How To Take Care Of Yourself

You need to take care of yourself as a small business owner, especially one that works from home. If you do not, you can’t work. If you don’t work, you won’t make any money.

Your family may be counting on the income that you make, even if it isn't much. You may even have employees that you have, who also need your business to succeed! Because of this, you need to find time to take care of yourself.

Here are some ways to make sure that you take care of yourself.

Eat well. You need to eat well to have the strength to work hard. Make sure that you make healthy choices, when it comes to what you put in your body.

Exercise at least several times a week. Besides being healthy, it allows you to blow off some steam. It can be a great way for business owners (and really anyone) to relieve some of their stress.

Get enough sleep. This can be hard because we often feel that we have to get up early or stay up to work late so that we can put more time into our business. However, with enough rest, you will perform better at your job. Make sure that you get at least six hours of sleep every night.

Find time to relax. Life is too short to just work and sleep. You need to enjoy life, so make sure that you take time to do the things that bring you joy, such as spending time outside, reading a book, or even just taking a hot shower to relax.

Spend time with your family. You work to support them, so find time to enjoy them. In the evenings and weekends, put down your work and spend time with your family. Plan fun outings, as well as just hanging around the house.

Go to the doctor regularly. Regular checkups are important to stay healthy. Your doctor may even help you catch something early, so that you can make the changes necessary to continue to live as healthy as possible.

So, now that you want to take care of yourself, how can you find the time?

Hire some employees if you have enough business and are able to. If you are swamped with work, it may be time to think about bringing on some more help.

You may decide to hire an accountant so that you don't have to think about your paperwork anymore. You may also need someone to help you with the projects that you are making. If you ship products, you may need someone to help you with packing and shipping.

Hire a virtual assistant. If you can't justify hiring an employee, you may want to think about hiring a virtual assistant. He or she can help you as needed.

Instead of hiring someone for twenty hours a week, you can use a virtual assistant as little or as much as possible. You may even decide that you need help one hour this week and then the next. Instead of having to pay an employee for ten hours a week, you can pay whatever you do need.

Delegate things that you hate to do so that you can spend more time doing the things that you enjoy. Maybe you hate paperwork or scheduling. Maybe you don't want to deal with all of the emails that you get. Whatever you don't enjoy, let someone else do the work! That allows you to focus on doing only the things that you enjoy the most.

Make having a balance in your life a priority. Whether you work from home or you have an office somewhere else, it can be hard to find a balance between working and your home life. You need to make sure that you are fully focused when you are working and, when you are home, you are in the moment with your family!

Even though it can be hard, sometimes it is important to get help. You don't need to do everything! In fact, letting go of some things can help you in the long-run. You can focus on the parts of your business that you enjoy and let go of the rest!

What do you do to take care of yourself? Are you getting enough sleep? Eating good enough? Enjoying your family?

Previously published on Medium.