You're struggling to balance work and life in a small business. How can you regain control and find harmony?

A wise person once said, “if it’s not a hell yes, then it’s a hell no.” Too often we add things to an already full plate that really aren’t meaningful or sufficiently important to merit the time and energy expenditure. We must learn to value ourselves enough to say no more often, not because we don’t care or aren’t kind or even interested, but because being the best version of ourselves takes priority and that invariably means we can only show up in certain times, places and for certain people, and cannot for others. Staying values-centered and grounded helps you avoid stretching yourself and your calendar beyond its limits and not being able to show up the way you want to. People want your best & you want to give it to them! Say yes wisely

Regain balance by Using MARSTA Goals? and setting this harmony as your first goal using these select steps from the framework: Motivation: Understand your “why” and share it to boost commitment. Accountability: Establish a support system for the team - internal or external to ask for help when needed Roadblock: Identify potential personal challenges and develop strategies to navigate them Strengths: Leverage everyone’s strengths to assign tasks to enhance productivity and job satisfaction Time Management: Create schedules and tools that prioritise tasks and create boundaries Acknowledge: Regularly celebrate achievements of any size to reinforce positive behavior Focus on these MARSTA? steps for balance, productivity and wellbeing

Six daily recommended habits: 1. Start your day with an empty canvas - Emulate Renaissance-era painter Leonardo da Vinci. Have a daily spiritual habit of clearing your mind to avoid stress. Read to prepare for practicing mindfulness and your career. Focus on gratitude for what is working well. 2. Exercise for a healthy mind and body. 3. Care for your partner and family - This is vital for a work-life balance. 4. Review your plans for the day - By late Thursday, you should know your plans for the following week. Tackle the most challenging task first. The rest of the day will go easier. 5. Read what’s important that pertains to your industry and clients. Check your e-mails and prioritize them. 6. Look for new contacts and opportunities.

Your time is your most valuable resource, so treat it as such. Everyday make a list of urgent and important tasks. Rank them in order and complete in that order. Be honest about your strengths. Do tasks that only you can do, and use your strengths. I often play scenarios in my head, if something radical happened what would happen if certain things didn’t happen. It’s a great way to understand what is really important.

"Prioritization is productivity driven." When my small business became overwhelming. I learned there was one secret to changing that: Prioritizing. What worked for me included the following: List and categorize your daily, weekly, and monthly tasks by urgency and importance. Focus Hours: I reserved doing high-priority work during my most productive hours of the day so that I knew critical work was getting done. Time for Life: Because essential tasks had been taken care of, I had more time and energy for personal activities without guilt. Prioritization gave flow to my work and a good balance in my work and life.

As a small business owner, it’s easy to get overwhelmed by the sheer number of tasks on your plate. Prioritizing is key to regaining control. Start by identifying tasks that directly impact your bottom line or have looming deadlines. Then, tackle them first. Delegate what you can, even if it’s hard to let go of control. Use tools like task management apps to stay organized and focus on what truly moves the needle. Most importantly, schedule time for yourself. By protecting your personal time and setting clear boundaries, you’ll be able to recharge and bring more focus and energy to your work.

It is very important to prioritize task on daily, weekly basis. Need to check what are the tasks which are taking time which is not helping to add value or bring business, eliminate/reduce those tasks. Prioritize tasks for self- care as well.

When you first start your business you work all the time creating small wins- there is no life work balance but there should come a time when the momentum you started takes on its own energy and requires less from you (see Jim Collins- Flywheel effect) that is when you need to delegate and bring in people who compliment your personal strengths and maybe more importantly your weaknesses. My best hire was an admin person- they took off the daily tasks that needed to be done and allowed me to have a work life balance. I was then able to take each part of my business and create tasks and systems to pass it off to others.

Balancing work and life as a small business owner is tough, but delegation is key. By outsourcing tasks like admin, marketing, and systems management, you free up time for strategic planning and personal pursuits. That’s where my executive virtual assistant services come in. I help solopreneurs and small teams increase efficiency, optimize systems, and boost marketing. Delegating not only lightens your workload but also empowers your team, creating space for growth. Let me handle the details so you can focus on what matters most—your business and your life. Ready to regain control? Let's connect!

Delegation ist ein wichtiges Tool - nicht nur für Führungskr?fte. Aufgaben zu delegieren, die nicht in den eigenen Verantwortungsbereich bzw. die eigenen Kernkompetenzen fallen oder besser/effizienter von anderen erledigt werden k?nnen, schaffen Kapazit?t für wichtige, dringenden oder strategische Aufgaben & helfen, das Stresspotential zu reduzieren & die Balance zu halten.

Surround yourself with people who love to do what you don't do well Prioritise activities that play to your strengths Delegate the rest Pick 3 priorities each day Do them Support and train your team Watch how you all thrive together The more you practice what you do well, the easier it becomes to have more time to do other things Learn new skills Experience new things Make more memories

Rodearse de colaboradores confiables es esencial. Que tengan una visión compartida con la de uno y por supuesto, confiar en que las tareas asignadas, las van a realizar de la mejor manera.

