Recharge your batteries: the importance of taking a break
With the summer holiday period well upon us, there may be many business owners thinking that now really isn’t the right time to take a break. Perhaps there is too much work on, and they can’t take a break as they need to do it, or too little work and lots of marketing required to bring in new clients, or maybe they are scared of going away and coming back to a closed business?
These are all genuine fears that business owners have, but do you know how important it is to take a break and how much a break can actually be of benefit to you? You read that right – leaving the office can help your business!
When you are at work, and your life is all work, work, work it is essential that you take time away from the office to clear your mind; we’re not talking about an afternoon out of the office as you need more than a few hours to really clear your mind. As a business owner, you are always thinking about work, by taking time out you can clear your mind and make it cleaner and less muddled for when you return to the office after your holiday.
It is important that when you do finally realise that a few days away from the office will be beneficial for you and your business that you do not take the office with you. You need to leave the noise of emails behind you and disconnect yourself from social media, or it won’t feel like a holiday; it will just feel like you have moved your office for a week which will not be a real break for you or your mind. I've just returned from a week away to Mallorca without a mobile phone, tablet or laptop in sight, and I can't recommend it highly enough!
As a business owner, you need to take time away from the office to help recharge your batteries; by working and working with no real break, you are using up all your excess energy which means your productivity and creativity is lower. Instead, take a break and get those batteries recharged, so you return from a wonderful holiday feeling refreshed and raring to go; ready to take over the world.
Of course you cannot just close your business for a week without a little planning and expect it to be absolutely fine on your return, so look at different ways to enable you to have a stress-free break. Things like sending an email to clients the week before you go away, so they know you will not be contactable, mention that you will not be on social media and set up an out of office on your phone and emails.
You could also outsource tasks that need to be managed while you are away. For example, transfer your emails to a virtual assistant; they can keep an eye on your business for you, and if anything urgent comes up they will be able to contact you. This will also help you get over the dreaded FOMO (Fear Of Missing Out) and show you that your business really can run smoothly without you.
By taking a complete break from the office, you will return thinking more clearly about your business, your clients and your services as you have had time to disconnect from the day-to-day running of your business and see the bigger picture; something that a business owner rarely has time to do.
Give it a try - it really does work! I've been unsure of the future direction of my own business for a while now but after a week away from the office my mind just cleared and everything fell into place. I know exactly where I want to be and just need to formulate a plan to make it happen. I had been plodding along just working away for months with no real purpose but now feel positively excited about the future again!
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