When you own a business, you need to stay connected to employees, partners, vendors, and clients. But the constant connectivity can wear on you, often leaving you exhausted, irritable, and distracted. Luckily, a solution exists: nature. When you step into nature on a regular basis, you can experience increased happiness, better health, and lower stress levels.
The idea is easily in your reach. You can experience nature without breaking up with your smartphone, smart watch, laptop, tablet, or Bluetooth headset. In fact, you can enjoy the great outdoors while accomplishing business objectives. Here’s how to do it.
1. Take Clients on Hikes
Create memorable experiences with clients by taking them on hikes. Doing so offers health benefits and may result in better conversations like those sometimes found on the golf course. Incorporating hiking with work corresponds with another idea listed later: bleisure. As more people recognize the importance of setting aside work to play, they integrate local, relaxing activities with their business travel plans.
2. Support a Charity Run
If you want to emphasize the importance of health and wellness at your company while growing brand recognition, consider sponsoring a charity run. Find a local or national charity that resonates with your brand, then purchase a sponsorship for the charity’s upcoming event. You can also encourage employees to get involved with the run by forming a running group or encouraging them to staff a table at the event. And if you’re a solopreneur who’d like to participate, look into running apps to get you into racing condition.
3. Sell Outdoors
Even if you have an e-commerce site, you should consider how to get your product in front of people in the physical world. One option is getting a booth at the local farmers’ market; you could also host a pop-up shop. The first offers a great way to assess whether selling outdoors works for you. The second tends to drive social engagement and awareness and can be a great way to meet your best clients in person. If you pursue either route, invest in a mobile credit card reader so you can accept payments and close more sales.
4. Rework Your Lunch Hour
If you routinely skip lunch or eat lunch at your desk, leave your desk and take a proper break. Use the stairs to get outside and enjoy your meal at a nearby table or bench. You could also walk around the building a few times for a short workout. It’ll reduce your stress and potentially leave you more refocused and recharged than a shot of espresso will.
5. Plan Some Outdoor Work Time
Nothing revitalizes your creativity quite like a change of scenery. Take your team out of the office for a workday, and turn it into something to look forward to. Go out for a nice meal, do some teambuilding exercises, or just take a nature walk together before getting down to work somewhere with large windows or a nice view. Offsites, if planned properly, can rejuvenate you and your team, promote team bonding, and give everyone something to look forward to.
6. Geocache on the Weekends
Maybe you can’t commit to a weekend getaway, particularly right before a big product launch, but you could spend a few hours geocaching on the weekends. The activity involves your phone, so you’ll stay connected to the office even as you explore a nearby park or your backyard.
7. Enjoy Bleisure Travel
Bleisure is a growing trend in the travel industry as more people either work during vacation or extend a vacation after a business trip. Model that behavior. Incorporate rest and relaxation into your upcoming business travels. And if you work a little bit during a vacation, don’t beat yourself up about it. As long as you return to your vacation as soon as possible, you’ll experience the benefits of getting away from work for a while.
8. Delegate and Automate (Almost) Everything
If you can’t get outside because you’re too busy managing human resources, sales, marketing, and other business functions, it could be time to delegate and automate. Sit down with your daily tasks and assess which ones should be assigned to another person—you’re good at a lot of things, but you’re probably better at some things than others. Then figure out which tasks, such as payroll, could be automated with technology. As you delegate and automate, use the saved time to get outdoors with your dog, running shoes, or bicycle.
If you want to be a successful entrepreneur, find ways to blend your work with nature more often. It’ll improve your health, well-being, and sense of purpose. Get started by implementing some of the ideas shared here.