Business owners tend to be busy people. If your business is small, and even if you have a team (smart you!), you're probably still pretty darn busy.
There's always more to do. Another networking meeting to attend. Another prospective client to call. Another program to design. Another marketing campaign to launch. More reports to run. The constant administrative work to do.
Feel drained yet?
Yep. That's the problem. There is always more to do. You will not ever get to the end of your to-do list. Never.
So give up on that dream that if you just work hard enough, work a little longer, find things to motivate you, set the timer, put your head down and push forward that you'll get it all done.
That's the quickest way to burnout.
You need fun in your life!! More fun = a happier life = a happier business owner = a more successful business.
Really.
We're already into the several months of the year, and it's been a pretty busy year for me so far. I've upped my game in the networking and speaking world. I've implemented even more systems in my business that allow me to get more done. I'm bringing on more clients. I'm filling retreats and workshops. Heck, I even launched a new website and rebrand.
I looked back at when the last time was that I had pure, unadulterated fun. It took me a bit, and I finally came up with a date: New Year's Eve. Thankfully, that was just a few months ago. I was afraid my last fun day might have been many more months ago.
I took a hard look at my life and how I spend my off time, my non-working time. I came up with three categories:
- Activities that replenish your fuel. These are things you do to keep that fuel level steady or, in times of great need, to replenish the emergency tank. For me, this is puttering around the house (decluttering, fluffing a pillow, maybe even sweeping - weird, maybe, but a noncluttered environment is part of my sacred space), reading, going for walks, making yummy food. These are activities where you see a noticeable difference in your energy if you're not doing them.
- Hobbies and things you just love to do. These are the things you do that remind you that you're a real person, not just someone who runs a business 24/7. I love to color, create, draw, quilt, but I cannot do these things if my energy is depleted and I'm tired. If I don't do them for a long time, though, I do start to feel a shadow of myself.
- Pure, unadulterated fun! These activities have no agenda and hopefully no timeline. When I reviewed the times where I felt we just had fun, it was times like a New Year's Eve party we hosted, playing hooky in Washington, D.C. during the Cherry Blossom Festival, getting Subway sandwiches and hiking all day... it almost always involved getting out of the house (except for the New Year's Eve party) and away from our normal, daily environment.
Review your life and see where you can plot your nonwork and nonhousehold activities in the three areas of fun. Hopefully, you can plot fun things to do proportionally in all three areas.
Are we having fun yet?
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