"How are you so positive all the time?" "Your posts are always so optimistic and happy it must be so easy for you to live such a positive life." "I wish my life was more like yours." "I wish I could be as strong as you, my life is such a mess." "I can't seem to work or do anything at all!" "I want to get rid of this and just run somewhere." "I think my business is going to fail and I'm going to be a failure." "I can't seem to take care of anything. " -- Phew! I've heard something like this so many times and in so many ways. Honestly everyone goes through ups and downs in their lives, but when things turn chaotic at work you know you feel pretty horrible and worthless and for most people, you don't attract profits/make good sales/attract clients etc.,
It’s so important to stay true to your work, to stay professional. But it’s quite difficult when your personal life’s a mess and you can't take a break.
You’d think it’s easier if you’re running your own show but it’s not. In fact, it’s even worse (at least in my experience). Since you’re the boss, most of the times you close shop because, “you don’t feel like it” “today’s a bad day” “mood is a little effed up”. And sometimes you dive into it just because it's a wonderful distraction. This can happen once or twice but if it’s way too often, odds are you’ve let your personal issues and professional life both seem like a mess and not working well at all. You're draining your energy and not getting work done. And most importantly you're not happy!
The idea is not to choose between the two because seriously, how do you choose between something like this? Your business and work is just as important as your personal life and vice-versa.
I worked with a client recently on her procrastination and burnout because she had some personal issues and while she was working on her personal issues, she needed support for her business to run smoothly and we worked together to help her stay focused and less stressed.
If you’re a creative or run a one woman show it’s important to show up from time to time because without you there’s no work or business.
This is what you can do if you’re dealing with a personal crisis and yet need to show up for work -
01 – Accept that things are messed up – Okay, this is really important. Your personal life is not that great right now and you’re probably going to want to be comfortable to say instead of feeling guilty about it because it’s unwise and unfair to be oblivious about it and pretend as if all is well.
02 – Understand your current working capacity – If there’s way too much on your plate, lighten the burden. You can either outsource it, take on extra help. Don’t dump too much work on yourself. It’s better to work for a few hours in a day rather than working longer hours or not working at all.
03 – Create a schedule – It’s always safer and better to plan and schedule so you get all the important things done which will allow you to spend time with your personal situation. If it’s scheduled and planned it’s easy to move and get it done.
04 – Communicate clearly – It’s important to realize that your personal life is usually behind the scenes, since you need to slow down and adjust you can’t expect everyone else to do that too. Whether it’s with your clients or colleagues it’s always good to communicate clearly and let them know that you’re not in the best space and you might be unavailable 24*7.
05 – Talk about it – Either with a friend or a professional. Since being a professional boss-babe requires you to stay focused in your business and usually it’s during a personal crisis that we tend to either feel suffocated by it or overwork. Talking about it will help you focus and prioritize.
06 – Make the most of your situation – Look. I know it’s tough out there and it’s pretty annoying/upsetting to keep at it, but I’m still going to encourage you to make the best of this situation. Especially since you can’t afford to take along break or can’t afford to lose business and work. It may sound nearly impossible but try to see from a better perspective.
Since I run my own show where I blog, post on IG every day, I have 1 – 1 coaching sessions, it’s not really possible for me to give it all up for a long time. Any time I go through a personal crisis I tend to give myself a day or two or a week (if it’s a pretty terrible time) but I bounce back to work.
It’s important to remember that each person has a different way to deal with their issues and while some may feel a day or two is enough some may want longer. Since it’s your business and responsibility and your work you definitely know better. Of course these points are to help you if you've got no clue what to do but customize it according to your situation.
Hope these help you get through the bad phase and hope you don't over-stress yourself.
Just in case you need help planning and scheduling, don't forget to claim my planning sheets - Getting things done - freebie
Pause, Breathe, Dream...
Nikita