For many entrepreneurs in the world of work, achieving a healthy work-life balance can seem almost impossible when you’re dedicated to your job. But dedication to your career doesn’t mean you need to neglect your personal life outside of work. Overtime, stress can easily make us susceptible to everything from simple colds to even stress-related strokes. In the rush to get things done, we may end up working overtime far too often, and after a while in this cyclone of stress, illness can come quickly.
A certain amount of stress may help us perform our duties faster, but without stress management, burnout can befall any entrepreneur much faster than they first thought. The key to managing stress is simple: Balance. A healthy work-life balance can ensure that, as workers, we understand what our limits are, and why having a life outside of work is so important.
Manage your goals every day
The best way to start achieving a solid work-life balance is to set manageable goals each day; not just work goals, but social goals, too. For example, one of your duties for the day is to process a load of emails from the previous day – this is your work goal, which means you give yourself a social goal for when you’re finished. Social goals don’t have to be about meeting old friends for lunch, or having a night on the town, they also incorporate self-care into your routine; such as having a night in, taking an extra long bath, or cooking a healthy meal from scratch.
Meeting goals on your daily to-do list can give you a sense of accomplishment and rewarding yourself by offering self-care or social activities after you’ve decided to stop for the day will feel much better than simply sleeping and going straight back to work the next morning. If you find yourself having a hard time reaching your goals, try working with a life coach online.
Ask your employer to be more flexible
Many companies have work-life policies, and as an entrepreneur, you should give yourself the same courtesy. If your work duties are severely interfering with the time you’re off-duty, then it might be time to look at your schedule and start being more flexible with your hours.
A good rule of thumb is this: If you don’t have time to do anything more than work, eat, and sleep, then something is wrong.
Take a break
At work, there is no rule against taking 5 minutes to yourself to take a few deep breaths before you continue with your day. Many entrepreneurs forget this, but they should encourage themselves to walk away from their desks when the day is getting too stressful.
It may not seem like it at times, a happy entrepreneur is a productive entrepreneur. If you don’t give yourself a moment to step away from your work to get your thoughts together, then you won’t be able to function as effectively as you can during the work day.
Unplugging and self-care
Once you’ve finished work for the day, if you’re using that evening to recharge rather than for social activities, then try to unplug yourself from the world as much as possible. Don’t deny yourself social media privileges, but just be aware that you don’t need to be available to people 24/7. Treat yourself to a movie night in, relax on the sofa, and eat some good food.
Don’t commit to too many social activities with friends during your downtime. Try to see people outside of work 2-3 days a week and save the rest of the time for yourself. You should try to have a night in the day before you’re due back at work, rather than exhausting yourself by going out.
Remember to stay active between work life and home life, it’s important to look after yourself and exercise a couple of times a week to ensure that you’re fit and healthy. Regular exercise reduces stress, depression, and anxiety.
Consider a life coach
A life coach enables you to feel more empowered by helping you reach your goals in life in a positive and healthy way. Life coaching is a very successful technique that is used by coaches around the world as an alternative kind of self-help, where the coach can help people turn their lives around when they’re feeling stressed and overwhelmed; perfect for entrepreneurs who run their own businesses. In the UK alone, there are approximately 80,000 to 100,000 life coaches working, which a large percentage of those being in London. If you find yourself looking for a life coach in London, they don’t come more highly recommended than Nick East.
I hope you found this article useful. Good luck in finding your perfect work/life balance!
