The Christmas Challenge: Work/Life Balance

Christmas is coming; the goose is getting fat.
Time for business owners to don a Santa hat!
Or are you in a panic, losing sight of Christmas cheer?
You’re not alone: reflect on how to balance things next year.

Getting that work-life balance can be surprisingly hard for business owners. Many people go into business with the dream of an easy life, walking the dog and spending time with the kids, unshackled from the constraints of a normal 9-5 job. So why did a report published by Boox in 2011 show that 15% of self-employed people work a 51-hour week – and a quarter don’t switch off enough to take holidays?

The Work/Life Balance Lesson
It’s great to shake up the working day and do what you want when you want, and I wouldn’t change it for the world, but this often has to be balanced by evenings and weekend catching up on client requirements, and it can get out of hand. In my first business, over a decade ago, I had a great time – no rush hour traffic, quiet time at the gym – but just couldn’t sit still and wind down. Putting on a film, fetching a drink from the kitchen, and stopping on the way back to do a stocktake, was my regular downfall.
I’ve learned my lesson- how about you? There are plenty of strategies for re-balancing the work/life equation – check out this handy collection of tips from Sage – but Christmas presents a unique challenge. For the retail sector, you’re fulfilling orders and running to keep up – for business to business companies, it’s quite the opposite.

Business to Business sales at Christmas
What does December mean when you are in a 9-5 job? Chocolates on every desk; Secret Santa; Christmas shopping in the crowds; traffic jams, snow and ice? Not the most focused, productive time of year, then. When I worked as an accountant in industry, the sales budgets were always halved for December!

So… the decision maker you need to speak to is less likely to be around this month. Rather than stressing over your business, it’s time for you to let your hair down, too – and take advantage of your flexible working patterns to hit the shops at quiet times.

New Year Resolutions
Once you have this Christmas cracked, think about 2013. No one actually expects you to be in the office all hours of the day and night – and it’s not what you signed up for. You don’t need to prove your worth to anyone by marking time at your desk. You’re paid by results now.

Make work count: what you do should add value. Find the five or six tasks that drive your business forward – networking, marketing, closing sales, delivering services, keeping the books straight. Get them done and make yourself stop there. Don’t spend your ‘working’ time wishing you were with the family, and your ‘family’ time checking your emails! Make 2013 your balanced year, and reap the rewards.