What happens when you have no work-life balance? As the famous movie quote goes, “All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy.”
But work-life balance loses its meaning when it comes to eCommerce entrepreneurs. As you learn basic eCommerce, you also try to learn how to create a balance between working on your online business and personal life. But it’s a constant challenge.
No matter the size of your business (whether you run a small business or a multi-regional company), the line between work and life is blurry.
It almost seems almost impossible to align the idea of eCommerce income and eCommerce work-life balance. Running a business is synonymous with being overworked. However, the keyword here is “almost.”
Yes, it’s a challenge to attain a work-life balance. But when you do, you can avoid burnout, improve your overall well-being, and increase competency and productivity.
In this blog, you’ll discover a set of rules for eCommerce business owners to discover and sustain a work-life balance.
1. Define What Balance Means For You
Work-life balance usually means how you manage your work and personal life. A healthy balance means one aspect complements the other and vice versa. For business owners, the meaning of balance may vary.
Think about what work-life balance means to you. Does it mean spending more time with yourself or your family? More time to travel or read?
It doesn’t mean that your time should be split 50-50. Instead, you have to look for your own rhythm that successfully fulfills both sides.
2. Establish Your Priorities
It’s not uncommon for an entrepreneur like you to have a finger in different pies. It’s easy to think you can do it all, but executing every task is plain impractical. Handling many tasks at a time will take too much of your hours with little to no progress.
Take one step at a time. Create a to-do list. List the high-priority, time-sensitive tasks at the top of it. List mid-priority tasks next; these are the things you can focus on a little every day.
Include long-term tasks and repetitive tasks on the list. If possible, you can create an automation for the latter to free up some time.
3. Set Boundaries
With technology nowadays, it’s easy for work and life to flow into each other. You can easily check your emails and work correspondents through your phone.
Setting boundaries for yourself, colleagues, and loved ones can improve vitality. Let your staff know the set time they can reach you and how they can contact you.
Manage expectations for your loved ones with an open conversation about your work schedule. Also, set working hours for yourself and your employees.
This may include flexibility based on other responsibilities in each person’s life. With it, everyone will focus on the most important part.
4. Delegate
Remember, you don’t have to do it all by yourself. As your online business grows, it’s only natural to get more help to delegate tasks.
Train your employees on tasks that do not require your attention. That way, you can focus on aspects of your business that really matters.
5. Get Organized
Victory loves preparation. That includes organizing and planning your days ahead of time. It can simplify your task to the essentials, making you more productive.
Find a process that works well for you. That may mean using paper calendars that you can check on your desk. You might prefer paperless and using digital platforms to organize your days.
Creating achievable goals can help you with your routine and be more intentional when it comes to your time.
6. Network With Fellow eCommerce Business Owners
It’s true; being a business owner can be isolating and lonely. The challenges, opportunities, and wins you face are unique on their own.
Look for small business groups you can engage with in your local area. You can also talk to other online brand owners about the tribulations you share. You can learn from them, and them from you.
7. Make Time For Yourself
When was the last time you took a fully-fledged vacation? If it took you more than a second to think, then it’s time to put yourself on the calendar.
Not taking time off for yourself will put you at a higher risk of burnout. Ironically, this can hurt your business as you are performing under less than optimal circumstances.
Taking a vacation means different things for different people. It might mean going away and leaving your phone on airplane mode. It may include exercising and visiting the doctor. Going on vacation can make you more refreshed and inspired to get back to work.
8. Focus On Just One Social Media Channel
As an eCommerce brand owner, your phone or laptop is stuck to your hands and eyes. It may have taken over your time with family.
Trying to interact with customers on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, TikTok, YouTube, Pinterest, and LinkedIn is exhausting and time-consuming.
Focusing on one can actually be advantageous for both your work and personal life. First, you can find more opportunities on just one platform. Second, you’ll spend more time with your loved ones than on your phone.
Find Your Equilibrium
The urge to keep on working hard and fast seems logical for an entrepreneur. But doing so may cause irreparable damage to different aspects of your life.
Plus, working on a balanced lifestyle is all-around beneficial to both your work and personal life.
Think of work-life balance as a philosophy rather than a singular goal. Creating harmony in different aspects of yourself can make for a happy and healthy life.
