Mastering the Art of Work-Life Balance For Entrepreneurs: Avoid Burnout

Entrepreneurs unite….we are all going to sit and hug each other virtually while I lay out a small list of adjectives/phrases that describe what it feels like to be an Entrepreneur, you ready?

Exciting, life affirming, challenging, overwhelming, all consuming, a joke, BOSS mode, regressive, progressive, etc. I think that's enough for now.

In a nut shell, it's a lot, all at once. And if you work from home, the work life and your personal life lines are BLURRED so far past the point of anything good, it's difficult to find a way out. And this is why it's important that we find ways to balance our works days and create separation with the other things that matter most to us. That could be hobbies, your family, and or just resting so you can recharge yourself.

Here's some quick and easy tips to help you maintain balance and avoid burnout.

Create A Work Routine

Your time has to be split into so many different tasks throughout the day, so having a routine gives you a baseline on how to get each day started, and how to free you up when you need it most. The routine doesn't need to be rigid either, start by identifying the working hours you'll put in each day. From there, lay out where you will dedicated your time each hour you work or every two hours. Make sure you have time on the schedule to take at least a 30 minutes break, even if that seems impossible to do. And begin listening to your body, when agitation and lack of focus arise, this is when you need that 30 minute break more than ever. If you notice that you're cursing at your phone or laptop more than necessary…take a step back, stretch, maybe eat something, walk around while you eat(even if indoors), this will help you to self-regulate your emotions. Try to keep focus on the moment, not what happened prior or the work you're going back to.

Delegating Tasks Can Be A Savior

It's not a written rule that as an Entrepreneur you MUST do everything relating to your business. You want to free up more time, learn to delegate tasks that can be done better by someone else, and take them less time to accomplish it. This helps you to learn more about something outside of your expertise and helps to reduce stress because you have a team member helping to alleviate the stress of this task.

Boundaries, Boundaries, Boundaries

Work boundaries, like all other boundaries, should be set, with some flexibility. BUT you do need to set them. Create a boundary that helps you to switch from work to personal life, especially if you work from home, and stick to it on most days. Life will happen, but when life isn't “lifing”, keep to your boundary. This could be anything from making sure if you work from home, you wear something that means you are working now. It could be your entire wardrobe, it could be just a pair of tennis shoes….and when work is over, remove that piece of clothing or footwear that represents work, and get into something comfier. This can help instead of setting specific work hours which will inevitably fails us because we just get used to not looking at the time to avoid feeling guilty that we are still working and not honoring our own boundaries. That stiff shirt or clunkier shoe may make it harder to ignore! Find a way that works for you and implement it!

Embrace the Chaos

Things will be hard, chaotic, fun, challenging, and all the things. Guess what, the down times can be embraced, just like the times things are going well. Take it in stride, it's part of the journey, it's where the best lessons take place. Have fun and don't take yourself too seriously.

Keeping these tips in mind will help you navigate your Entrepreneur journey, just knowing that there are others out there who clearly are experiencing the same highs and lows as you are is reassuring! And if you're looking for a community to be on your journey with, check us out on Instagram.

Tag us @mycreatorteam and let us know which boundary you put in place for a better work life balance!