Summertime Blues Longing to take off instead of taking on another project? Don't despair. Beat the summertime blues with advice from our experts and three homebased entrepreneurs who've done it.

Remember when you were a kid and you'd spend each waking,sunny moment of summer running barefoot through the grass, skiddingdown steep hills on your bike or chucking water balloons at yourpals?

Of course you do. How could you forget, when there are dozens ofkids skipping down your street in childlike bliss while you'reslaving away at your computer, licking envelopes and developing anacute pain in your right temple?

Depending on where you live, being a homebased entrepreneur canbe more than a bit trying during those glorious summer months. Thethought of meeting deadlines and drumming up new business canquickly turn into a case of the summertime blues, when you'dlike nothing more than to abandon your work and join thoseyoungsters on the swings at the park.

Obviously, you can't blow off your business--but youcan't let yourself reach the point of mental breakdown either.Instead, you'll need to balance the two extremes and find waysto make the best of things.

Get Flexible

For starters, you'll want to set regular summer hours,announce them to your kids, spouse, clients--even your dog, if youneed to. Observe them, and make sure they do the same. "If youhave regular hours, it's very good discipline for yourself tokeep them," says Julian Lange, a management consultant andprofessor of entrepreneurship at Babson College in Wellesley,Massachusetts. "It works positively."

But beyond that, take a look at how you approach your work--andindeed, all the challenges and opportunities that accompany runningyour business. Often, those summertime blues can be cured--or atleast treated--by taking advantage of the flexibility you enjoy asa homebased entrepreneur.

The key word here is flexibility, say homebased businessconsultants Paul and Sarah Edwards. "Scheduling solves a lotof the problems," says Sarah. "You can incorporate someof the things you enjoy doing so you don't feel like you'relosing out on summer." That might mean scheduling a tennismatch, spending the afternoon at the beach, having lunch with yourkids--or, hey, running around on the grass for 10 minutes. (Justmake sure the neighbors don't see you.)

For those of you who have kids, you'll want to arrange someactivities for them to engage in while you're working, even ifyou have a nanny. But don't neglect scheduling some time withyour kids. "You could even involve the kids on different[business] projects," says Sarah. "It can become a familytime."

Vacations, too, are crucial. But if the thought of leaving your"baby" for longer than it takes you to grab a snack inthe kitchen frightens you, start slowly with an afternoon ofvegging in the hammock or picnicking with your kids.

Remember, you also have flexibility in terms of where you work;if possible, take your laptop or paperwork outside or hold businessmeetings on the deck. You can even leave the premises withoutlosing valuable work time. Many organizations hold annualconferences in the summer; if you can find one that would help yourbusiness, go for it. "Sometimes these conferences are held infun places and offer family facilities," says Paul. "Youcould tack on a vacation before or after the conference."

Take A Breather

Figure out what works for you, then do it, and do itreligiously, without hesitation and without fear that your businesswill disappear if you sneak in a break. It won't."There's a common fear that if we take a break or relax,we'll lose our momentum or lose our business," says Sarah."We forget that once the car is going, we don't have tokeep our accelerator [pressed] to the floorboard."

In fact, if you do become your own slave driver, your businesswill be in more jeopardy than if you took a breather once in awhile. "As a homebased business owner, you're yournumber-one asset," says Sarah. "You have to keep yourselfhappy and satisfied, and that means taking breaks and vacations andenjoying life. It prevents you from becoming embittered toward yourwork."

And though mapping out every activity--down to the 2 o'clockbreak you'll take tomorrow--might seem tedious, it'll doyou and your business more good than you could imagine.

"People don't like to feel as if they're on atreadmill and their whole life is scheduled," says Lange."But setting a schedule helps because there's a beginningand an end to things. You get a sense of accomplishment, anddon't feel guilty about taking an afternoon off."

Sure, this perfect balance of summer living and working soundsgood, but how does it translate to real life? We asked fourhomebased business owners how they manage to keep in cool duringthe long, hot summer.

The Rules

It's not surprising some people say Lindsay Strand works outof a bat cave. She's got a husband, two kids, a dog and arabbit--not to mention her own company, Lindsay Strand AssociatesInc., a 10-year-old Minneapolis firm that provides consulting onmedia relations, and executive coaching on presentations andinterview skills.

So she's found that if she wants to get any work done, shehas to hole up in a corner of her house and pretend like theoutside world doesn't exist. Says Strand, "You have toerect the Great Wall between the home and the office."

That can be tough, especially when summer rolls around and thekids are home with the nanny, the neighbors are popping in for aquick hello and the dog's yearning to romp in the sunshine. Butwith careful planning, Strand staves off the frustration that couldeasily sneak up on any homebased entrepreneur whose abodeinevitably bustles with activity during the summer months.

