This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with Rebecca Minkoff, a 45-year-old fashion designer, cofounder of the Female Founder Collective, and former “Real Housewives of New York City” cast member. It has been edited for length and clarity.
My public image is, I think, very glamorous. In reality, there’s a lot of nitty-gritty dirty work in a typical day.
At work, I’m still trying to track down traveling road reps, just like I was 20 years ago. For the Female Founder Collective, my network of women-led businesses, I send most of the emails myself.
At breakfast time, I become a short-order cook for my four children. Plus, I mostly travel to work by subway.
It’s not all perfect, but I feel energized by what I’m doing. Here’s what a usual day for me looks like.
I’m not an early bird, but I rarely sleep in
My alarm is set to go off at 7:45 a.m. My husband is an early bird, but if I had my way, I’d sleep until 10 a.m every day. That never happens. Our three-year-old sleeps in our bed, so he often wakes me up at 7:15 a.m.
Once I’m awake, I brush my teeth and take hormone replacement therapy. In 2024, I had some tests done because I wasn’t feeling well. After three months of taking hormones, I had lost weight, experienced fewer emotional highs and lows, and started feeling like myself again.
I’m also on about 30 different supplements, including ashwagandha, methylated B12, and glutathione.
My first mission of the day is coffee. I make a large Americano with my Breville and add Lakanto monk fruit chocolate powder, which helps me avoid a blood sugar spike.
My husband makes lunch for our children, while I make breakfast and get the youngest dressed.
I take the subway to get to work at 10 a.m.
In the mornings, I make my “perimenopause drink” with 30g of PerfectAmino protein, gut supplements, creatine, and colostrum, which I take to the gym. I go to the gym for an hour five days a week. I do heavy weights and work with a trainer twice a week.
Then, I take the subway to the office, which takes about 25 minutes. I’ve given up on cars because sitting in traffic makes me feel unproductive. I’ll only take one if I need to be fully glammed up and in heels.
On the subway, I used to do work, but nowadays I usually just sit and look around. If I see someone with a Rebecca Minkoff bag, I hand out “RM spotted” cards with a thank-you note and a discount code. It’s fun to see those women’s reactions.
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My to-do lists are analog — I prefer it that way
I arrive at the Rebecca Minkoff office and catch up on emails. About three years ago, I decided to stop checking them first thing and now build in 30-minute windows to read them throughout the day instead.
Some days, when I’m designing, often in three-hour blocks, the number of emails waiting for me at the end of the day can feel overwhelming.
To stay on top of my work, I rely on analog to-do lists. My brain can be quite frenetic, and writing down my thoughts on paper helps clarify them. I also prefer the satisfaction of ticking off tasks by hand rather than doing them on my phone.
I usually fast until noon because I feel less heavy that way, although by that time I’ve had two coffees and my perimenopause drink, so I’m not starving. Lately, I’ve been sipping on bone broth around midday.
For lunch, it’s rare that I make my own food. I’ll often get something like a Cava salad or a Korean bowl. I always carry a protein bar in case things get busy.
I personally send emails to members of the Female Founder Collective
At 2 p.m., I meet with Alison Koplar Wyatt, my cofounder of the Female Founder Collective, to go over priorities. We speak twice a week alone, and twice weekly with the team.
We founded FFC in 2018, and while it’s grown quickly, many touchpoints can’t be automated or delegated. Alison and I reach out to book guests ourselves. If we’re inviting members to our higher-tier community, The Cabinet, I draft the message myself because I understand their pain points and can make it feel personal.
I don’t enjoy sending thousands of emails, but I’m spurred on by my belief in FFC’s mission: to develop and elevate women-owned businesses by providing free education and organizing paid-for events. Helping other women fuels my soul.
I stop work at 5 p.m. to look after the kids
If I don’t have meetings, I’ll fit in a podcast recording for Superwomen with Rebecca Minkoff. Most days, I leave the office at 5 p.m. A babysitter picks the kids up from school.
It’s hard to get anything done once the kids are home. If there’s something work-related and urgent, I’ll do it after bedtime, but I try not to. I remind myself I’m not curing cancer.
The kids have after-school activities. My husband and I alternate who takes the kids to them, and whoever stays home handles dinner and bathtime. We tend to make the same dinners over and over again: roasts, Crock-Pot meals, pasta, and lots of salads.
Three days a week, we watch TV as a family. We’re really into “Fear Factor.” Two days a week, we read or play games. At the moment, we’re into Rummikub, and we’re teaching them poker.
Bedtime for the kids is around 9:30 p.m.
I unwind with TV and ice cream, but often end up doomscrolling
To wind down, I’ll have peppermint or ginger tea, eat ice cream, and watch a show, like Amazon’s “CEO Club.” It shows me what a positive reality show can actually look like.
I try to be asleep by 11, but I often doomscroll on Instagram and end up falling asleep by midnight. My feed is mostly full of content about AI, perimenopausal women, and marketing initiatives.
My routine is pretty consistent, unless I’m traveling, which often throws my healthy eating and workouts out the window. By the end of the day, I’m already looking forward to the next one, especially my morning coffee and workout. The gym is my happy place.
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