How To Stop Sacrificing Yourself For Your Business
- Sep 25, 2023
- 4 min read
Written by: Amelia Harshfield, Executive Contributor
Executive Contributors at Brainz Magazine are handpicked and invited to contribute because of their knowledge and valuable insight within their area of expertise.
So many business owners struggle to not have their business take over their entire life. They can get into traps of working all the time, feeling like they have to be available on weeknights and weekends, and saying yes to customers when they want to say no. They can wear themselves out and wish they never started the business. However, there are a couple of things they can do to have a better balance with their business, so they can feel more in control of their time. Below are three simple steps to get there.
The first is to make a list of what you find draining within your business. Write down everything you dread doing, the small tasks that annoy you, and what you avoid right now. What is on your list may be different from other people. So even if others enjoy it, if you have an aversion to the task, put it on the list. You can keep doing tasks because it is logical that you should be doing them, even though you don’t want to deep down. Or you might feel guilty about taking a responsibility off your plate. If you do not enjoy the responsibility in any capacity, write them on your list.
The second step is to look at the list and see which would be easiest for you to offload first. This is one of the best ways to get more time on your hands and make you more in control of your time. Delegation of these easiest tasks can free more of your time up, and spend less time being at the mercy of your business. You might need to find people to offload these tasks to. You might need to spend time creating a strategy of how you are going to hand the task over to someone else. Or write a list of everything you are doing so you can tell the person exactly how to manage the task.
The same goes for feeling guilty about not doing a duty anymore. Anytime these words come up, there is usually a fear or emotional struggle that you may need to work through before you can find the right person to hand that off to. For example, if bookkeeping annoys you, but you feel like you have to do it, find a reputable bookkeeper or accountant who can do this for you. As you get more off your plate that is not aligned, you will feel a bit lighter. You will have more time to focus on what you enjoy doing and less on what you feel like you should be doing.
What can also help with this second step is being clearer on when you can be in work mode and when you need to be off. This helps others know what to expect of you. If you are responding at all hours of every day, then people are going to want that standard from you. Tell people when you are going to respond to them and hold yourself to that. People will text and email you whenever they are able. You get to choose when you respond.
The third step is to understand what thoughts and feelings come up when you are feeling at the mercy of your business. When you start getting frustrated, write down everything you are thinking and what emotions you are feeling. These will show you how you are making your situation worse. If you can understand how to get these thoughts and feelings to stop arising when this situation occurs, it will help you think clearly the next time you find yourself in that position. You cannot live your dream life if you are feeling bad about asking your team for more help or if you are complaining about how you have to respond to customers at 7 pm on a Saturday evening. Notice what you are bringing to the table, so you can help yourself become the leader who lives an amazing life.
Most leaders are being held back by themselves. This keeps them at the mercy of their business. As they stop their thoughts and feelings from keeping themselves hostage, they can find solutions to get them out of their unwanted situations. They feel more powerful and they trust themselves more.
I teach leaders how to get out of their way by combining their Myers-Briggs personality type and a specific kind of inner child work. It’s a highly effective process that will make them feel more like themselves, do things they have always wanted to do, feel more connected to others and themselves, and be so much calmer. This is something they’ve never experienced before and they get results quickly.
If you are ready to get out from under your business, I would love to offer you a no-cost 30-minute call (found on the Connect page of my website). We can see how you are limiting yourself and what you can do to stop being stuck. This is costing you so much time and energy. It’s impacting you, your business, your friends and family, and your happiness. But it does not have to be like this. Let’s get you out of this space so you can be more of the leader you were born to be.
For more info follow me on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, and visit my website!
Amelia Harshfield, Executive Contributor Brainz Magazine
Amelia Harshfield is fascinated and motivated by what impact makers can achieve as they become more resilient. With a solid education and a master’s degree in economics, she has been creating passive income in Real Estate investing for over 5 years. Her key foundational work is The Overcoming Anxiety Method™, a powerful 4-step formula for playing a bigger game without being crushed by fear. This process is paramount to finding an authentic version of freedom and wealth. Mentoring and educating high-level operators is her passion, her work has been featured in magazines, podcasts, conferences, and she has been a trainer on Sir Richard Branson's Necker Island.
