
A friend of mine wrote a post recently that said, “something always takes priority.” In the last several years, I have been working hard to maintain a work/life balance but is the balance that I’m working towards just an illusion?
I don’t think that a work/life balance necessarily needs to be 50/50 on a daily basis. There are seasons where one or the other will take priority. I work towards a more general balance throughout the year. Let me explain.
Take Regular Vacations
I think one of the best ways to balance my work, family, and personal self-care is to plan out my vacations at the beginning of the year. During my vacation, my balance shifts to a 90/10, I rarely check my emails, I stay off of social media, allowing my pre-planned posts to auto-post, and have my projects in a place that won’t require my attention while I’m away.
Set Clear Office Hours
I think this is the hardest one when you have kids, especially; however, I really try not to let work bleed into my family time and vice versa. I have caught myself at times answering emails during my kid’s lacrosse practice or booking baseball coaching during work times. The problem is that I don’t find myself particularly productive when I do things like this. Setting clear office hours where I can focus on work allows me to have set hours for uninterrupted family time as well.
Set up Systems in Your Business
Setting up systems in your business allows you to close the door to your office and know that your clients are still taken care of. Whether it’s for the night or for the weekend, using a client management solution like 17hats will allow you to do just that.
For example, I use 17hats to create a contact form on my website. When clients inquire from my website, their contact information gets fed into 17hats. 17hats then sends them an autoresponder email I have already set up, allowing clients to get an immediate response and an invitation to book a discovery call even before I have had a chance to read their email. They can book a call into my calendar, all while I’m having dinner with my family or enjoying family movie night.
17hats reminds my clients when their payments are due and collects their payments even while I’m on vacation. It’s like having a personal assistant and bookkeeper at my fingertips at a fraction of the price. Learn more about 17hats using this link, and see if one of their great packages will work for your small business.
“17hats reminds my clients when their payments are due and collects their payments even while I’m on vacation. It’s like having a personal assistant and bookkeeper at my fingertips at a fraction of the price.”
Joanna Moss
Just Be Ok With it
I think at some point, you just have to be ok with the balance you have created in your business. Knowing that there will be some times when your business will take priority, like during a launch or sale, and other times when your family will take priority. And that’s ok! To help me stay on top of my work/life balance, I have been using a daily planner to help me time block my day and a 90-day planner to help me set priorities around my quarter. Both are available in my Etsy Shop.
More about Joanna Moss
From hidden gem to shining diamond. Joanna’s goal is to give her clients the opportunity to stand out online in a crowded industry through strategic website design, clear messaging & SEO. Joanna has a blended background in the wedding photography and website design industry for over 15 years. Offering her clients a unique creative process for designing a website that will help them grow their business. Visit Joanna’s website at www.joannamoss.com.