Having enough time for your family when you’re an entrepreneur isn’t always easy. When your business is just starting out and you’re in the early growth stages, it can feel as though you need to spend every moment working on it it. This isn’t good for your family life, especially when you’re a parent. Here are a few hints to help you balance work and family.
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Lighten The Load
Learn to delegate some of your to-do list, both at work and at home. It can be hard to let go enough to trust someone else to look after part of your business for you. However, if you’re trying to do everything yourself, you aren’t going to have the energy to invest in your family life.
For your business, it can help to hire a professional agency to take care of things like your marketing, or accounting.
At home, you can delegate to free up more time too. If you want to prioritize time with your children, hire someone to take care of the chores, whether that’s a cleaner, a gardener, or a company like Labor Panes. Don’t feel guilty about doing this.
Set Boundaries
Set working hours for yourself, and keep to them strictly. You won’t lose a client (not one you really want anyway) just because you didn’t immediately respond to an email that was sent at midnight. If you make yourself available at all hours, even if you’re sick or on vacation, you’re setting a dangerous precedent. Have clear boundaries for yourself to avoid getting burned out.
A good way to keep these boundaries is to turn your phone off. If you aren’t getting the notifications of emails or other messages, you won’t be tempted to reply to them then and there. Have a separate work phone, and turn it off when you’re not working.
Fuel Yourself The Right Way
A lot of tips for entrepreneurs are all about tips like getting enough sleep and having an exercise routine. Start small and think about the way that you’re fueling yourself. If you’re working long hours, are you powering through the day on too many cups of coffee and sugary snacks? Try to keep yourself going with healthy snacks instead, and swap at least a few cups of your daily coffee for water. You can get energy in a way that won’t cause you to crash later.
Schedule More Than Just Work
You probably schedule everything in for work, like meetings and deadlines, and you can do the same with your family commitments too. Blocking time out in your calendar for family commitments like movie night or date night can help you to see these as just as important as your work commitments. If they’re on the calendar it will be easier to make time for them and fit them in around your working hours.
A better work-life balance is better for your stress levels and will help you to do both more effectively.
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