Ha Do’s ‘One Habit’: Making Lists

Every month, we speak with one incredibly busy individual about their ‘one habit’ that helps them keep their balance. Because after all, if they can, we certainly could too, right? This month, the team sat down for a quick lunch between her meetings with Ha Do, Creative Director of Dep Magazine.

Ha, we’re sure that life was already busy for you, but as a new mom, it must be even crazier! How are you managing?

It’s almost a job on its own! A very rewarding job, but I wouldn’t mind a quick nap right now, ha. Between organizing and preparing shoots for Dep, running my own production company and being a mom, there really don’t seem to be enough hours in the day.

And moreover, the pressure is always on because this industry really runs on personal connections and reputation. I’m always worried that something could go wrong, leaving those I work with unhappy with the end result. So, you’ll often see me staying long after the shoot has finished, going through the photos in detail, making sure we have everything we need… and then some.

Wow. It sounds like you spend a lot of time away from home.

What really helps is that even though I manage a large team, no one really expects me to sit in the office all day. It’s also why I try and squeeze my meetings into one day a week, freeing me up to spend much more time with baby, Leon. And, almost everything I need to do ahead of big shoots can be done over the phone. The phone that really never stops ringing.

What’s your secret to managing all of this?

Funnily enough, my phone is also my saving grace. I absolutely love keeping to-do lists on it. These lists really have become part of my daily routine. Every night, I take a moment to list out everything that needs to be done the next day, clearing my head while doing it.

You know Aria from Games of Thrones? Kind of like that, but with production jobs to do instead of people to kill.

We’re very happy to hear that last bit. So, this list habit, was it your German husband that inspired it? We know they tend to be pretty organized…

You’d think so, but no, this is something that I’ve always been doing. Actually, I sometimes feel he’s like more Vietnamese than me in a sense really, always begging me to stay home with the baby rather than going out to work. But with my ‘list’ habit, I feel like I’m able to manage both pretty damn well.

To read about world renowned chef Luke Nguyen’s ‘One Habit’ click here.