Life as a solopreneur…in many ways the work is the easy part. You know what you’re supposed to be doing. You say that you’re working and your community understands why you’re not available. In fact there’s a certain level of “I’m doing the right thing” when you head to work.
However…one of the biggest problems I see with my clients is that amidst 
all of the work, what is left out of the equation is themselves.
Every entrepreneur I’ve ever spoken to tells me that to at least some degree the reason they went into business in the first place was to be in control. They want to be able to have a life and earn money doing what they want.
How about you? Is that why you went into business? So the question is… why does taking care of yourself fall off the radar day after day?
Why don’t you give yourself permission to take care of yourself? Why don’t you give yourself permission to be happy? Why don’t you give permission to yourself to let the work wait AND (here’s the catch) not feel guilty?
It’s not that we don’t know how to put things on hold. We are quick to put off recovery and renewal time. We are quick to put off family. We’re quick to put off exercise. We’re quick to put off massages. We’re quick to put off our friends.
We use excuses like “I just have to empty out my inbox.” “I need to tweak the sales page a bit more so that it’s perfect.” “I’m just going to spend a few minutes seeing what’s going on on Facebook with total strangers.”
Work/life balance. Honestly I don’t think it exists.
What I do believe is that we were not put on earth to support our businesses.
I believe that entrepreneurs (including me) create businesses to support ourselves. When we leave ourselves out of the equation neither you, nor your business, has a fighting chance.
I don’t have a magic cure for this (sorry).
What I do know is that the cure involves introspection and giving yourself permission to bring yourself back into the picture.
Here’s an exercise I gave a client the other day to start bringing some of himself back into his life. Give it a try.
Before starting the workday give yourself five minutes to just be. Do this outside of where you work and ideally outdoors (without a cell phone) and breathe the fresh air. If you drive to work, pull the car over to the side of the road for five minutes. You could spend an extra five minutes in the shower. Or quietly enjoy a cup of tea or coffee. Give yourself this time to regroup and ground yourself. One word of caution… do not use this time to create your to-do list.
Then at the end of the day do the same thing. Step away from your workspace and give yourself five minutes to shut down work and allow yourself to pay attention to you.
It’s all about your happiness. It’s why you’re doing this in the first place, isn’t it?
How do you keep yourself happy? What would ten minutes in your day do for you? I’d love to know your thoughts, share with me in the comments section below.
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I do this every morning. I get up early just to have my quiet time alone. It sets the tone for the day, allowing me to face whatever comes much more serenely. I highly recommend it!
Glad you’re already doing it… it makes such a difference.
Carrie, you are so right. If you don’t take time for yourself, you can’t think straight, and you can’t perform your best. I always take quiet time in the morning. It rubbed off on my daughter. Its our time to get our heads on straight and be ready for the day ahead. With the new research, we’ve made it a point to unplug a while before bed.
And I know this article is meant to be the tip of the iceberg, but you really need to take care of your health. Eat right, sleep enough, get enough sleep, and so on. You will be able to out perform everyone around you if you do. It is the best investment you can make.
Soooo true, Carrie! My schedule fits my rhythms and allows me to fit in what lights me up (fitness, self-care, social life, etc) but there was a period that my time was filled with other people’s issues to the detriment of me (thus burning me out and leaving me feeling disengaged from my biz).
I see a lot of my clients go through this, and until we cultivate self-worth and release servitude to our biz, we struggle making ourselves a priority 🙂
Thanks for such a great post (and reminder)!
Hi Jennifer!
What I find so interesting is that the things we often willingly take on things to our own detriment. These are things that we WANT to do in some way or feel that we should.
We are so on the same page that we need to cultivate our own self to have a fabulous business.
Carrie
SOOO agree with this. I read a daily meditation and affirmation book that totally grounds me. And I remind my clients of their top 3 priorities: 1. Clients 2. Money-Generating Activities 3. Sacred self-care
Sacred self-care is perhaps the most important! Lose yourSELF or your HEALTH and you’re screwed … no matter how “successful” you are.
Thanks for the reminder, Carrie!