It takes a lot of staying power to keep forging ahead in an “adolescent” business–that stage where the initial newness and excitement has worn off, but the full rewards of our efforts haven’t begun to take hold.
Especially if we’re working full-time and running a business simultaneously (as most of us do in the early years of building our brand).
One of the easiest traps to fall into as a new business owner, I believe, is not recognizing the role of our own leadership.
There’s an easy routine we can fall into of just humming along at whatever small tasks we feel have to get done on a daily basis–running on the “internet business hamster wheel” of blog posts, social media, rinse, repeat, etc. But this constant game of catch-up can start to lose its luster and become tedious after awhile.
Two practices that I’ve adopted in the past 12 months have helped me rise above that autopilot mode, that mode in which we’re really acting more like front-line employees rather than the CEO’s of our companies.
First, I’ve planned a week off from my business between every quarter (which is usually right after a course launch). When we’re new, especially, I know it feels like our work is never done. But trust me, taking a short rest will do more for your clarity, direction, and entrepreneurial enthusiasm than you can imagine!
Most of your major epiphanies about the direction of your business will likely come when you are at rest or at play–not when you’re buried under a queue of product photos that need to be edited!
And on a more serious note, business burnout is REAL. Pacing yourself by creating planned rest periods will help to avoid those days or weeks when you actually have a goal and just kind of go “meh”. (Which always makes you feel terrible about yourself, and then you feel even MORE behind.)
The second practice that I’ve really come to look forward to is that I follow up my rest period with a quarterly planning retreat. And you guys?
I go posh! I work hard for sure, but I focus on making it an experience that I look forward to.
I’ll plant myself at a resort for the day, which totally makes me feel like the luxe business owner I know I am on the inside! I can’t explain exactly why, but there’s something about valet parking and a gourmet cheese board set to the backdrop of waterfalls and a plush plaza bar that makes your business planning feel that much more important.
I’m a student of Chalene Johnson’s Smart Success Academy, so the template for my retreat is pretty nicely packaged within her 90-day refresher course, but the intentionality behind the setting and environment is something I’ve come up with on my own.
By digging in deep to determine the priorities, goals, and next steps for the 90 days ahead of me, I reconnect with what my business means to me in the first place. Why it’s so important to me, even though it can be a lot of hard work. I’m reminded that I get to have a say in my future and in the lives of the people I serve.
Have you ever done a planning retreat? Tell me your favorite planning rituals in the comments below!
