Kayla Mossuto is a mother and caffeine lover on a mission to leave the world a better place for future generations via her Melbourne-based social enterprises Crema Joe (reusable coffee pods specialists!), and Precious Plastic Melbourne.
Kayla Mossuto is a mother and caffeine lover on a mission to leave the world a better place for future generations via her Melbourne-based social enterprises Crema Joe (reusable coffee pods specialists!), and Precious Plastic Melbourne.
Find inspiration as we talk to Kayla Mossuto in our #StrongHealthyWomen interview.
Hi Kayla! Thank you for being part of the Health and Fitness Travel, Strong, Healthy Women Interview Series, where we are shining a light on the importance of self-care, not as an indulgence but a necessity to reduce stress and general health issues.
Is there such a thing as a typical day for you and what does that look like?
My days are go go go, from dawn until late into the evening. The entrepreneurial-mama combo is certainly a hard one, and the juggle is constant. On the days where my pre-schooler is in daycare, my mornings consist of a frantic and frazzled drop-off! From there I usually head to the gym, followed by the remainder of the day, which consists of running my busy social enterprise. From work, I head straight back to daycare pick-up, and then home with my son to cook dinner. He’s not much a sleeper, so after we finally get him to bed, I try to tick off a few more emails before hitting up an episode of something on Netflix for some “me time”.
Can you share a time when you felt your well-being was challenged in the past and what did you do to overcome it?
My well-being is constantly challenged. Whilst running my business Crema Joe, I’m very conscious that I will be constantly looking to find and work towards a better work-life balance. My daily grind needs to be as time-efficient as possible, so I certainly look to maximise my work time. And when I’m with my son, I try to focus on ensuring I am mindfully “with” him. I also ask for help when I need it – as a very head-strong and independent individual, this has been a surprisingly big step for me. With such fast growth within my business, the truth is sometimes I just need to outsource to actually get that downtime, whether it will be a babysitter, or even scheduling the odd night away – it’s important to have something to look forward to.
What does ‘being healthy’ mean to you and how do you keep this at the forefront when life gets unavoidably busy?
I consider my gym sessions to be non-negotiable, I’ve found this is the only way to really make it happen. If an unavoidable interruption comes up, I shift my session to another time in the week. I love my heavy-weights sessions, and find that they really help to shift any negative energy I may have unknowingly (or knowingly!) been holding onto. I also outsource meals when things get crazily busy. This is definitely a last resort I use for times of desperation, however eating well is important for supporting your body through busy times, and having ready-made meals arrive on our door-step is sometimes just a necessity to get the family through.
Have you ever taken a holiday specifically for your well-being? Can you share what the experience was like?
As a social enterprise, we’re fairly resource poor, so I’ve really been struggling with burnout this year in particular whilst we launch our new initiative Precious Plastic Melbourne. The impact on my health and well-being was becoming quite evident earlier in the year, so I put up a white flag and took myself to Singapore for a week of R&R. The trip was intentionally and mindfully slow. I made no solid plans, I didn’t do any rushing around to see attractions, and I “wasted” plenty of lazy mornings sleeping in. Whilst I didn’t completely leave my work behind (as a business owner it’s virtually impossible to put everything down for a week), tapping away at emails beside the pool certainly didn’t feel too much like work!
Every woman’s idea of self-care is different, please tell us what does self-care mean to you?
Self-care means prioritising down-time when possible. Sometimes this may mean going home from an event a little early, learning to say “no” when I need to, or having a pyjama day with the family rather than rushing around to activities. It also means prioritising an occasional get-together with the girls, no matter how busy we all feel!
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