How does your business show up in your life? Hopefully it contributes to your survival in meaningful ways, but how much time does it consume? I don’t want to assume my experience is the same as everyone else’s, so maybe this will be relatable for you or maybe it won’t.
Your business, your work, likely shows up in your life in at least three different ways.
First, the hours you spend on the work itself. How much of each day are you actually working? I include commute time here because for many of us that’s time lost. Maybe you’re lucky and you only work five days a week, and you work eight hours a day, with a 30 minute commute on each side. That’s nine hours a day, five days a week, totalling 45 hours each week. Absolute best case scenario.
Second, the time, energy, and mental load spent worrying and thinking about work. This is far more nebulous and harder to define with specific hours, but there’s a significant burden. I often think of my body’s ability to manage something as a cup that is being filled or emptied. I can only think or worry about so many things at once. If 90% of that cup is filled with work-related drama, what happens in the natural ebb and flow of my personal and family life?
The cup overflows and I’m overwhelmed.
They don’t need to be big or calamitous events either. One more load of laundry than usual. A change in my son’s school routine. Visitors for the weekend. If I’m consumed with what’s going on at work, two or three totally minor and innocuous changes make my entire life feel like there’s just too much going on.
Which brings me to the third way work can show up in your life. Emotionally, psychologically, how are you at the end of the day, at the end of the week, when you’re with your friends and family? Are you calm, patient, and understanding? Are you present? If your work has you feeling stressed, overwhelmed, or confused, I would be shocked if that doesn’t show up at home.
Are you the best version of yourself with the people that matter most to you?
Work is likely inevitable. Most of us aren’t independently wealthy, nor would we be happy in a life with no purpose. Running your own business is challenging, to be sure, but it doesn’t have to make you or your loved ones miserable. Your business should act in service of your life, not the other way around.
Every small business owner deserves to have the success, and the life, that they dreamed of when they started, including you.
PS: This is one of the many ways I engage with people. Many small business owners want to grow their business and improve their lives, but they’re overwhelmed and they don’t know how. So I use straightforward frameworks to help them drive their business forward, increasing profit, gaining confidence and peace of mind.
Here’s how you get started:
- Reach out on LinkedIn or via my website to schedule a call
- We get to know each other a bit and you tell me about yourself, your business, and what your current challenges are
- Schedule a low-risk 60-90 minute coaching session to take the first step toward a solution and experience what it’s like to work together