What Do You Do With Your 'Down Time'?

As an entrepreneur or small business owner, there often seems like there is very little down time from your business. If you are not working with clients, you are probably working on marketing tasks or managing your support team. You are planning goals and programs, and laying out launch procedures.

It can be overwhelming, especially if you work from home. It can be hard to leave the office when it's only a few steps away.

So it's important to make time to turn off the business part of your life.

Here are a few suggestions to help you do this:

Take a day off. This is so simple, but many small business owners don't do it. It would be nice to have one day every week that you didn't work, but sometimes that's not always possible. But it is so liberating to pick a day and just concentrate on yourself, your family, your friends, your pet, whatever you wish! Let your clients and your team know that you will be away if it's a normal business day. Let your family know that you will be off if it's on a weekend day and they will be off too (I write my days off on the calendar). Many of my colleagues sneak in an afternoon or morning here and there, but stretch it to a full day and you will come back rested and refreshed!

Avoid electronics for one evening. This is another really simple thing that you can do to help you get away from your business for a while. I see many people checking their mobile phone (even at the dinner table!) and it makes me cringe. Everyone should be able to go at least a half hour without checking in. I used to leave my cell phone on my desk during the day, and on my coffee table at night (or in my pocket if we were not at home). It can be a huge distraction, and you should make a point of shutting it off for one evening... longer if you can stand it! That goes for laptops, iPods, gaming systems, or anything else that keeps your brain in a really active state. You might even include the television and DVD or BluRay player in that if you like! Down time from electronics really allows the brain to slow down, and you will feel more relaxed by removing them from your sight for a while.

Go out on a date. You can go out with your spouse or your children or your friends. Leaving the house is a great way to get away from the office for a while. It can also get you into different settings, where you can actually be more creative and you will acquire new ideas to bring back to your business. One of the things we love to do is to go out for dinner (movies, not so much... we can't talk, and we are much too used to the pause feature at home!) and when we go out, we try to go someplace we haven't been before... and we always like to try something new. Expanding the palette will also help you expand your conversation and you will stretch your thoughts as well. You may even come up with your next great idea (or maybe just a great vacation idea that you can use a business goal!)

Get help with chores. Whether it's meal preparation, laundry, house cleaning or yard work, get help from your family. This is a kind of rest that some people don't consider. Getting some assistance with the things that you try to fit in around your work day is an excellent way to give to yourself! Kids can help with meal preparation, table setting or cleaning up, and even with laundry. Enlisting the help of your spouse is also a good idea if it works for your family. My husband is a chef, so he works nights in a restaurant - he's not able to help with most mealtimes, but he does do all of the outside chores. We have considered getting a housekeeper and someone to help with the yard maintenance. This would help both of us in our jobs, so it's a real possibility for us this year. What a great rest that will be to give ourselves back that time!

Clear clutter. There is nothing like clearing off your desk to increase the flow of creativity to your brain! I am guilty of keeping too much paper on hand, and although I purge it regularly I really wish I could just not keep it to begin with. I'm working on it! Simplify your systems. Keep only what you need and get rid of the rest. That goes not just for paper, but for everything in your life. Sometimes the clutter that we surround ourselves with can really be overwhelming. Getting rid of things that you no longer use or need is a sure way to make way for the things you do want in your life. I am working on this, and I highly suggest you do too!

By honestly giving yourself some down time - whether it's daily or just when you can - you can become more focused when you are in your office. You can bring new ideas to the table... simply from having moved away from it for a while. You can become better organized. You will be happier.

Take care of your number one asset - you - and your business will appreciate it too!