How can Entrepreneurs Spend Quality Time with Family Without Hampering Work Your success will depend on how you prioritize your task list and go about executing them
Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.
You're reading Entrepreneur India, an international franchise of Entrepreneur Media.
Being an entrepreneur is always a challenging task. Managing your company, colleagues, business partners, vendors, etc. always ends up draining you mentally and physically. But, there is no respite. One has to go through all the challenges of the day and then get up again the next morning, with a fresh mind, to face new challenges.
Fortunately or unfortunately, this is only path to success in today's highly competitive world. Not only that, an entrepreneur also has to be sane enough to maintain a healthy work-life balance.
There is no point in working so hard for your family, if you cannot spend quality time with them in the first place. Being a working mother, the constant battle of being able to give my daughter time and most importantly quality time was always a priority above all else.
I have gone through this tireless journey and have managed to maintain an exciting and satisfying work-life balance. I have realized that it is not so difficult to achieve this magical mix. I have fought PCOS, obesity and infertility to lead a successful health startup and give birth to a perfectly healthy daughter.
Maintaining great work-life balance is nothing but a combination of small steps done right. It is easy to ignore these basic steps but only when you start doing these things on a daily basis, will you realize their importance. Here are some things that you might want to keep in mind:
1. Concentrate on your Health (Physical and Mental)
This has nothing to do with focusing on your business goals or targets. But being healthy is always the secret to be lead a successful business and family life. Had I not lost 40 kgs, I would not have understood the role a healthy and fit body plays in life.
Long working hours are a part of any startup but a lot of us compromise on our diets and have erratic meal schedules. Most of us survive on cups of coffee. Having a healthy meal whereever you are is not an impossible task. Choose freshly cooked food over junk and baked foods.
Fresh fruits and vegetables make sure you are a lot more productive and alert all day. Also try and include a simple workout if not a long complicated one. Long walks worked best for me initially and now a good swim and stretching makes my day. Not to mention, the long-term health benefits that you will derive by maintaining a fit mind & body.
2. Plan Your Day
Another basic yet extremely effective thing which will help you gather your thoughts and prioritize your tasks. As an entrepreneur, one has to do thousands of things on a daily basis. Your success will depend on how you prioritize your task list and go about executing them. Do not panic. When you take small steps, you'll reach your goals faster as compared to when you take big leaps. This is because you're still in the initial stage and big leaps will only lead to bigger errors.
3. Have Realistic Deadlines
Keeping procrastination in check is arguably the most important aspect of staying productive, and blowing off deadlines is one of the easiest ways to procrastinate. If you want to help yourself take your own deadlines seriously. Have realistic deadlines for all your tasks and adhere to them. It is very easy to get excited and have challenging deadline to complete your work faster. That can only lead to irrational thinking which can lead to mistakes. Give yourself achievable deadlines and try and sticking to them at any cost. This will not only help you organize your thoughts but will also keep you on top your game.
4. Spend Quality Time with Your Family
There is a mistaken belief that an entrepreneur's family gets to benefit from them being their own boss or that there is a higher income and more springiness for vacation time and family emergencies. However, the truth is much the opposite. An entrepreneur's life is a whirlwind with long hours, lots of risk and a high degree of uncertainty. Most of their time and concern is, therefore, devoted to the company even in the best of times.
Finish all your work on time and make sure that you set aside a set number of hours to spend with your family. Remember, you are working hard for them, so might as well spend some time with them. Plan at least one family vacation in a year to break free from your work and reduce your stress levels.
