This particular business owner considered himself to be a fairly normal business owner in terms of the amount of work that he did and how he was coping with it.
However, he recently took a holiday, the first in some time, and had quite a journey of personal discovery during that break.
The opportunity to take time out with no plans whatsoever, not even a trip planned, gave this small business owner time to reflect on where he was currently at.
And what he wanted to do moving forward.
Life Balance
We all spruke on about life/work balance and keeping perspective, but how many of us really do it?
Another friend of mine, (who has now learned this life balance lesson), had similar experiences.
She would work so hard and put herself under such pressure during the year that when she took a holiday, she would be sick for the first week.
Her body, being given time to unwind and relax at last, would release all the accumulated tension of the year in the form of illness or flu.
How many times do you experience this? It is very common.
As small business owners, we have a very strong commitment to our clients and our team, and to providing our clients with a great service.
And this will often drive us to do more and more and more, without due respect or consideration for our selves.
Which brings me back to the airline metaphor that I mentioned before.
“Put your own mask on first before helping others.”
If you don’t put your own oxygen mask on first, (take care of yourself first), you may run out of oxygen and black out. When this happens, you have no chance of helping others who might need your assistance, (like your family, your clients, etc).
There will be others around you in the airplane, such as children and the elderly, who will need your assistance.
And it is the same in business. Your customers need your assistance.
But if you did not put your own oxygen mask on first, if you do not take care of your own health, well-being and state of mind first, then there is no way that you can help your customers effectively.
The aforementioned speaker said that he was feeling guilty about taking time off while there were staff left in the business struggling to cope with things without him being there.
And yet, it seemed fairly certain that if he did not take the time out now, then he would not be there for much longer anyway!
Fortunately, he got the oxygen mask metaphor and made some changes.
What does this look like?
It does not have to be a big thing. Really!
It might be as simple as taking an hour a week to do something that you enjoy.
It might be taking your partner or family out for a meal once per week or month.
It might be giving some time to a hobby or interest, such as:
- a sport – surfing, golf, local football, cricket
- exercise – weight lifting, running, even taking a walk
- reading – for pleasure, not for work
- gardening – even just a pot plant on the balcony
- family – take time out for QT (quality time) with family and loved ones
Personally, I would not include watching TV as a healthy “time out” activity, but that is up to you. LOL
Work/Life Balance is like a muscle – it needs to be exercised and developed.
Your Team
While this article is directed primarily at business owners, the same applies to your team members.
It is important for the business owner to recognise this need for their team, their employees.
As much is it is for the team members to recognise it themselves.
Relevance of this to websites?
If there is any relevance of this article to websites, it is this.
At Hotpink Websites, we incorporate functionality into your website that will help you to save time and hopefully create some more life/work balance for yourself.
Your website should be a Business and Marketing Tool that helps your business run more efficiently, as well as generating more revenue for you.
Not just an online brochure.
Well, that is quite simple really!
What should you do now?
Take time out before your body forces you to take time out.
Want some help or ideas? Just contact us at Hotpink Websites now.