Why the need to be productive is killing your business
How to take back your power.
When I first begin working with a new coaching client one thing almost always stands out. Their capacity to be very productive.
There’s almost an insatiable need for them to stay on the busy train despite the mindset issues they’re encountering that brought to me.
Productivity, inherently, is not a bad thing.
Being productive is how we take action consistently, how we scale our business, how we plan for future growth.
But it’s when we cannot turn off our brain long enough to withstand more than 30 seconds of stillness, that starts to negatively impact how we bring ourselves to our work.
What I’m talking about is actively pursuing your goals and getting your tasks completed but not allowing yourself time to enjoy the business you’ve built and the accomplishments you’ve achieved.
Recently I wrote in my Lighthouse Letter (a mindset newsletter) about celebrations and wins. The subject line of that email was “I’m celebrating me….”.
Truth be told, I wasn’t being facetious at all. I know that to be able to move the needle forward in the direction I want my business to go, I have to take time to recognize and take stock of where I’ve been AND celebrate me…..my wins.
(to join our Lighthouse Community click here).
Looking ahead only can wear you down
Sometimes in our need to constantly strive for more, to push beyond where we are, it means we’re only forever only looking ahead.
We finish one thing and before we have a chance to revel in our latest accomplishment or receive the lesson from a misstep or failure, we’re on to the next thing that we feel needs our immediate attention.
More often than not we forget that downtime is an important piece of the being-in-business pie.
*In a serendipitous moment, after I first wrote this article, I came across this question posed in an email from a coach & mentor of mine…
“In your business, are you ACTIVELY building in time when you’re intentionally NOT creating more revenue because you’re teaching your system how to tolerate, have and enjoy (in that order) what you have already accomplished?”
Her words beautifully encapsulate what I want you to consider. When you institute downtime in your business you create space for breath and, believe it or not, expansion.
Because it’s in our still moments that we can look around and assess our mental state and our physical capacity. And if we have room in either state to continue unimpeded.
Have you tried incorporating these pockets of time into your schedule?
Unfortunately though, for most women curating their business, the answer to this question is…well, no (if your answer is a resounding Yes! I’m already cheering for you).
That’s because the long-standing practice in business that dictates what our productivity level should be, that has been drummed into us over aeons of time, is that to hustle and push till you can’t stand upright anymore, and still push yourself, even more, IS the norm.
We’ve internalized and accepted that the only way to have a thriving, sustainable and profitable business is to be “on” all the time. I’m calling total BS on that!
Your System of Operations
What about taking moments in time to celebrate all you’ve done, to take stock of your business’ temperature — where you’ve been, where you want to go, what you have room for (internally and externally speaking)?
…to allow for gratitude to fill you up with good endorphins; to be thankful for who you are, the person that shows up every day, the woman who built this entity that is YOUR business.
Have you built time into your schedule, in your daily/weekly/monthly system of operations to breathe in and really enjoy the fruits of your labour?
Wanting to grow your business and doing the work that sustains that growth is not necessarily an every hour of the day endeavour.
A farmer will rest after the full swing of the harvest is over. Farmworkers leave to spend quality time with their families. This downtime has been well established and incorporated into the whole planning of the crop year.
Why, though, is this not a normal practice or way of thinking for those of us who operate as solo and online entrepreneurs?
Where can you find spaces in your schedule to add in much-needed downtime? It doesn’t have to be immediate but it must be considered as a part of regular operations.
By the way, if you don’t think you deserve this still time we probably need to have a conversation.
Is it time to assess where you can institute some you-space so that the heady and full arch of business is not always looming right above your head?
Pause reading right now and take a quick minute to think about what this space of time could even look like for you.
You are the CEO of your business
When I feel the weight of even the simplest of decisions bogging me down, pushing me further into a dense brain fog, it’s then that I know I need a momentary break.
I shut my computer, leave my office and either go for a walk outside or lose myself for 20 minutes in a book.
Understanding this important factor of how I want to operate in business, I also now schedule longer periods of downtime (an hour, a day, or a weekend) in my calendar.
When this meeting with myself is on the calendar it reminds me that downtime is a necessary component in my own self-care.
Very rarely will I not take that meeting.
Those short breaks away from my desk and all-things-business does so much to re-energize me, to shake away the cobwebs that had begun piling up.
Even when I pull out my personal or business journal and start writing to help me wrap my mind around a dilemma, an idea or a concept, I consider it breathing space because it helps redirect my energy and mind back into my body and what it’s needs are.
Remember, you are the CEO of your solo business. You’ve put in place a system of operations for how your business will run. I invite you to include in your plans a way to regroup and regenerate.
Allow yourself to bring the focus back to you, your mental state and your physical and energetic needs. Find the space you need to breathe free without the mental pressure of business dictating your every waking moment.
Make downtime a priority in your business too.
