What I love about working for myself is that I get to set my own hours, work when and where I want, and decide how long I work each day (what I don’t love about working for myself is that entrepreneurship is not for the faint of heart, but I’ll get to that in a separate post).
Last week I onboarded a new client, and to be honest, starting something new after the recent passing of my grandmother triggered me. In the past, I would always tell my grandmother about what I was working on and who I was working with. But this time, there was no afternoon debrief session to be had, and it put me in a funk for a few days. On top of that, I had committed to taking care of the two horses I ride while their owner was on vacation, and between still being in the grieving process, starting something new, and honoring the commitments I had made, I was quickly overwhelmed.
I decided to use those feelings to my advantage. One of the things I haven’t done as an entrepreneur is set hours for myself. So, I decided that as part of my new routine, I was going to get up early every day and head to the barn first thing in the morning and then come home and do client work in the afternoon. If you know me personally, early mornings are not my thing, but I was desperate to get myself out of the state I found myself in.
And, do you know what? It seems that sense of routine was what I needed. I’ve felt way more productive than I have in a while, I still feel energized by the afternoon (which is surprising given that by noon I’ve ridden two horses), and it has encouraged me to clean up some other areas of my life, too.
Since starting my entrepreneurship journey last fall, I had been reluctant to put myself on too rigid a schedule. After working a 9-5 for so long, it felt freeing to go at my own pace. But now that I manage multiple clients, the boundaries of a daily routine are helpful—plus starting my day doing something I love doesn’t hurt either.
So, if you find yourself in a funk, feeling drained, or frustrated with your productivity levels, look at your routine (or perhaps, set a new one).
Leave a Reply