I wanted to share this with you, especially today in support of World Mental Health Day 2022.
As a female entrepreneur, there are a multitude of myths and lies that are put out there. These can be terrible traps for the unwary. In turn, having a detrimental effect on our mental health.
One I think is pervasive, the idea that to be ‘successful’ you have to be giving 100% and hustling the whole time.
This only works when you have no other responsibilities, except for your business. The thing is, when you are a parent, or carer for an elderly or vulnerable person, unexpected events happen. The memorable day for me was when a daughter had been playing at school and got her foot stuck in a rabbit hole, and I had to drop everything to race to pick her up and get her to A&E for x-rays. Never mind if I’m in a client meeting or preparing important documents.
I could equally well tell you of hundreds of other times from chickenpox or weird random 24 hour bugs or there’s a flood at the school or a snow day when only one flake of snow has fallen so all kids need picking up. Juggling? Logistical expert more like!
How is it possible to manage everything, being the swan and attempting to glide elegantly through life when you’re madly paddling below the water? You’re needed constantly for driving kids to appointments, sports matches and practice and music lessons. When your dog is ill or the boiler breaks, or your elderly mother is having an operation and didn’t mention it until the day before. And by the way, you’re also the moral support, the mental health support and chief listener to everyone else’s problems. Family life is busy.
Add into this the running of a small business, and the unexpected things that happen there, the last minute jobs that come in, the demanding clients, the technology that decides to crash at the last minute, the staff that go off sick.
It can feel like just when you are getting somewhere, and the business is taking off, that’s when all the rest of your life begins to fall apart. Whether it’s World Mental Health Day or not, we need to be investing in our mental health.
Supporting the mental health of business owners and entrepreneurs on World Mental Health Day 2022 and every day.
You just can’t spend all your time at work, EVEN if you want to, there is just so much more to be doing to keep life working. When YOU are the central lynchpin, you are needed for more than just your business. And that is why I say 100% fully booked is the wrong aim. Instead be fully booked at around 80% and keep that 20% back for contingency. If you’re wondering why you are overwhelmed, stressed and out of control in your small business, have a look at whether you are trying for the 100% when 80% is right for you.
If there isn’t enough space in your diary for you to have some down-time, thinking time or strategy planning, time for meditation and breathing, I respectfully suggest that you might benefit from a new look at your diary. These are essential parts for a successful balanced life, and to enable calm and peace. When you’re constantly over booked, you find yourself lurching from crisis to calamity and the person that gets stressed and unable to cope is YOU.
A great tool for coping with all the business and lifestyle struggles is to take time for some daily relaxation, you can download my free deep-relaxation audio below. Listen to it for 21 days and let me know how it’s helped you.
Often it’s a lack of boundaries and other people stealing your time because you haven’t been clear about when you’re available and when you aren’t, but it can be just because you have a lot of responsibilities and life is unpredictable. Emergencies happen. You do have some control though, even in what might seem like chaos. Make a choice that you will be fully booked when you’re at 80% and this will leave you some contingency available for the inevitable heart-sinking phone call!
Sound familiar?
Often it’s a lack of boundaries and other people stealing your time because you haven’t been clear about when you’re available and when you aren’t, but it can be just because you have a lot of responsibilities and life is unpredictable. Emergencies happen. You do have some control though, even in what might seem like chaos. Make a choice that you will be fully booked when you’re at 80% and this will leave you some contingency available for the inevitable heart-sinking phone call!
Sound familiar?
Practical tips – Improve your mental health
1. Spend time going through your diary and block out time when you are not available for appointments.
2. Add into your diary, additional time for strategy planning, thinking, meditation and non-work time.
3. What is in your diary that someone else could do?
4. Remember that not everyone has the same responsibilities, you’re not competing on a level playing field. Play your own game with your own rules.
5. Sometimes allowing a little contingency will feel a bit uncomfortable, when you are used to working at full pelt. Don’t panic, this is just a feeling, and an adjustment to creating calm and contingency time which is unfamiliar.
6. Remember that you don’t have to fill every minute of every day with busy-ness. Create space instead.
I work with clients to help discover what it is holding them back or causing their struggles to live better and work smarter. You can book a free no-obligation call with me below.
There are also plenty more free self-help tools, techniques and tips to support the wellbeing of business owners, entrepreneurs and everyone as individuals here in my self-help blog.
In support of World Mental Health Day 2022.