This woman co-founder with many feathers in her cap attests that healthy living allows her to do her best every day. As the leader of two organizations, she shares her secrets on effective time management, dealing with difficult people and her advice for aspiring entrepreneurs.

Titled “A Day In The Life Of A Woman,” this series celebrates the women in our lives. From the everyday to inspirational, the series aims to highlight women from various fields and share a bit of the diversity we experience every day.

Ruth Yu-Owen is one of the co-founders of Connected Women. Passionate about empowering women through technology, she is responsible for the mostly business-related matters of the organization. Ruth has led a rich life story from her days as a young girl at Ateneo de Zamboanga, the challenges she faced taking an accounting course in college, and finally landing a first decent job. She became Smith Bell’s youngest Vice President at 29 and worked hard at the international shipping company. She then started her own company that specialized in renewable energy and is now the President and CEO of PhilCarbon, together with being co-founder of Connected Women.

Below is how a day goes for this busy, inspiring woman:

6 AM: I wake up. I meditate every morning for half an hour after waking up. I meditate with my husband. After I meditate, I have breakfast. Breakfast will be protein shake with fruit. And then I have apple cider vinegar with honey. And then I have oatmeal.

8 AM-8:30 AM: I exercise. On Mondays, I’d be going to the gym, doing weights. Tuesday, I’m doing Zumba. Wednesday, I do pilates. Friday, rest. Saturday, I play golf. Sunday, I do Zumba again. So basically, I work out [at this time].

8:30 AM-9: 30 AM: After I work out, I have a boiled egg every day. And then I have tsokolate eh, without the milk and the sugar. We just boil it, like an espresso. It’s good for antioxidants. I don’t drink coffee but I have tea; ginger tea. And then I have vegetable juice or something. Everything is juiced. It can be green colored or orange; it’s different every day. That’s how it goes every day. It’s so healthy, right?

I shower and get ready for work. I don’t really have a normal day because I have meetings outside. I run a renewable energy company so we build wind farms and solar farms. In Connected Women, I’m a co-founder with Gina. It’s not really a day-to-day thing for me. I’m helping more on raising funds and doing other things that Gina doesn’t do.

9:30 AM: I go to the office. Or I’ll be out of town because I might have projects out of town. I’ll be in Laguna, San Pedro, Cabuyao. Or I’ll be in Caloocan. So I don’t have a fixed schedule.

12 NN: I like to eat healthy, so I’ll probably have a salad for lunch. Or I have lunch meetings with either of my organizations. So lunch can really vary on who I’m meeting with.

1 PM-4 PM: It’s either I’m in meetings or I’m in the office, just talking to my team. So I have meetings every Monday.

5:30 PM: I’m happy to come home at this hour. Sometimes though, I stay on because I have to finish work in the office. When I get home, I just chill a little bit, talk to my husband. Watch TV or Netflix to distract myself.

7 PM: I will have a bowl of soup for dinner. And then I have my “concoctions” again. Apple cider vinegar or green juice, etc. I can make them myself but I have girls in the house that I’ve trained to make them. [I do my best to eat healthy] and have cheat meals rarely.

8:30 PM: I talk to my son via Messenger or video calls several times a week. My son doesn’t live here, he lives in London. This time is his break because he works there.

10:30 PM: I sleep around this time, 11 PM being the latest. I prefer sleeping early because I wake up early.

A Healthy Lifestyle Keeps This Woman Leader At Her Best

“Even if you have a lot of things you have to do, you don’t need to get shaken or rattled,” shares Ruth. “Because when you meditate, you’re centered. So you overcome all these [challenges].” Ruth is also especially admirable for being able to function well without something most of us can’t seem to live without everyday—coffee! “I don’t need coffee to perk me up,” she explains. “I don’t get [those who say] ‘Don’t talk to me, I need coffee [before functioning].’ Because for me, I get my energy from meditation and the food. Because the quality of the food you put in [is important]. You put rubbish in, you put rubbish out.”

Dealing With Difficult People 101

Ruth says that the most challenging part of her day is something many of us can relate to. “’Going through traffic, going from one meeting to another,” she says. “Trying to get to meetings on time which can be challenging because of the traffic situation.” Another challenging part is dealing with difficult clients. Ruth’s advice for dealing with them is, “Do what you have to do to get things done. You have to practice restraint—save the things you can’t say for yourself!”

For Aspiring Entreps: Keep On Going And Love What You Do

For aspiring entrepreneurs, Ruth advises to “always give 100 percent.” “There will be failures, but there will be success also,” she adds. “It’s part of life. Don’t give up. Success and failure will always be there.”

The best part of her job for Ruth is everything, because she loves it. “I love both my jobs because if it’s not something I love to do, I won’t do it,” she says.

Stick To A Routine To Get The Difficult Things Done

For better time management, Ruth advises having a routine. “It’s like brushing your teeth,” she explains. “When you have a routine, it’s better. Like for me, when I wake up, this is what I do. Then this is what I do. If there’s something you don’t like to do, or if you want to get something done consistently, do it at the same time every day and you’ll get it done.” Ruth admits she’s still a work in progress when it comes to things she doesn’t like doing. What she does is talk to herself for motivation. “You have to do it now!” she says of one of the mantras she repeats to herself. “You really have to face your devil, whatever it is. The thing you dislike most about yourself. I do my self-talk and say, ‘You have to do it, you have to do it. Do it now!’ As long as you’re aware, you can do something about it.”