When you run a business, you can become increasingly isolated from those around you, simply because you are so determined to make it work. Although you are working hard at your business, you will be missing out on a lot in your life. That type of constant pressure isn’t good for your physical or mental health, so you need to come up with a plan to achieve a better work/life balance.
Become more organised
Sometimes the reason you don’t have any time isn’t that youhave a lot of work, but because you aren’t using your time in the best way possible. Take a look at the tasks you do every day, are there things there that you can do together? Are you doing some tasks more than once a day? It might be that you can’t see where you could save time, so why not ask someone else to come in and see what you do. Their different perspective could be the key to saving you time and having time with your family.
Get help
You might think that you can do all the work yourself, but the truth might be different. If you are getting overwhelmed and unable to relax for a moment, then you need some help to share the load. Perhaps there is a family member that can come in and give you a hand to make things easier, or perhaps you need to think about hiring someone. Another option is to use freelancers to take some of the work for a few hours a day. Think about giving them the low priority work and doing the high priority things yourself. Part of that could be using a company to do your tax return; this can save you a lot of time, andthey can also give you valuable advice.
Set yourself a schedule
Rather like a time card, you should start todevise regular office hours that you can work, but then leave the work alone for the rest of the time. It will be hard to do at first, and there will be times when an emergency will throw it off. However, if you can stick to it, you can create much more time with your family. If you are having problems keeping your hands off your business phone, then you might have to turn it off when you aren’t ‘working.’
Use your free time wisely
When you do manage to create some free time, make sure that you are using it the best way possible. Take the time to go and visit friends and family for a while and spend time with your partner and children. Plan your days so that you get the most done instead of sitting at home thinking about work.
Even though you are working hard at your business, there are many important reasons for not letting it overtake your personal life. You need the support of your friends and family so make sure you give them the time they need.
