How to Successfully Live a Balanced Life as a Self Employed Person

Have you recently transitioned into self-employment? Working for yourself allows you the flexibility you wouldn’t normally have. You can be your own boss, make your own hours, and work where ever you’d like.

Although this might seem like the perfect recipe for work/life balance, the sight of this can easily be lost. As you begin to realize that your income depends solely on yourself and the work you do, you can quickly find yourself working long hours or spending every day out of the week on your phone or computer. This is a common situation for a self-employed person to find themselves in, but it’s just as important to remember work/life balance when you’re your own boss as well.

In the guide below, you’ll find several tips for finding entrepreneurial success while still enjoying your at-home life. Continue reading to learn more!

Create a Work Schedule

The first thing you want to do is create a schedule for yourself. A work schedule might seem like the exact opposite of what you want from your self-employment, but it’s necessary if you want to ensure you have a good work/life balance. If you don’t give yourself a schedule to follow, you might end up overworking or failing to get work done.

The good thing about this is that you can create whatever schedule works well for you. If you need to work different hours on different days, then create that for yourself. You can write your hours for each day down on a calendar or whiteboard to help you stay on track.

This way, you’ll start work when you want to, you’ll stay on track with your work for the day, and finish working at a good time. Once you’re done for the day, you’re done.

Stop Feeling Guilty

Because you’re working from home, you may begin to feel guilty about a variety of things. You’ll find yourself staring at the unfinished laundry or telling yourself you should be spending time with your kids instead. Stop.

Do not feel guilty about working. You must look at it as if you were working a regular job away from home. When you start your work, your mindset needs to be at work.

When you’re done for the day, put the work down and don’t pick it back up until tomorrow.

Allow Yourself Breaks

It’s also important to remember that you need breaks from work when self-employed as well. Because you’re your own boss, you might start work and never take a break until you’re finished. There’s no one there to tell you it’s time to take your lunch.

Instead, you should include a lunch break into the work schedule you create for yourself. You should also remember to take short computer breaks also. If needed, put these reminders into your smartphone so you’ll remember to take your lunch and short 10-minute breaks throughout the day.

Learn to Say, “No”

When you work for yourself, you’ll need to learn how to say no. You’ll need to start saying no to friends, family, clients, and yourself. Let us explain.

You need to set limits and boundaries for yourself so you’re not overworked or stretched for time. For example, because you work for yourself, friends and family might begin to ask you to run errands for them or do favors for them since you’ll be at home with flexible hours. Multiple clients might send you a large amount of work all at once with a soon-approaching due date.

Whatever the situation might be, don’t forget to say no when it’s simply unrealistic for you. Sure, you can leave your house when needed here and there, but you’re also working and can’t run errands for people throughout the day. Sure, you can take on a large workload at times to make more money, but know what your limits are to prevent overworking.

Stay Connected

Working at home comes with many benefits, but it doesn’t come without downfalls. One of those downfalls is a lack of socialization. You’ll lose your in-person co-workers and face-to-face interactions with clients or customers. For this reason, it’s essential for you to stay connected.

If you have remote peers or co-workers, then be sure to connect with them on a social media platform. Chat with them about work projects and exchange questions with one another. Make sure to set aside time for friends and family throughout the week too.

Practice Self Care

Self-care is a necessity, even when you’re self-employed. For starters, make sure to have proper insurance. Even self-employed individuals can have workers’ compensation.

You should also set a day or two aside each month where you spend the day doing things for yourself. Maybe you schedule a haircut, maybe you spend the day reading, or simply hanging out at home.

Whatever brings you the most positivity and happiness is the best choice for you. Choose these days and write them down on your calendar so you don’t forget them.

A Self-Employed Person Can Have Balance Too

A successful entrepreneur knows how to balance work with home life. Don’t stress yourself out or burn yourself out by overworking and failing to set a schedule and appropriate boundaries. Follow all of the advice listed in the guide above to ensure you live a balanced life as a self-employed person.

You can find more business topics and many other topics as well by visiting us on a daily basis!