The Never Ending Balancing Act

As a business owner, no doubt you have had some experience trying to balance your home and work lives at some point.

The key to doing this well is to put some rules in place that you follow, and that others follow as well.

For work-life balance there can sometimes be a fine line that needs to be amplified – so you don’t lose sight of what’s important at that time.

On the one hand, you want to be sure that you don’t immerse yourself in work every waking hour of the day.

My son has seen me using the laptop while we watch TV at night and he asks, ‘Mom are you working?’ but I’m really just on my Facebook. His perception is that I am always either at the PC in my office or on the laptop on the couch. Not a good perception!

There were times when I was working through the evening as well – when I wasn’t as organized and I maybe took on more work than I should have.

I am much better now to organize my schedule so that I do my work in my office during business hours – and I don’t ‘play’ on the laptop too much in the evenings anymore. It helps with balancing the perception that my family has that I never turn work ‘off’.

In terms of having your family help you hold to your own ‘rules’ – make sure that they understand when you are working and when you are not. If you need to post your business hours on your office door, then do that. Give them the information they need to help you stick to your own rules!

On the other hand, you need to make sure that you get everything done in a timely manner for your clients (or for your own business).

When you are setting up your work schedule, make sure it fits into your business hours. Occasionally it’s okay to have to work late, but respect yourself and your personal time. It’s no one else’s fault if you constantly take on more work than you have time to do in your business day!

Balancing your business with your life (family or just your own personal time!) is really important to avoid burnout, to keep creativity active and to just make you a well-rounded entrepreneur.

The ‘down’ time is essential to keeping you rested, refreshed and ready to look at new and exciting ways to improve your business.

By the same token, be sure that your clients know your availability. If they aren’t sure when you are on the clock, they might cross boundaries without realizing it. And if you respond to them outside of your business hours, confusion can set in.

Be clear and follow your own rules to keep everyone on the same page.

And although it can sometimes seem like a vicious circle, if you really stop to check how you are balancing things (and make adjustments where you can!) things will run more smoothly for you in both areas of your life.

What are you doing to balance your schedule and your life? I’d love to hear it! Leave your comment on my Facebook page: www.facebook.com/yourvamentor