Samantha Carey Arak — A Day In Her Life

This week, we're sitting down with Samantha Arak, interior designer, hot power vinyasa teacher at Down Under Yoga, competitive runner for Whirlaway, and mom of two boys in West Medford. Samantha shares how she wakes between 5 and 6am without an alarm, runs the Boston Marathon course before teaching a 9:30 class in a 100-degree studio, and is tucked into bed with a book by 8:30.

In this week's conversation, Samantha opens up about a PR job in New York where her paycheck was less than her rent, and the high five on a track that led to a new best friend and a spot on a racing team. We talk about the weekly "CEO meeting" she and her husband built from Fair Play, the friend date she holds on the seventh of every month, and why she believes "the greatest luxury that we will have in our lifetime is privacy and connection."

What We Cover:

Why she describes her days as creative, intentional, and spacious (the last one is "aspirational, but I'm living into it"), and the quiet early morning she uses to set an intention.
A kitchen island of decanted cereal ("Help yourself, gentlemen"), a husband who owns the bus stop because he works late, and her rule to always move her body before she teaches.
Pulling her son from travel soccer after he told her, "I just want a free day."
Dinner with help from Family Dinner deliveries, Thrive Market, and the Instant Pot she calls her "second wife," plus the difference between "casual dinner" and "family dinner."
Going from PR in New York to babysitting during the recession to the first employee at a brand-new interior design firm (and a fixer-upper where the rain buckets watered the plants).
How five marathons in five years led to burnout, and how a high five on the Winchester track brought the fun back.
The weekly CEO meeting that started when 85% of the Fair Play cards were on her plate, Wednesday date nights with a sitter, and their longtime babysitter and friend, who handles a standing list of errands.
A friend date on the seventh of every month, "different friendships for different seasons," a monthly massage, and the 10-year goals she keeps in a basket labeled "purpose and vision."

References:

The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck by Mark Manson — what's on her nightstand right now
Fair Play by Eve Rodsky — the book behind their weekly CEO meeting
Family Dinner — the weekly local produce, meat, eggs, and milk delivery that keeps her fridge stocked
Thrive Market — how she keeps the pantry stocked with grains and legumes

Connect with Samantha: