So as some of you may know I officially “started” my business earlier last year. Things had been pretty steady for a while and then in the past few months they sort of went crazy.
I was taking on too many things and possibly too many clients all at once. I was getting up every morning at 5:30am and still online some nights at 9pm at night.
To be honest, I have TONS of energy and I didn’t actually feel overwhelmed at the time. But looking back I think I was overwhelmed and pushing myself too much. I had to keep going and pushing in order to get everything I needed and wanted done.
And what ultimately happened was I got really sick. And getting sick actually made me even more overwhelmed because it showed me all the holes in my business.
I started my business to have freedom and to help others succeed in their businesses. I don’t like to work on weekends if I can help it, because I LOVE spending time with my family. And I do take most Saturdays (US Fridays) off but I guess it just wasn’t enough.
So I spent the better part of 3 weeks really ill. And I’ve spent the past week trying to figure out how to best run my business so that it doesn’t run me or my life anymore. I realized it is ALL about work life balance. And I want to share my 5 ideas and tips with you below.
1. PRIORITIZE
Prioritizing is KEY. I have had to start prioritizing what is most important to me and my business. What was I going to let go of vs. what was I going to do?
To me, my clients, my kids, my hubby and my health come first. Ok, I know they all can’t come first at the same time, but you get the idea.
So I had to ask myself. What is the most important thing I need to do for my business?
And of course my clients must always come first. I could never let down a paying client.
So I suggest, when it come’s to prioritizing ask yourself the following questions: What are the tasks that will bring in money? and What is going to make the biggest impact for you and your business?
Using these two questions will really help you when making a decision.
Never get so busy making a living and forget to make a life. (tweet this!)
2. STOP & REGROUP
So what I have done was take a bit of a step back and regroup. I am still focused on my clients, but I am also extremely focused on me, my health and my family. I won’t let things go back to the crazy way they were before. I will start to implement some new systems so that I can work smarter not harder.
I gave a lot of myself to a lot of different people. And I have taken back some of my power. I still love to support and help others, but I also need to know that I can’t be the only one giving. I need to feel supported and nurtured in my different relationships both business and personal.
So if you are even remotely feeling overwhelmed, or giving more than you are receiving, take a step back and make some changes. Adjust things so that you can handle them easier and have more control. This is your life and your business, and you get to make the rules and make the decisions. I don’t ever want you to feel like you are overwhelmed or playing catch-up. So stop and take control today!
3. SCHEDULE
If it’s not scheduled and planned out, it isn’t real and it probably won’t happen. (tweet this!) Now I will admit this is my kryptonite. I am getting better at planning. And here is my suggestion for you (as well as for myself). Make a schedule and stick to it! Follow it because it will make your life easier!
Create a schedule that you can stick to and don’t waiver. Determine what the right number of clients is that you can take on. With a strict schedule you will be able to know what you actually have time for and what you need to make time for.
Literally make it a habit to write down every single task that you need to do and get it in your schedule! The other thing I want you to do every day is to write down the ONE thing that you must accomplish to make that day a success. This is very important.
If you have too many things on your “to do” list then you can get overwhelmed. But if you can make sure you have the MOST important thing you need to accomplish highlighted, then you can really stay focused and then celebrate at the end of the day what you did.
I also suggest you set hours for yourself. Don’t work all hours of the day. Make sure you have some serious down time. It is imperative and something that we don’t think we need, but our bodies will scream out to us even if we think we are fine for the moment.
4. PLAN AHEAD & BATCH CREATE
I had been writing a couple blog posts every week, but as opposed to holding onto them, I was just publishing them. So going forward I will continue to write up a couple of blogs every week, but I will save them and know that I can easily publish or have my VA publish and not have that lingering over my head if I go on vacation, have a family emergency or get sick.
Plan your content as far ahead as possible. Get your blogs, your social media posts created and know you have a plethora of content that you can share over the next month or two.
If you can batch your writing and get a bunch done in one sitting, and using that content to post throughout the month, then you will rarely be overwhelmed with keeping up with your content if client work gets too busy.
This will also allow you to plan for the unexpected. If you get sick or if there is a family emergency you have that content created and ready so you won’t have to worry about it. I would even suggest having an email template ready that you can get your VA to send out to your current clients if something comes up.
Obviously this is something I am creating now given I didn’t have this in place when I got so sick. 😉
Plan your work and work your plan. Napoleon Hill (tweet this!)
5. DON’T BE TOO HARD ON YOURSELF
We are only human and there is only so much we can do. So don’t be too hard on yourself. We can easily get caught up in doing too much and then get overwhelmed.
So remember, we shouldn’t take things too seriously. Relax, chill out, do what you can and have fun. Take this as a life lesson (like I am doing) and do what you can to make your life and business easier, more balanced and more efficient.
Do you feel your work life balance is out of control? Is your business running your life? What did you do to get control back? I would love to know in the comments below!
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