Self care is an essential ingredient in a prosperous entrepreneurial venture. Running a business takes a significant amount of time and energy, and if you let yourself get overwhelmed, stressed out, or run down, both you and your business can suffer. Fortunately, a few simple time management and prioritization tips from The Edge can keep you firmly on the road to success.
Manage Your Time Well
Being an entrepreneur is a 24/7 job, but that doesn’t mean you have to be on and available around the clock. Try to set regular start and stop times for work and resist the urge to return non-essential calls or emails after hours. Delegate, where necessary, at work and at home. Use good judgment when deciding if you need to hire outside help, whether that’s for business services, like web design or IT, or in your home, like babysitting, housekeeping, or pet sitting. You can’t be everywhere at once, so find reliable help for small tasks so you can focus on the big picture of building your business.
Manage Your Money Wisely
Money is an obvious possible source of stress, so look for ways to cut costs that make sense. For example, there are plenty of free and low-cost ways to market your business. Social media is a great example, and you can even create a logo at no cost by using Adobe’s free online logo maker. This tool uses artificial intelligence (AI) to generate customized logos based on your input and your template selection. You also have a choice of graphics, icons and other digital assets, making the creation of your own logo a snap.
Exercise And Eat Right
It’s easy to live on coffee and doughnuts when you’re getting a company off the ground, but it’s not a viable plan over the long term. To stay in top form, you need to get regular exercise, either via a home gym, a fitness center, or by committing to regular physical activity doing something you enjoy. This could range from playing an intramural sport, skiing, hiking, communing with nature, or taking up dance or yoga.
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Also be mindful of what you eat and drink. Whole foods and plenty of water are good; fried, salty foods and too much soda or alcohol are not. Meal prepping and having healthy snacks on your desk can help you stay on track.
Make Time To Relax
According to Living Positive, when you’re living the hectic life of an entrepreneur, you have to make a concentrated effort to build relaxation into your schedule. There should be daily relaxers – like brief breaks every hour when you take a short walk or stretch; as well as more significant efforts, like turning off your phone and laptop in the evening to watch your favorite program, having a leisurely private dinner with friends or loved ones, or planning regular retreats and vacations where you can leave work behind.
Develop A Healthy Work-Life Balance
All professionals would do well to create a good balance between home and work life, but when you’re an entrepreneur – especially one with employees – it’s all the more vital. It’s important to set boundaries with your direct reports and establish clear expectations. Also make time to take personal days and work remotely once in a while. Managing a team of people is a stress-inducing task, so do your best to not only take care of yourself by establishing a healthy work-life balance, but also to encourage your team to do the same.
Don’t Let Stress Build Up
According to Healthline, by the time you start to feel stressed and run down, you’re probably on the heels of exhaustion. Do regular self-assessments to ensure you’re eating and sleeping well, setting reasonable work hours, and getting the outside help you need. Overworking yourself opens the door to mistakes, missed opportunities, and even mental and physical issues that can impact your work and your health. The American Institute of Stress can be a resource to help you find solutions.
Being an entrepreneur is an exciting undertaking, one that requires creativity, stamina, and a healthy balance between professional and personal life. Don’t forget, you are the business – taking care of yourself means taking care of your company, so treat yourself kindly.
A very good article, Dan Hall. Particularly the tips you have given to get rid of day to day stress are very useful. As you have rightly mentioned, taking time for yourself by managing your work life and personal life helps you balance your life. Enjoyed reading this article.
Adios.