There’s a lot on your plate when you are CEO/Owner/Head Honcho of your own business. Taking responsibility for your business and every decision can be both empowering and draining. If you love what you do and are passionate about making your business a success, it can sometimes be hard to balance your work life and your home life. In fact, without careful planning you can find yourself so focused on your business that you forget to nurture your relationships and your own sense of well-being.

Whether a solo professional or CEO of a growing company, you need to take time to balance your life. Without time to relax and restore, you’ll find yourself stretched beyond the limit – unable to make the right decisions, unable to be fully involved in your business or your life.

Now is the perfect time of year to take stock of how you’re doing and restore balance back into your life. The follow tips will help you move forward in 2011 with a better work/life balance:

    1. Set your priorities.Before you can begin to achieve balance, you need to determine what balance means for you. Is it a solid weekend off? Is it time each day to spend pursuing your passions? Defining this will help you define your goals for achieving balance, as it’s different for everyone.
    1. Make your work environment flexible.Multiple studies show that a flexible work environment, with adjustable hours and locations, can improve productivity and job satisfaction. Although many of those studies are directed at employees, the benefits to CEOs and decision makers apply equally. By using on-demand office space rather than a traditional office, you can work from anywhere and still have a professional office setting when you need it.
    1. Get organized.Having systems in place to facilitate loosening the reins once in a while is essential. This organization can initially take more of your time, but will pay off in saved time and less stress down the road. Your leads generation, sales and follow up processes should be ironed out and repeatable. Getting organized will make it possible for you to hand off the baton as you need to.
    1. Turn off the smart phone from time to time.For many decision makers, this is like asking them to cut off their right arm. Smart phones have liberated CEOs and management from having to stay in the office to get business done, but at times the reverse is true – technology makes it too easy to be available. Taking a technology break during your lunch hour or on the weekends will help you keep your mind and attention on your off time activities.
    1. Make time for relaxation.Relaxation and rest can be scheduled just like the rest of your important tasks. Even though it might seem silly to write “read a magazine” on your to-do list, the fun tasks can tend to get pushed out of the way if you don’t schedule them. Pick your favorite activities and start scheduling them into your life.

Courtney Ramirez
Research Analyst, Pacific Business Centers (rebranded as Pacific Workplaces)

Courtney’s research for Pacific Business Centers focuses on tracking emerging business trends and best practices – with an emphasis on how they affect business operations, technology, and the future of work trends.