For starters, Strand adjusts her work flow so spring and fallare her busiest seasons, leaving August as a lighter month when shecan spend more time with her family and reevaluate business goals."Summer is an opportunity for growth but almost more of amaintenance period," notes Strand. "I don't expect[to perform at] the highest, most intense level of work, and Idon't design such a rigid schedule that if an interruptionoccurs, I can't recover from it."

Still, Strand is careful to clearly spell out her work hours andrules so interruptions can be kept to a minimum. "You have toestablish your summer hours and communicate them to your children,clients and neighbors," says Strand. "Generally, clientsare respectful of that."

With careful planning, summer can be a wonderful time for ahomebased entrepreneur--if, like Strand, you allow yourself to takewalks, spend time with your kids, take a day off--whatever floatsyour boat.

Another great benefit of being homebased, says Strand, isshe's able to expose her kids to a typical work environment.For instance, she might show her 9-year-old son how to use the faxmachine or her 13-year-old daughter how to assemble press kits.

Above all, the 43-year-old enjoys the expertise she'sacquired over the years that allows her to lighten her summer loadand spend extra time with her family. "In 10 years," shesays, "I've had a chance to learn from my ownmistakes."

Pairing Up

"Summer is my busiest time of year," says KarenHopkins, homebased owner of Making Arrangements, a special eventsfloral company in Redmond, Washington. "I don't have muchchoice but to work hard--and it absolutely kills me when it's anice day outside, especially since we're near Seattle, where wetreasure every bit of sun we can get."

Karen's husband, Howard, also works at home as the owner ofH.C. Hopkins and Associates, a $70,000 computer programming andconsulting company. And though Howard, 54, doesn't have a settime of year when he gets a rush of business, he, too, finds summerto be a bit busier for his 9-year-old firm.

It's for that reason that Karen and Howard have to reachwithin and find self-motivation. "I also allow myself a rewardsystem," says Karen, 51, whose experience on the homebasedfront goes back 15 years. "If it's a really nice day and Ijust can't stand being indoors, I'll allow myself to go outand enjoy it--as long as I meet my deadlines."

To ease her workload, Karen, who projects sales of $50,000 thisyear, hires help on an as-needed basis and uses the slower wintermonths to prepare for the summer crunch. But more important, and inaddition to any local networking groups they may utilize, theHopkinses offer each other emotional support and schedule summerfun together and with their friends, two children and twograndchildren.

Vacations have also been crucial. "We've learned youhave to take a break--you can burn out if you don't," saysKaren, who recalls reaching burnout phase in other businesses withwhich she's been involved. "That's been a hard lessonfor us to learn because we're very work-oriented."

But it's such an important lesson. Without time off, you canlose perspective of your life, says Howard, who, after spending 25years in corporate America, treasures his homebased status and allthe perks that accompany it. "Vacations are a time of renewaland reassessment, when you can step back and decide if there areany new goals you want to set."

The key, the couple agrees, is to constantly remind yourself whyyou decided to become homebased in the first place and stick byyour decision. "Tell yourself 'I'm going to do it,period,' " advises Howard. "You might have to tellyourself a thousand times a day, but if that's what you have todo, then do it."

Indulge Yourself

Through her 10 years of homebased business experience, HeatherMartin has learned at least one important lesson about beatingthose summertime blues: If you get the urge to frolic outdoors,don't fight it. "It's like dieting," says Martin,owner of SuccessWorks, a marketing communications and consultingfirm in Bellingham, Washington. "If you tell yourself 'Irefuse to ever eat chocolate again,' the first thing you do isstart craving it, and then you go off and binge. It's the samething with working at home--one of the beauties is that you havesome flexibility."

So take advantage of that flexibility, and you'll avoid thedanger of flipping out and needing more than an afternoon or aweekend of playtime. "You won't feel completelydenied," says Martin, "and you won't wake up one daysaying 'I haven't seen the sun in days--must take weekoff!' "

The 30-year-old entrepreneur, who finds herself at her busiestduring the summer, has learned to steal pleasure in small shotshere and there--an afternoon walk with a fellow homebased friend, abusiness lunch in the sun, an occasional long weekend.

Whatever the remedy, Martin finds time for it. "If Idon't give myself the time I need, the focus problem becomeseven worse," she says. "It does my clients--and me--nogood if I'm here all stressed out because what I really want todo is go outside for 10 minutes."

Martin makes it sound easy--but there was a time when she'ddraw the drapes and bury herself in her work whenever the sunpeeped out. She's learned to be gentler with herself, thoughit's difficult at times. "I still feel guilty if I'moutside between the hours of 9 and 5," admits Martin. "Ifeel like I have an umbilical cord between the phone, the computerand me--but as long as I balance it and work at peak capacity, then[my breaks] are best for everyone."

Contact Sources

Julian Lange
langej@babson.edu

SuccessWorks
http://www.successwks.com
heather@successwks.com

Karen Hopkins
hopkinsl@aol.com

Lindsay Strand Associates Inc.
lsa@ix.netcom.com