Today, I'm wrapping up my series on my experience with business burnout.
If you missed Part 1, click here to read it.
If you missed Part 2, read it here.
In this last part, I'll be sharing some more practical tips with how I'm dealing with burnout.
So how the heck do you combat burn out in your business? While some of us can put an entire business on pause while we explore other options (usually thanks to a partner's income, which is great!), that certainly is not an option for many of us (myself included).
Here are a few things that have helped me deal with burnout in the last 2 years:
Being intentional with your time. If you're a calendar person like me, try scheduling in your free time or time for hobbies right on your calendar among the rest of your responsibilities. We have time for the things we make time for. I have a general "Work on Pottery" task in my Asana calendar that recurs each week. And if I notice a busy week coming up, I'll add in a task that just says REST on the lighter days so I don't forget to build it in.
Remember your why. Ok confession, I actually hate it when people use this phrase! It feels very cliche. But it boils down to a simple question: why did you build your business? Not just to make money, but maybe to have more financial freedom? A flexible schedule? The ability to quit work at noon and go to the movies with your kids? If you remind yourself daily (literally say out loud to yourself what the point of all this is!), it can help you appreciate the time away from work without feeling bad about not working.
Give yourself grace. It has taken me literal years to get to the place where I have hobbies and time for myself, and that certainly wasn't the case when I was first laying the foundation for my business (and especially when my daughter was little little). And it can also be hard to move away from what your business originally looked like. You worked so hard to create that version of it, it's your baby! That can be a scary shift, so I want to acknowledge that too.
Take breaks when you feel those burn out feelings creep back in. This can be breaks from your business, but also breaks from hobbies or other activities if needed. I even took a break from pottery for a couple months recently because I was happily busy with some book projects. During my free time, I didn't feel like making pottery for awhile, so I spent it doing other things I love (reading, being with friends, house projects, etc.). When I felt that itch again to make something with my hands, pottery was there waiting for me (although I was definitely out of practice!).
Again, I'm not an expert on this, I'm in the middle of figuring out how to claw out of burnout myself. But just knowing and reminding myself what lights me up in my work — experimentation, variety, creativity, even time away — can be just what I need to stay on track to that elusive work / life balance. I'm becoming more open to changes and shifts in my business now, and I'm not as afraid to take risks and see where the experimentation takes me.
Ok whew, this was a doozy of a series. But I hope it's helpful to you! Leave a comment and let me know how this resonated with you. If you're feeling burnout or boredom creep into your business, you're not alone! You've cared about your business a lot for a long time, and that seems pretty darn normal to me. 💛