It’s difficult for most people to understand the pressure that small business owners are under. They are the jack of all trades so to speak and feel this tremendous responsibility to their employees and to their family. What I’ve learned from my experience is to adopt the WIN concept which means What’s Important Now at home and at work. When the business day is coming to a conclusion, and there is nothing pressing in front of you. It’s important to unplug, step away and put the same amount of time and energy into your personal family life balance. Work will always be there, but your children will grow up fast and before you know it, they will be off and running on their own. Don’t miss that opportunity to be successful away from work.

Time blocking to start but the biggest way to create the flexibility that we all need in our lives is to be in constant improvement mode from customer experiences and interactions. Simplifying processes and steps to achieve the same or better outcome is the business owner's real job. We own a business to ultimately have flexibility of schedule so we can be there for our family, friends, community...This flexibility has to be extended to all staff with boundaries, of course. The boundaries also have to apply to the owner. Flexibility is not always possible but clear communication to your network will also assist when needed and that includes customers.

Flexibility is the true name of the game. I used to be a separator - work was work and home was home and I didn’t deal well with unexpected events or disruptions. Now I over plan and then go with the flow. As long as everything gets done before I call it a day, it’s a win win. While the work does need to get done, there will always be more. When it comes to family and your personal life, those are often moments you’ll never get back.

"Flexibility keeps life balanced." When work and life went out of sync, embracing flexibility made all the difference. Here's what worked for me: Adjust as Necessary: I reorganized my workday to include necessary moments with my family without feelings of guilt. Communicate Early: Informed loved ones when periods were busy, this helped gain understanding and support. Setting Boundaries: I protected downtime to recharge, making me far more effective in both roles. Flexibility helped me honor my commitments while keeping my business and personal life in harmony.

Owners of small businesses have to be flexible, and probably one of the drivers for starting up in the first place was to have more flexibility in how and when you use your time. It is one of the advantages of working with a small business over a medium / large one. You can usually get things done quicker assuming you have the right skills and tools. From a home life perspective taking time out to sort the kids, or deal with a difficult situation, do your exercise etc feels easier to do when you're the one running the business vs being the employee. That maybe changing since Covid and the increased use of conferencing technology which is forcing corporations to have a more 'flexible' approach towards its employees.

Using technology has been a game changer in streamlining our company and making the most of my time. We are constantly looking for was to make our processes efficient utilizing the newest software and freeing up my time and my team's time to be used for customer service and innovation. This leads to feeling fulfilled at work and then work life balance becomes less of an issue.

Using scheduling tools and project management software can help automate repetitive tasks, such as setting appointments, tracking projects, and managing communications. By automating these processes, you free up valuable time to focus on growing your business and enjoying personal pursuits. However, it's important to set boundaries with technology—don’t let it spill over into your personal life. Use it to enhance efficiency, not consume your free time. The key is to find the right tools that work for you and allow for a healthier work-life balance.

One thing I've found through lots of reflection is that when I’m not mentally sharp or feeling my best, everything else suffers. What’s super critical is making sure your health is as optimal as possible, and that looks different for everyone—depending on your age, where you are in your career, and your stage in life. But wherever you find your best level of thinking, physical performance, and feeling good about yourself, that’s really the foundation. Everything else grows from there.

I never reflected. I was too busy. But after about ten years in business, I saw the the importance of it with the guidance of a coach. I now do this every morning before I begin my day: Who was I being, how did I contribute the day before, how am I going to do that today.

As I came to realize, "Balance requires regular check-ins with yourself." What worked for me: Reflect Often: I made it a habit to step back and assess what was working in my work-life balance and what wasn't. Make Adjustments: When things felt off, I didn't hesitate to adjust my schedule or delegate more, keeping both my business and personal life in focus. Stay Proactive: The regular reflection and adjusting kept me ahead of the burnout issue and both my well-being and my business strong. Reflecting has kept me in tune with my goals and at the helm of my work-life balance.

Reflection can be threatening to some people. They can claim to be too busy. Mostly that comes from fear of looking at oneself. If done in a quiet setting, one may derive such pleasure from what you have done right and such knowledge from what you have done incorrectly. Be kind to yourself. Keep a journal, at first, and label your "self sessions" with kind or unkind. When you see how productive unkind mind tapes are, one wants to change. So, learn how to kindly evaluate, not disengage from self evaluation. It can be so freeing. It might take a while to treat yourself kindly. But it is a habit that you must cultivate. Notice what a true uplifting evaluation sparks as apposed to an unkind one. It can be habitually mind altering.

GenX'r here. “Hustling” was a badge of honor. (Burnout wasn't discussed.) Plus, I’m a recovering people-pleaser-approval-seeking junkie. For years, “yes” was my default setting. Sometimes, we must hit pause and ask if what we’re doing still makes sense. Things change—constantly. And, it's annoying as $h…I digress. What used to work might not work anymore. Our time is FOREVER limited. As I’ve gotten older, I realize how quickly it passes. Is all the running around serving your passion? Your purpose? Most importantly, your soul? Resentment is a silent time thief as well. If flying by the seat of your pants is causing more chaos than clarity, it might be time to reevaluate what actually belongs on your calendar.