I have realized - the thing with leaving your 9-5 for your startup is that you go into a very flexible work day. It’s so flexible that the distinction between hours, and weekdays and weekends start to disappear.
During the first months to maybe the first year of your startup, you’ll actually find yourself working more than ever.
This is exactly where we are right now. Mondays to Fridays have become the days where my team and I work for and with our clients. Weekends have become a light work day for Alla and I. This is where we have the time to focus on projects that we want to happen for INAM. This is where we write, learn, read and plan.
It has become the new routine. While it’s true that we do not really work from 9-5 straight and we are able to step out whenever we want, take short breaks whenever we want, having to do any amount of work 7 days a week will eventually catch up on you. And now Alla and I feel it. The high is already settling down, it’s calming down. So now, we start to see these patterns and feel the need to change things up.
This is the unusual effect of building your own business. You dictate your time and so you actually forget to get some well-deserved R & R.
How you spend your time is now dependent on you - 100% on you. So if you’re feeling overworked, that’s on YOU.
On the flipside, this also means that learning to take a break is something that you need to impose on yourself.
You need to book a time to unplug. I need to book a time to unplug.
Take it like a serious appointment where you do not open anything related to work. Do what you want - whether it’s sleeping all day, watching videos, movies or reading - as long as it relaxes you, do it.
Doing this will actually help you even more. It will refresh your mind and body which will inspire you, help you think more clearly, and help you work more efficiently.
So, when are you unplugging for a day?