Finding That Elusive Work – Life Balance

When you own a business, and you love your work, there is a problem that occurs which sounds almost as bad as the “lottery curse”. You have the freedom to make your own schedule, yet you struggle to find a balance between work… and life.

Here are a few things you can do to achieve a balance between the work you love and the life that you’re missing out on.

Schedule Downtime

You are already governed by a calendar and task list, so be sure to build in down time on your schedule. Every individual—and every business—has different needs. For some, you might schedule a mini vacation on weekends. For others, it might be scheduling time to give family your undivided attention. The point is that rather than winging it, you should be enforcing down time.

Get Moving

You know how you keep saying that you don’t have time to exercise? Well, take the stair instead of the elevator. Park further away from the door. You will find little opportunities throughout the day, but you can create more by taking a few short breaks to walk around the block. As an added bonus, exercising will actually increase productivity… resulting in more time for play and life’s pleasures.

Read More

Do you watch TV?

If so, cut your screen time in half and make the time to read. This is something that will keep you entertained and engaged. Yes, it will also lead to increased productivity.

Just Say No.

It can be tempting to overwork and under-live, but at some point you will miss those moments that you are missing. Happy, balanced people learn to say “no” to working late when you don’t really need to, or you learn to turn down that job that will only leave you feeling drained… in order to say “yes” to other opportunities that matter.

Set Realistic Goals For Your Business And Your Personal Life

You are lucky to enjoy your work, but it is still work. Create a set of goals that include the number of hours you are willing to take away from having a personal life, and that should be the number of hours you dedicate to your business as well as other work-like activities. (Running errands, housework, etc.) Realistically, you will have more hours dedicated to work but with this strategy you might find it easier to leave more time for personal activities that aren’t work related.