Will Self-Care Improve Productivity?

As I’ve mentioned previously, I am in a mastermind group. I have been in several over the course of my business life and have found them to be extremely valuable on many levels.

In the past I received recommendations for new vendor partners or help with finding a particularly unusual product that had been requested. My groups have always shared their creativity with self-promotions as well as other outreach efforts.

Overwhelmed and Stressed is Not Healthy Long Term

Lately, however, my mastermind group has been discussing how overwhelmed and stressed we have been feeling the last 3-6 months. We are all enjoying increased business from our existing clients and receiving calls from new prospects. All good, until it’s not.

We all have support staff but lately it just doesn’t seem like it’s ever enough. Each day is left with a long to-do list for the next day. Quotes required, proofs needed, logistics issues and more.

In a recent mastermind call, one of the group mentioned they felt like they could work 24/7 and still not get caught up. She has recently hired a new CSR and hopes that will help, but she brought up another aspect of her stress. She had basically stopped any self-care.

You Are NOT Alone

Surprisingly to me, we all felt the same way. I truly thought I was alone in the disaster of my desk! Seems we are all experiencing similar situations right now. So, if you are as well, know you are not alone.

I started working with a coach about 3 months ago. And she had me complete an exercise where I ranked 1-10 how satisfied I was with certain aspects of life. Career, Spirituality, Fun & Recreation, Friends, Family, Relationships, Money, Health and so on.

Self-Care at the Bottom of My Priorities

My lowest ranked element was health. My coach thought I must be ill. Far from it. Very healthy in fact. I told her I ranked it so low because of my stress level and my lack of taking time for myself.

And, based on recent comments from my mastermind group we are all ranking ourselves last.

I personally get into good routines for a week or two, but then I let my work-life take over again. Too many rush jobs or clients needing quotes quickly or endless logistic issues. And I start earlier at my desk and stay later than I should.

Just Say No Once in a While

So, what do we all do? Several of the members of my mastermind group are working on saying “no” more often. It’s a good start maybe for all of us. I’ve always hated saying no. I am sure we all do the same. We want to make miracles happen and be the hero but is it really worth our sanity? Not always. Last week I said no to a rush job. It felt good and I realized it was truly the right thing for me to do.

I’ve had my business for a very long time and my boyfriend says I have the worst boss ever. Myself.

It’s one of the areas I am working with my coach on. Becoming a more generous and thoughtful boss for myself. Think about that. Would you take from someone else what you put on yourself?

Clearer Frame of Mind = More Creativity & Productivity

Now, as I speak with my mastermind group and my coach I realize I need to be kinder to myself. Have some true self-care and self-awareness. I’ve found that when I am not as stressed I come up with some great creative solutions. And when I’m not dragging from working way too many hours, I really am a more productive person.

One suggestion my coach made was to create my ideal schedule. I have to admit, I had a hard time creating it. I kept letting my “reality” creep in. I kept saying to myself, “well, that won’t work I’ll need to be working”. It was eye-opening realizing how much business consumes my mind.

Shut Down the Business at Night

Last week our mastermind group had an hour discussion about what to do about our self-care. A few are trying a new work schedule by quitting by a decent hour each night. 7pm instead of 8pm. Not going back to work after dinner or checking emails after hours were great suggestions.

For me, checking emails all the time has become a very bad habit. One that has to change. Just because I have a night owl client or an early bird one, doesn’t mean they expect me to answer! I am now setting better boundaries for myself and my work-day. When I turn out the light on the business, I will stop looking at emails. That way, the time away from the business is my own, as it should be.

Easy Beginner Self-Care Tips

Since our industry is so very deadline oriented I think we have a tendency to put it first. As a result, I am trying to adopt a few baby steps on my own self-care:

1.  Getting Outside. We stare at our computer screens for hours at a time. So now, I try to get up, stretch and step outside every hour. Look up at the sun. Breath fresh air. I have been very surprised how much better I feel afterwards. And it is easier to do than I thought. I’m putting a timer on my phone to make sure I don’t just keep going and going.

2.  Making Sleep a Priority. I don’t brag any more about only needing 5-6 hours of sleep. I really do need more. I strive for 7 hours now and will work to get to 8 hours of sleep. So much research is showing how important sleep is to helping our bodies care for itself, regenerate necessary cells.

3.   Making some Dietary Changes. I am trying to eat more balanced meals. Smaller ones too. I had become a creature of food convenience. I wasn’t into delivery or fast food, but I would have prepared frozen meals because I could be eating in 10 minutes or less. Not the healthiest plan. It really isn’t that hard to make enough for several meals at one time.

4.  Spending more quality time with my boyfriend. He was coming over for our “date night” and I would work another hour or more. He said he understood, but our time should have been a priority. I am now making it so.

I have a long way to go for sure. Hence just my baby step suggestions. I’d like to try meditation. Heard a lot of good things about even 5 minutes of meditation so that will be added to my list. If you have found something that really works for you. Let us know.

Because as we all continue to expand our business we need to also expand our self-care routines so that we can be happier, more creative and more productive for the long haul ahead.