Running your own small business absolutely has it’s pros and cons. And while the pros certainly outweigh the cons, the cons can feel the heaviest.
Sure, you get the freedom with your time. You have no limitations on your income. You have nobody to answer to. You get to set the tone of your business. You get to control the operations. You can say no when you want to and say yes when it feels right. There are so many beautiful parts of running your own business.
But running your own small business also comes with some very real challenges. There is no vacation time. There is nobody to fall back on. There are no days off. And when there are, that means your business is off, too.
If I’m not answering the emails, who is? If I’m not responding to inquiries, will I lose them? If I didn’t plan accordingly, who else would meet that delivery deadline?
Running your own small business becomes a 24/7 thing, unless you have the discipline to set boundaries and stick to them. And when I first started, boy, did I feel guilty doing so.
The Importance Behind Boundary Setting
In any other workplace, you have boundaries in place without even knowing it. You have a start and end time. You have sick time, vacation time, days off, etc. And when you are gone, someone will step in to help in your place (hopefully!). Those boundaries are important.
When running your own small business, those elements don’t automatically exist, so it’s important to put those into practice.
For me, as a wedding + family photographer, when I take time off, I allow myself to be accessible by email only. I will answer a select handful of emails and all inquiries/time sensitive matters. That select handful of emails are priority to clients that I am serving within the 2 weeks following my time off. All other communication is held off until I return from my time off.
I will continue to edit, as that is a task I can do on my own free will. However, once or twice a year during travel, I like to ensure I take this part off entirely. I will make sure deliveries happen before I leave, so I do not feel pressured to edit if I do not want to.
In addition, during my busy seasons, I block time out on my calendar as days off to actually be at home with my family. Those dates are not given out for any reason. Clients that are early enough to schedule, get access to my open dates. Anyone late to schedule, may have to forego a location selection and meet me back to back with another family.
Before implementing these boundaries, I felt guilty! I felt guilty for missing apple picking with my kids, but also guilty for not taking on my clients. I felt guilty for missing my nieces birthday party, but also guilty to tell a client “no, that date does not work for me.” Until, I put my foot down…to myself.
Because it was never my clients. It was my own guilt. My clients never cared. In fact, they were more supportive of my boundaries than I was. They wanted me to take the time off. They understood. And when I finally allowed myself to listen to them just enough, I, too, realized just how important these boundaries were.
Do NOT Lead Yourself to Burnout
The worst thing you can do is overwork yourself to the point of no return. To burnout. When your work, your passion, no longer drives you. When that happens, nobody wins.
So take the time off. Take on less. Set your boundaries. And do what feels right for YOU.
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