Disclaimer: In celebration of my company Nel’s Tax Help, LLC completing its second year of business, I decided to share some words of wisdom to other new business owners that will help them along their entrepreneurial journeys. Tips provided are purely for informational purposes only. Enjoy!
As a new business owner, you are typically the following roles for your business:
- The Strategist
- Lead Generator
- Bookkeeper
- Secretary/Administrator (the paperwork and forms never ends)
- Marketing
- Human Resources
- Tech Department
All these roles and you will still need to make or oversee the production of your products, or you will still need to provide the core services, of your company. It is easy to see how it can all become exhausting and feel like you are always working all the time.
Many other entrepreneurs who have businesses that have been established for more than 10 years will say that working the extra hours at the beginning of your entrepreneurial journey is all a part of paying your dues; and to an extent, they are right.
As an entrepreneur you will work more hours around the clock when you first start out because you are creating a work environment and a business operation which will require some trial and error. Perfecting a business takes time, and that sometimes mean many, many long hours and days that run together.
But you cannot forget one of the important reasons many of us decide to go into business for ourselves. Most entrepreneurs will say one of their reasons for wanting to start their own business is to have a more flexible schedule and to have more time to do more personal, enjoyable things in life.
I am not going to preach about work-life balance as I personally do not believe there is a a balance. Something will always take priority over your time – one hour it will be work and the next hour it will be your child’s sport game. There is no balance. Just choices.
But I do believe in committing to your schedule of how you will spend your time. If you can dedicate an hour in a day, or even a few hours in the week, to yourself to spend however you need to spend them to revive yourself – do it! You owe it to yourself, your family and friends, and your very company to invest in the most important asset of your work and personal life – the asset of you.
The more time you can make sure you protect your time away from the business for exercise, for family time, or even for a quick nap, you come back fully recharged to give your best energy to your business.
Come back tomorrow for Tip #6: Acknowledge and Appreciate Your Helpers
Shan-Nel D. Simmons 