I hate to say it – but you need a break from your business. And not a little break to the local coffee shop for your fave drink, but a real, minimum of 48-hour break. No, this doesn’t make you a bad business owner – in fact, it’ll make you the best business owner. Here’s what to do when you need a break from your business!
First, recognize when you need a break or when you just need a moment. Owning a business doesn’t suddenly exclude us from having bad days, and bad days mean you need a moment to breathe.
A break comes when you’re overwhelmed, you’re exhausted, and you’re getting burnt out. Ideally, you’ll take a break before those things happen to prevent them from happening, but, realistically, let’s just assume you’re new to this “taking a break” thing so the full emotional breakdown is a must.
Now that you know when you need a break, let’s talk about how you can actually take your break:
What to do When You Need a Break From Your Business
The fact that you think you need a break from your business is a sign that you need to start prepping to take a break as soon as possible. That means it’s time to wrap up and find a good pausing point in your current client work or project and figure out what you can do.
After you’ve cleared your schedule to the best of your ability, preferably to the point where you have 48 hours or more of time to yourself, it’s time to look at what you can do to take your break.
Can you take a weekend vacay to the beach? Or maybe you need a weekend staycation? Both are great options! And you don’t have to do it alone, you can invite your partner, your friends, or family and spend time together.
But the #1 thing you need to do when you need to take a break from your business is unplug.
How to Unplug From Your Business for 48 Hours (or More)
Finding what to do during your break isn’t necessarily the ‘hard part,’ most business owners have a harder time truly unplugging from their business. We have a hard time parting with our social media or ignoring new emails and inquiries.
As much as I would love to say that you could just carry on as usual, you’re not taking a break when you don’t unplug. The goal is to take a break from your business, not take it with you!
To really unplug, try using these quick tips that are the least anxiety-inducing:
- Set up an autoresponse on your email saying that you’re out for the next few days and give a time frame when they can expect you to read and respond.
- Temporarily delete your social media apps from your phone or turn it on “do not disturb” mode to quiet your notifications.
- Make a point to do activities that keep you from your socials. For example, try exploring a new place, cooking something different, or a place that has a poor signal/wifi.
Why You Have to Take Breaks From Your Business as an Entrepreneur
I have two words for you: burn out. If you do not regularly take breaks in your business you are going to burn out, you’re going to feel overwhelmed, you’re going to be anxious, and you’re going to stop existing outside of your business.
It’s super easy to get pulled in by hustle culture and assume that success only comes by working 24/7, but hustle culture doesn’t take into consideration why you started your business or why you wanted the freedom of being an entrepreneur – it focuses on making as much money as possible no matter how much time you have to sacrifice.
And that’s not what entrepreneurship needs to be. You should feel joy in your business and be able to slow down to enjoy the life you’re making and spend time doing what matters to you outside of your business.
Learning to take a break comes easier as you get more comfortable in your business, but that doesn’t mean you can push it off until then! This is your sign you need a break ASAP, so take one.
What do you do when you need to take a break? Do you have a hard time unplugging from your business? Share your thoughts in the comments below!
