Note: This post was written for the special focus track I’m doing this winter on self-care for entrepreneurs with day jobs. Not an entrepreneur? No worries–I think you’ll still find this plenty helpful!
Having to juggle between being an entrepreneur and working in a day job can be a stressful rollercoaster ride. Entrepreneurs are notorious for never turning work off; there’s always something to be done, and the list of things we want to accomplish just grows and grows.
Sustaining a new business–especially once you hit that six to eighteen month mark–when the honeymoon phase has worn-off, can get pretty disheartening sometimes. Especially when you’re faced with a bunch of hard work, but maybe not getting the results that you want to see yet. That’s why it’s important to find a way to make this sustainable. You’ve got to find a way to celebrate what you’ve accomplished already in order to move forward.
So, here’s a really quick, practical activity to help you do just that. I want you to take a pen and paper and make a list, but it’s not one of those to-do lists, it’s a different kind of list. This time, I want you to make a “done” list, and what I mean by that is pick a period of time and look back at all that you’ve accomplished. First this is going to feel like it’s a waste of time, but as you list out those things, it can really put everything into perspective.
Most often, life gets in the way of most people, which is why most people don’t have the strength or determination to keep a business going—kids get in the way, dogs get in the way, jobs get in the way, and even laundry gets in the way. So, I think it’s really, really critical that we look back and say, hey, I did all these things in my business on top of running a household, holding down a full-time job, and juggling all those expectations– because that is a very difficult thing to balance.
There’s also kind of a smaller level you can apply this in by making use of to-do list apps like Trello or Onenote. You can go back and see the tasks you have archived, and that can be just a quick reminder of everything you’ve done so far. I archive all of my tasks that have been completed about once a week. It’s nice to just see how much I’ve done and say, I’ve really had a productive week.
Doing this will help you keep your entrepreneurial mojo, which is so important. The reason that’s going to do this is because the brain repeats activities in which the reward center is triggered. We don’t want to keep doing something that we suck at, and if we’re only focused on the things that we still have to do and still have to accomplish, we are not going to repeat that for very long, and our businesses will fail.
If we start reasonable goals and we realize how far we’ve come, we are much more likely to repeat something, because we feel good about it. It’s important to remember that sometimes looking back at what you’ve done so far can remind you how much more you are capable of doing in the future.
Want more on self-care for overworked entrepreneurs? Grab my free Self-Care Guide for Entrepreneurs–10 highly practical strategies I use to maximize my mojo while balancing a demanding schedule.
