Achieving proper work life balance is no simple task. Nowadays as the gig economy grows and thousands of individuals pursue entrepreneurial careers, it’s tough to plan around a consistent life. This is why it’s very common for entrepreneurs to lose grasp of what it means to truly balance your work and life. Business success is great, but if you’re struggling to make ends meet in your personal life have you really succeeded? Here’s how you can schedule your week for success in both business and your personal life.
Define Personal Success vs. Business Success
First and foremost it’s important to identify what’s important to you in both of these categories. Everyone has a different idea of what it means to be successful. Sure it’s easy to measure success based on wealth but not everyone strives to achieve massive wealth.
If business success to you is simply maintaining a well-paying job with benefits that’s totally fine. The important thing is you can identify it. Once you’ve identified that take a look at your personal life and do the same exercise.
Maybe you are looking for a significant other and want to start a family. If you’re working all day and night then you won’t have time to go out and search for your mate. I know it sounds silly but people get so caught up in work they often forget about their lives outside of it. Once you’ve defined each then you should take advantage of these tips to find the balance.
1. Set and Declare Clear Boundaries
The more structured you can be with your time the better. Even if you’re simply blocking out time on your calendar for various tasks it’s a great habit to get into. The more calculated you can be with how you spend your time the better you’ll be able to gauge your productivity.
Once your boundaries are set it’s really important to stick to them and let others know they exist. For example if your buddy asks if you want to grab a beer during the time allocated for your accounting you need to let him know. Sure it’s okay to be flexible from time to time but it’s important to stay disciplined as much as possible.
2. Consolidate Activities to Conserve Time
First and foremost you should look to eliminate those activities during the week that waste your time. For example you could eliminate social media activity from your day. This one is definitely easier said than done but it will pay off immensely.
Another tactic is to consolidate various activities so you can conserve more of your time. A good example of this is pre-cooking your meals for the week. If you cook all your meals at once and store them in the fridge – you only have to cook and clean all your dishes one time. Make meals that keep well and can be easily reheated throughout the week. This will save you at least an hour or two a day.
3. Work During Your Peak-Performing Hours
Not everyone works best in the mornings. I personally take a few hours to get “warmed” up every morning. That’s why I save tasks like checking email and catching up for the morning. Towards the early afternoon I reach my peak performing hours and start on my more complicated tasks.
If you can identify the hours in which you’re most productive you’ll be more motivated to finish the tasks at hand. Nobody is performs 100% throughout the whole day. On the hours that you’re less productive it’s a good idea to take a break and check in on your personal life. Once you return you’ll be reenergized and ready to tackle the next project.
Final Thoughts
As an entrepreneur you need to constantly find a new balance between work and life. That said, creating a healthy work life balance is incredibly important for your overall success and wellbeing. Reference this article and the points above so you can schedule your week to find that perfect balance.
Originally published here, by Renzo Costarella.