Striking the best work-life balance

For most people juggling the demands of career and personal life is an ongoing challenge.  With so many demands on your time, it can feel difficult to strike this balance.  The goal is to make time for the activities that are the most important to you.

Here are some ideas to help you find the balance that’s best for you:

• Keep a log.  Track everything you do for one week.  Include work-related and non-work-related activities.  Decide what is necessary and what satisfies you the most.  Cut or delegate activities you don’t enjoy and don’t have time for. 
• Manage your time.  Organize household tasks effieciently.  Doing one or two loads of laundry every day, rather than saving it all for your day off and running errands in batches, are good places to begin.  A weekly family calendar of important dates and a daily list of to-do’s will help you avoid deadline panic. 
• Rethink your cleaning standards.  An unmade bed or sink of dirty dishes won’t impact the quality of your life.  Do what needs to be done and let the rest go. 
• Communicate clearly.  Limit time-consuming misunderstandings by communicating clearly and listening carefully.  Take notes if necessary.
• Nurture yourself.  Set aside time each day for an activity that you enjoy, such as walking, working out, listening to music, yoga or reading.  You deserve this precious time to yourself to help you unwind after a hectic workday.
• Set aside one night each week for recreation.  Take the phone off the hook, power down the computer and turn off the television.  Discover activities you can do with your partner, family or friends.  Making time for activities you enjoy will rejuvenate you.
• Protect your day off.  Try to schedule some of your routine chores on workdays so that your days off are more relaxing.
• Get enough sleep.  There is nothing as stressful as working when you are sleep deprived.  Getting the right amount of sleep will help keep your productivity high at work as well as keep you healthy. 
• Bolster your support system.  Give yourself the gift of a trusted friend to talk with during times of stress.  Having that “someone” to just listen to you can make all the difference in the world…don’t keep it bottled up inside.

Remember, striking a work-life balance isn’t a one shot deal.  Creating balance in your life is a continuous process.  Demands on your time change as your family, interests and work life change.  Assess your situation every few months to make sure you are keeping on track.  

Balance doesn’t mean doing everything.  Examine your priorities and set boundaries.  Be firm in what you can and cannot do.  Only you can restore harmony to your lifestyle.

 

Why Are You Doing Everything Yourself?

The title itself drew me in.  When I discovered this article, I knew it had to be interesting and full of insight on the benefits to you of working with a Virtual Assistant.  I have taken some excerpts from the article written by Alexandria K. Brown, a successful online entrepreneur, to give you the overall feel.   

Why Are You Doing Everything Yourself?

When I coach my entrepreneur clients, one problem I often see is that they’re not taking enough time to market and grow their business. It’s not that they don’t understand the value of those efforts, or they don’t want to make the time. It’s that they’re simply trying to do too much by themselves. They’re so busy running their business that they’re not working ON their business.

Are You Spending All Your Time on the Little Stuff?

Owning your own business requires wearing a lot of hats. But it seems that when many people leave their jobs to “go solo,” they think they must work completely solo as well. They insist on doing everything themselves–even tasks they know darn well they’re not good at.

They try in vain to design their own Web sites and brochures, write their own sales copy, process their own orders, manage their own mailing list, personally respond to every customer call and e-mail, ship their own products, and more. Pretty soon they’re running around like that proverbial headless chicken.

What eventually happens is their love for their work–the reason they started their own business in the first place– drowns in a flood of administrative trivia. Suddenly one morning they wake up feeling burnt out and without that positive, creative energy they used to have.

When this happened to me a few years ago, I was lucky to learn about virtual assistants (VAs). VAs are freelancers who take care of all that “busy work” for entrepreneurs like us. Because VAs are independent themselves, they work on an as-needed basis from their own homes or offices, saving you the cost and hassle of hiring a regular office assistant.  I now have two VAs–Liz, who lives in Boston, and June, who lives in Georgia. And I can’t live without them!

What Could YOU Delegate to a VA?

During next week, keep a log of all your activities. Then sit down and review it. Decide which activities are truly ones that only you can do and which you can delegate. For example, here are some of the tasks I delegate to my VAs:

• Responding to customer e-mails and phone calls re. downloading my e-book.
• Scheduling business and personal appointments and interviews.
• Bookkeeping: invoicing customers, receiving and paying bills, reconciling bank statements, tracking expenses and tax records, working with my accountant. (This was my favorite to delegate — I despise this stuff!)
• Internet research and fact checking
• Planning my travel for speaking engagements and seminars
• Maintaining my e-zine and customer mailing lists
• Managing my e-zine ad sales
• Handling registrations for my teleclasses/workshops
• Maintaining my Web site (copy edits, additions)
• Creating sales reports
• Shipping customer orders
• Submitting my articles to other publishers and article sites
• Placing ads in publications and at Web sites.
• Formatting e-books and creating PDF files
• Designing PowerPoint presentations

And I don’t stop there. Liz and June have also been happy to help me with personal stuff like researching vacations, purchasing client gifts, and reminding me of birthdays and other important dates. Thanks to these two amazing gals, I save my time and energy only for my “genius work.”

Worried You Don’t Have the Budget?

The good news is you’re not hiring your VA full time. A VA only charges you for the hours she actually works. Although VA rates may be more than you’d pay an administrative employee (usually $30-50 per hour), you don’t have the added expenses of employee benefits, office space, and equipment. You’re also getting someone who has years of experience, who loves what she does, who already has her own desk, chair, computer, software, fax, phone, stapler, and pens, and who’s ready to leap in and start work as soon as you are.

Keep in mind that having a VA will IMMENSELY free up your time to focus on the stuff that matters: marketing and growing your business, developing bold new product ideas and income streams, and servicing your larger clients. You’ll think much bigger and will have much more creative energy.

Don’t wait until it’s too late! Most of my clients put off hiring a VA until they “hit the wall.” Things like overdue bills, a messy office, late projects, and unreturned phone calls add up until their business almost collapses.

Take action NOW and at least learn more about getting some help. It will be a big relief, I promise!   

Online entrepreneur Alexandria K. Brown, “The E-zine Queen,” publishes the award-winning ‘Straight Shooter Marketing’ weekly ezine with 20,000+ subscribers.  Her website is www.alexandriabrown.com.

 

 

 

Time Saving Tips: Get More Done!

I stumbled upon a great website full of time saving tips, with topics ranging from “How To Plan Your Day” to “How To Delegate” to “How To Prevent Interruptions”.  The website address is http://www.getmoredone.com/tips.html.  Check it out, when you have time!

 

Time Management: Franklin Covey

All small business owners and entrepreneurs know the importance of effective time management skills and staying organized.  I am a huge fan of the FranklinCovey system, which I find to be an extremely useful tool in managing my time and keeping me organized, both professionally and personally.  I highly recommend attending one of their workshops that are taught from coast to coast every year.  I personally attended the “FOCUS:  Achieving Your Highest Priorities Time-Management Workshop” and it was worth every penny and every minute!  Their website is chock full of information on their products and workshops, so check it out when you get a chance http://www.franklincovey.com/.