Self-care in business: Does health or money come first for you in your business? It’s a bit like what comes first, the chicken or the egg?
Focus on money only and your health and wellness can suffer.
Focus on health and wellness and your money and finances can suffer.
Business is a real balancing act – money, health, clients, family, self-care, you. How does one busy business strike the balance and fit it all in?
For me, money and health are on equal playing fields, but my health comes first because I need to be healthy to make money in my business, so this is the mindset I adopt. And research shows this is the case with all wealthy people.
When you focus on money
You get the clients in and you get the money, but then you’ve got to do the work and, depending on how you have your business setup, that might mean late nights to catch up on all the work you have to do.
Eventually, your health starts to suffer from all the extra work you’re doing and no self-care in business, and you’re not delivering because there’s just not enough time to get everything done and you’re not feeling well enough to do the work.
Self-care in business: When you focus on your health and wellness:
You put self-care ahead of the money and look after yourself so that when you focus on the money side of things in your business, you have the strength and vitality to get the clients in and do the work.
The pandemic really hit this home for me. No one knew how it would affect the way we worked and lived. Not to mention the extra duties we picked up, such as homeschooling our kids.
When the pandemic shut our businesses down, it impacted my business because I had to stop some client work to look after myself, my kids’ needs, and my family. It impacted the hours I could serve clients. And I couldn’t get any outside help such as a nanny or cleaner, so I had to refocus my priorities.
There are 3 areas to self-care in business
To reprioritise your life during periods that are busy or stressful, look at these three areas.
1. Mindset
During stressful and busy periods, one thing never waivers for me. I believed I could handle it and I did.
I believe – I conquer. Make this your personal mantra too.
I’m naturally a determined and stubborn person and wanted to keep my business going and manage the household at the same time. But not at the expense of my health.
I have acquired a lot of knowledge and applied it in my daily life and business, but without the right mindset, I would have quit and fallen into depression.
I learned that we need to be prepared and prepare our mindset to conquer bad news. I am also very blessed that my clients are understanding and supportive.
2. Health and self-care
“When health is absent … wealth becomes useless.” Herophilus, Greek physician
According to Forbes, an academic study (the report published in 2015 by researchers at the Urban Institute and Virginia Commonwealth University assessing the intricate connection between health and income, found those who are healthier and who live longer tend to earn more.
Why is self-care important for business owners?
Self-care in business: When you are happy and healthy, you can be more productive, make better decisions, and feel less overwhelmed and stressed. Taking time to recharge yourself and practising self-care activities are probably the biggest and best investments you can make as a business owner.
What self-care activities do you do? I have a few things that help me including, walking at the park three times a week, not overcommitting myself or overscheduling my work time, having a home spa day, and planting my succulents!
3. Money
When you have a strong mindset and a can-do attitude, and you feel happy and healthy – you have more capacity to focus on the money and financial aspects of your business. And it means you won’t have to do as much work because you will choose better clients who understand you and how you work, your ideal clients will be attracted to you rather than you having to find them, and you will have time to stay on top of your finances.
Understanding your financial situation might also mean that you let go of some of your clients to fit in more time for yourself and your family. It might also mean that you expand your team so you can buy back some extra time.
How you can buy back time by expanding your team
Hiring an online business manager (OBM) or VIA is the first step.
Both VAs and OBMs support business owners in unique ways. VAs are task-driven, while OBMs focus on higher-level projects to guide the development and future of the business. Both positions help free up your time so that you can focus on other tasks as a business owner. This allows you to use your abilities to the fullest to grow and improve your business.
VAs and OBMs can help you retain and attract customers in many ways. A VA can communicate with leads, gather customer feedback, maintain your social media accounts, respond promptly to emails, and engage with fans and followers.
OBMs also perform vital tasks for business growth. These skilled workers can maintain and perfect your sales funnel, analyse key performance metrics for missed or potential opportunities, facilitate partnerships and collaborations, and make recommendations to management.
If you’d like to learn more about the benefits of hiring an OBM or VA, book a consultation call with Ee Zen at REAVA Solutions today.
