The Power of Pause: Work-Life Balance Techniques for Online Entrepreneurs & Content Creators

We often underestimate many important factors when it comes to taking time off from our online businesses. As entrepreneurs, we frequently feel guilty, but what we forget is that switching off from our activities can have a huge positive impact on our business. Let's explore why disconnecting is essential and how you can implement burnout-proof techniques to rejuvenate your mind and body, ultimately enhancing your business's success.

Unlocking Success: Why Unplugging is Essential for Entrepreneurial Success

I love rain, but not too much. 

Sometimes, I really need it. It forces me to stop and listen. 

There are days we struggle with switching off from our business, constantly thinking about unfinished tasks, unanswered emails, or fearing that not engaging with social media posts for one day will lead to disaster.

As entrepreneurs, the pressure to continuously engage with our businesses can be overwhelming, leading to stress and burnout. 

But what if taking a step back could open up a universe of new possibilities?

I've promised myself to take care of my health, especially my mental health. Often feeling anxious, agitated, restless, angry, and guilty.

What was causing these feelings? 

Not knowing where they were coming from, I decided to start with something simple:
"Stop talking bad about myself and being so mean to myself"

Everytime I hear myself being mean, I change language and I say something empowering in front of the mirror.

For decades in my ballet career I pushed to please directors and choreographers, and let them talk to me badly.

That’s what was required by the job, right?

They said It was for your own good.If they told you ‘you were s#!t’ without any other explanation, it didn’t matter. You were just a dancer and you signed a contract. You do what you are told and shut up. You were disposable and not valuable. So they had every right to treat you like that. It didn’t matter how hard you worked.

This is where this habit came from… and it was so wrong!

It’s not all about push. It’s not all about saying yes.
It’s about looking after ourselves as a whole, respecting the fact that you are human and deserve to take a break.

So how do we unplug from the craziness of business, get rid of this anxiety and be ready to thrive?

Actionable Tip: Schedule Regular Unplugged Days

• Calendar Integration: Block out at least one day every week in your calendar as an "Unplugged Day." Treat this day with the same respect as a client meeting—non-negotiable.
• Prepare in Advance: Inform your team and clients about your scheduled offline time. Use auto-responders to manage expectations regarding your availability

Crafting Time: Scheduling Secrets for Busy Online Business Owners

Scheduling Days off and activities to do during that time, can relieve your mind from figuring out what and when it’s happening. 

Especially when we are our-own-boss we easily pick up work so we-don’t-have-to think- about it- later. But every time that happens, we tell ourselves that it’s ok to work even on days off.

If the schedule says it’s a day off, I will take it. Otherwise it won’t happen.

Rainy days are the perfect excuse to escape inwardly and find time for us.
But so are sunny days. Away from home, in contact with nature being kissed by the light of the sun.

Looking after me is a promise I've made to myself, so I have to keep that promise.
I take time to read, practice yoga and exercise everyday, even do some housework during time off - BUT NO WORK- no emails, no funnels, no strategies.

Only me in my own special world.
Family time is just as important. The connection you create around your loved ones must be nurtured.
You are not just your business.

Life is way more than creating content online to serve others.
When time-off kicks in, you are important, your friends are your escape to recharge with positive energy and your family is the most beautiful connection you have in your heart and in your life.

Actionable Tip: Master Your Calendar

• Prioritize Tasks: Use tools like Google Calendar or Monday[affiliates?] to visually organize your week, allocating specific blocks for work, relaxation, and personal growth.
  If you work with your partner or spouse, make sure you have a common calendar to be on the same page when it comes to scheduling.
• Set Boundaries: Define clear start and end times for your workday. Honor these boundaries to ensure you have time for rest and recreation.

Quiet the Chaos: Strategies to Minimize Distractions and Overwhelm

When you have your own business you feel guilty taking a day off, switching off from all emails, or you find an excuse to still be flickering through social media to check if the 'algorithm" has something new you need to learn.
My mantra? Turn off notifications and embrace the silence.
TURN OFF NOTIFICATIONS, do NOT look at the phone. On days off I keep it in SLEEP MODE.
No red dots are showing up as notifications, the phone doesn't vibrate to seek my attention, and because all my devices are corrected, none of them will make' pling-boop-pleep sounds while I'm doing my yoga practice or my well-deserved dance class.

When I boogie my world cannot be disturbed by techno sounds.

Actionable Tip: Digital Detox

• Notification Audit: Go through your devices and mute non-essential notifications. block distracting websites and apps during work hours.
• Designated No-Phone Zones: Establish areas in your home where phones are not allowed, such as the dining room or bedroom, to encourage presence and reduce screen time.

The Entrepreneur’s Journal: Mindful Writing to Relaxation and Clarity

We are so used to picking up the phone for anything we do. 

The new IOS has even got a new app called ‘journal’, where it finds you ideas to write about or even finds photos for you so you can write entries about it. Super cool for ideas and sharing memories ... BUT!

I might be old school, but the action of picking up a pen, feeling the rough paper under your fingers and the sound of the pen running on the perfectly-lined pages, has a healing and meditative sensation.

 
Everything around us is so fast-paced and on-demand,  that we have forgotten to wait, to slow down and to savor the small things in life.

I like writing down my thoughts in a Notebook, Journaling away my deepest emotions and discovering where they come from.
Sometimes I re-elaborate them to be used in possible social media posts or blogs like this one.

I don't consider journaling work.. I don’t pick up my pen to write something to be used for work.

I just write down what comes through my head, and in case it's good, it can be used for social media content.

Especially when I have free time, I allow my mind to wander endlessly. 

And it feels good!

We deserve time to heal, we deserve to breathe and take time to love our body and mind.

Actionable Tip: Daily Journaling Practice

• Set a Time: Dedicate 15 minutes each morning or evening to journaling. This can be a freewriting session, gratitude journaling, or reflecting on the day's events.
• Physical Journal: Invest in a notebook that feels special to you. The act of choosing a journal that resonates with you can enhance the personal connection to the writing process.

Effortless Strategies: Building a Social Media Presence That Grows on Your Days Off

Just because we work on social media, it doesn’t mean we have to constantly be on them. Planning your work week with a smart plan will give you the possibility to not worry during your time off.
We all know that social media requires us to be consistent to build an audience, get discovered and serve your clients.

Scheduling your content creation as well as your posting will be the key to freeing up your busy and sometimes frenetic schedule. Coming up with Ideas for your content, building a list of clients that will buy from you and never feel overwhelmed while building your social media presence, requires patience and a solid plan.

Actionable Tip: Content Batching and Scheduling

• Batch Content Creation: Dedicate one day a week to create content for the following month. This includes writing posts, creating graphics, and planning your content calendar.
• Use Scheduling Tools: Leverage tools like Buffer, Hootsuite, loomly or Heropost to schedule your posts in advance. This allows your social media to stay active, even when you're unplugged.

Posting on social media is good, but having a lead generation strategy is great

Here’s the strategy we use that made us more than $10K a month in the first years of our Business with Lazy Dancer Tips. Learn how to generate leads from your social Media Platforms, how to attract them, serve them and get them to buy your products and services effortlessly.

If you need a bit of help in finding ideas for your content here’s a blog post that will give you a few directions on how to approach content creation, or if you want a precise step-by-step strategy to grow your audience and build your email list, Social Media Leads is the next step for you. ⚡

Learn more about Social Media Leads

And if you are new or want to create social media content for your business, build a list of clients that love you and want to buy from you, you are ready for Social Media Leads, the step to step plan we used to build the foundations of our 6-Figure Business.

Love,
Alessia