I once had a client who called me at 6 a.m. to ask if I could help her with some messaging she needed for a morning meeting. I checked my voice mail around 8 a.m., but waited another 30 minutes before I picked up the phone.
Sound familiar? Almost everyone has at least one story about an out-of-control boss or a client who assumes you have 24/7 business availability. The difference: When you run your own business, it’s up to you to set boundaries. With cell phones, BlackBerry devices, Wi-Fi and other tethers, it’s easier than ever to be connected. Add to that the fact that many independent consultants and small business owners seem to have trouble saying no, and you have a recipe for overload. Say yes too often, and your work-life balance goes out the window.
For independents, true work-life balance means recognizing that running a business is about more than just getting client work done. It also involves managing clients, marketing, ordering office supplies, invoicing and a host of other activities. How efficiently we schedule these activities goes a long way toward determining how well we can function day-to-day and long term. In other words, we need work balance before we can even add in the “life” component.
Debbie Exner, a Phoenix-based business coach, says that “the best way to say no is to know what you are saying yes to.” That rule applies whether you’re deciding what RFPs to respond to, which clients to work with, or what boards and committees to serve on.
In other words, it’s all about the choices we make. For example:
- Do you respond to every potential business lead, or do you concentrate your time and effort on those opportunities you believe have the highest likelihood of success? If you’re spending hours preparing proposals that seem to be netting little, perhaps you could save time and be more successful with a different strategy.
- Do you give out multiple contact numbers to clients, answer business calls even when you’re at the gym and e-mail your clients on weekends? If so, it’s little wonder that your clients may feel you’re on call 24/7. My clients only get my mobile number if I’m going to be out of the office on a particular day and want them to be able to reach me if needed. And I never answer client e-mails on a weekend. I might draft them if I’m working, but they won’t get sent out until Monday morning.
- Are your outside professional obligations taking over your life? Not all volunteer opportunities are equal, and it is important to devote your time to the ones that dovetail well with your business goals.
To help clients sort out their priorities, Exner recommends that people design their ideal work schedule and test it out for a week. Some people, like Baltimore-based freelance writer Paul Lagasse, function well when they set a regular schedule. He figured out early that he’s at his best when he can block out a dedicated period of time each day. At 5:30 p.m., he shuts the office door and focuses on family time.
Others, myself included, enjoy the flexibility of ducking out to run errands. My ideal schedule includes midday workouts and Friday afternoons off. My trade-off is that I often get work done on Sunday mornings when it’s quiet and my brain is really productive. (This doesn’t mean, however, that clients can reach me over the weekend!)
Managing your work life also means recognizing that you aren’t Superwoman (or Superman), and that you can’t do it all. Reclaiming time might be as simple as stockpiling pens, paper, toner and other office supplies so you’re not always running to the store. Or it could mean investing in a bookkeeper to handle invoicing.
While it’s easy in the abstract to balance multiple obligations, putting good habits into practice can be difficult. Ask Quinn McDonald, a creative coach based out of Tempe, Arizona. McDonald had to move cross-country to regain her sense of perspective. “In Washington, D.C., there was no end and I didn’t know my own worth. I overbooked because I was afraid of running out of work. Now I’m in a place where overworking doesn’t buy you more points.”
Exner echoes McDonald’s words. “The idea that we can keep working harder and faster often costs us in terms of productivity,” she says. Exner tells of one client, a financial planner, who came to her because she was running herself ragged and rarely saw her spouse. Exner suggested that she delegate certain tasks and use the reclaimed time for herself. They worked together to devise a plan to create better work-life balance. At the end of the year, the client was working fewer hours and was more successful.
Communicators open their own consultancies for a lot of different reasons. Clearly, work-life balance is important to most of us, and it’s up to each of us to find our way. While we can’t have it all, we can take steps to manage our schedules and free up time for the things that matter most. I think I’ll take a break now and go out for a long run.
