How to “Turn Off” the Work Day, Even When You’re the Boss
No matter what amount of responsibility you might hold on your shoulders, it’s hard to completely block out the day when jumping from work, to your personal life, and vice versa. Inevitably, there is something that reminds you of something else you’re to be doing at the time, whether it’s something you forgot, need to be doing in the near future, or if you just gain an idea of something else to implement in the future. It’s hard to draw that hard line of working when it’s time to work, and resting when it’s time to rest. When something is on the brain, it stays there. Rather than stressing over learning to take a break, however, there are a few simple ways you can help remind yourself to relax, and to take care of all the necessary tasks once you’re ready to be on task.
Make a Work List
Every idea you have, or every thing you need to remember to do once you’re at the office – write those all down. Or email them to yourself. Keep an app that allows you to take notes and merge them with your calendar. Whatever your preferred method of self reminders, take full advantage. It’s the best and most effective way to ensure you won’t forget. It will also provide you with peace of mind, knowing you’ll be able to reconnect with an idea at a later date, and once you’re actually ready to work.
Give Yourself a Break
One of the most common traits of a new entrepreneur is that they won’t let themselves relax. They’re constantly hyped up, thinking about the next big task that needs to be taken care of. They are working long days, gruesome hours, and for months, even years, they keep up that same schedule. This might allow you to get a lot done, but it doesn’t set a good tone for the long-term. There’s no way you can keep up that type of schedule (and why would you want to?), which is why you need to set a better precedence from the get-go.
Tell yourself it’s ok to relax. It’s ok to be calmed and to step away from work. Doing so will also allow you to recharge, and put forth a better performance during your working day.
Set Up a Voicemail System
Unless it’s an emergency, you should get out of the habit of answering late-night calls or texts. Get a separate cell phone, or leave messages as unread (or unheard), until you’re back up and working. You can list your business hours on your voicemail so clients know when they expect to hear from you. In contrast, answering at all hours of the evening will set the standard that they can get ahold of you whenever it’s convenient, effectively cutting away your downtime.
Make a Work Calendar
When you head into work for the day, set up a list of tasks that you want to get done that day. Include those with pressing timelines, and work hard to knock off as many tasks as you can. This is great motivation for staying hard at work during your allotted time each business day. Then once your list is done, you’re off for the day. This sense of completion can do wonders for helping you feel done with work. It’s a subconscious truth that many entrepreneurs don’t realize is a problem until it’s their daily status quo.