, not perfection. You can have it all without having to be perfect.
Lean in While Not Sacrificing Living
Work and life compete for your time and it’s not always a perfect balance. You do not have to choose one or the other. Work is a part of your life and it should not compete with your personal life. To achieve a work/life balance, you may have to employ outside resources such as getting help or spending extra money.
Follow these five steps to get what you want in life:
- Compartmentalize: If you are overwhelmed and need to get things done, compartmentalize and operate using “spurts of focus.” Pick the most important task to focus on and block everything else out.
- Prioritize: Your “to do” list should only include your priorities. Everything in your life can’t have the same level of priority. Linear prioritization is key. Write a “to don’t do” list with everything that is not a priority and do not fret about it. Let it go!
- Strategize: You cannot do it all but you can have it all. Get help! At work, hire A+ players, set boundaries and build a scalable life. In your personal life, hire a babysitter, ask family for help, combine time with friends with exercise.
- Analyze: Ask yourself “Is what I’m doing working?” Live with urgency – decide, move, pivot. Every time there is a change in life or at work, reassess what is important to you.
- Repeat: As many times as necessary!
Alberga’s partings words of advice: “There are no sacred cows. You are the victim of the rules you live by. Believe in yourself and also let go of the ego! Articulate what you want and put it out in the universe.”
For a student’s perspective on the evening, please read Christie Calucchia’s Loyolan article here.
About Lizzie Alberga
As general manager for UrbanSitter Los Angeles, Lizzie Alberga is responsible for operational excellence and leading market development and growth in the greater LA area. Previously, she was VP of marketing and brand at Evite and a marketing and sales manager for TheKnot.com. Founder of The Gorgeous Project, a social media passion project, she is a mom of three and a former triathlete. For more about Alberga, visit www.lizziealberga.com.
About the LMU MBA Alumni Association
The LMU MBA Alumni Association represents a well-connected alumni network of over 3,000 individuals. It develops, maintains and strengthens relationships among alumni and students by providing mentorship opportunities along with professional, philanthropic and social events to ensure continued excellence of the MBA program. For more information, visit the MBA Alumni Network section.
By Grace Kurek-Boschan, CBA Communications
