Work-life balance is important to have for all types of workers. However, it is even more important for sole traders because they are their own bosses and they are always working.
This article will provide ten ways a sole trader can keep a healthy work routine to be more productive.
- Workspace: Dedicate a space away from distractions. If you have your own office, great. It’s important to work in a space that enables you to get the most out of the time you spend there.
- Divide up your day/week: If it’s possible, have set times for different activities. Is the morning best for you to do quotes, or make those calls? Afternoon your normally.
- Make a To-do List: Once something is on a list, you're accountable, reminded and more likely to do that task. You should be trained to get every item on your list completed. But that's for another blog post.
- Plan / Structure Your Day: Early bird vs Night owl will have a very different schedule, which one are you? Plan your work times around that. Have a think about when you are most productive, when do you wire best?
- Be Flexible: Yes you have your routine, but it should be flexible enough to bend to the daily realities of life.
- You work for yourself, this is a blessing: Don’t forget to take some time out of the day for yourself. We know running your own business can be a 24-hour thing, just make sure you have set aside off time as well. Burnout is a real thing.
- Take advantage of your Lunch breaks: If you're like me and spend a lot of time at home working, then utilise the lunch break as a good time away from the computer. I use my lunch break to go for a walk. I guess a routine should be more about creating a mindset to build rituals throughout the day, rather than being tied down to a timetable.
- Have a timetable: If you are taking appointments and have clients coming through often then having a solid timetable is important, to schedule your day around. Check out Bunya the timetable is just one of the many free features to help you run your business more effectively.
- Family time: Don’t forget why we are spending all this time working, to enrich the lives of our loved ones, so don’t forget to make time for them! It’s important once your schedule/ routine is made that they are made aware of your times, so they don’t disturb or distract you when you’re working.
- Test Your New Routine: Try out your new routine for a couple of weeks and make changes till it works. The main thing is that you have started to build a routine that helps you work happier and more effectively.
