It’s that time of year where we female entrepreneurs are all turning our thoughts to the upcoming year. We are thinking through goals and what we want our life and business to be like in the new year. We’re probably saying things like, “Where did the year go?” too.
If you are anything like me, you get excited about a new notebook or planner and some time spent setting some new goals.
But there’s something heavy on my heart …
So this topic is heavy on my heart as I coached dozens of women in my first year as a business coach to female entrepreneurs. It’s a pretty serious topic that demands its own blog post because I’m concerned about you.
There is this insidious cancer spreading through the entrepreneurial world that is slowly killing a lot of female-run businesses. And that thing is burnout. More specifically, content-creating burnout. It’s burnout from working way too many nights and weekends trying to keep up with newsletters and blogs and social media.
The one thing you need this year …
If I could ask you one thing in this upcoming year, as your business coach and friend, it would be this: to set aside one full day of rest each week. Rest from work. Rest from creating content. Rest from writing your newsletter. Rest from being in Instagram stories. Just rest.
And yes, even rest from chores!
I know, I know. You’re too busy and cannot possibly take a full day off from everything. When I first began to learn about a day of rest—and actually do it—my husband was traveling Monday-Thursday every week. I had 4 kids at home. I was working 60+ hours a week outside the home. And I was a full-time college student at 18 credit hours a semester. Life was crazy.
I still found a way. I started with just 4 hours set aside on Sundays from 11am (when we got home from church) to 3pm. Then, I slowly expanded it hour-by-hour until it was an entire day. It changed everything—from healing my workaholism to making me a kinder, sweeter wife and mom.
I promise, there is wisdom in having a time of rest.
We are called to pursue wisdom. Proverbs speaks to this concept a lot. One of the ways that we can get wisdom is by listening to people further ahead of us on the journey.
Sweet one, I pray that you will listen to me. Your business will not survive if you keep working seven days a week. Your marriage will not survive either.
If you keep feeling the need to be on social media, consuming and creating content seven days a week, it will destroy you. While it might not bother you now, I can promise you this: one day you are going to wake up and you are going to want to quit your small business. And, if you don’t have someone like me in your corner, that’s exactly what you will do … essentially burning down the business you once loved because it became more of a nightmare than a dream-come-true.
Why rest matters …
We were not designed to work seven days a week, sweet entrepreneur. And we certainly were not designed to put ourselves out there on a public forum like social media every single day.
Do you ever feel like social media and content creation are a bit like the Little Shop of Horrors? Feed me, Seymour! It’s like no matter how much content we create, the next day we have to wake up and create even more. Over time, this is a recipe for burnout.
Again, every woman I have talked to about backing off from social media and going down to posting less and certainly not being in Instagram stories on the weekends, has argued with me that she likes it, or that it doesn’t bother her, or that it just takes a second. These very same women, six months later, are telling me that they need to take a three-month hiatus from the ‘gram. It happens every single time.
All of this could be avoided if we just learn to embrace a rhythm of rest in our small business and personal life.
My own experience with burnout …
I went through a period of extreme burnout. My hair was falling out. I was having panic attacks. I was gripped by insomnia, waking up every single day at two or three in the morning. I was sick and getting sicker by the day. I was working a job that I loved and thought it would never burn me out, but suddenly, it did. Burnout is not something you can see coming or can hold at bay forever. It will simply happen to you before you realize it’s going to.
The solution is so simple …
And the best way to avoid this is through a day of rest.
Personally, as a Christian business owner, I take Sunday as my day of rest. It doesn’t matter what day it is. One of my coaching clients takes her day off on Tuesday.
For me, it is Sunday. And Sunday used to be my least favorite day of the week (Sunday scaries and all). But now? It is by far my favorite day of the whole week. We go to church, come home and have leftovers or a meal that I prepared the day before. I spend a lot of time with my kids and husband. I spend long, unhurried hours reading the Bible or in my prayer closet. I sit outside on the back patio and just listen to nature. I read a book. I take a bubble bath. I luxuriate over a perfectly made latte or I’ll sit in front of the fire. Every single week, I get a full vacation day. Do you know how amazing this is?!
And then, I wake up on Mondays, energized and ready to go instead of tired and frustrated. I don’t worry about burnout anymore because I completely shut down the engines one day a week.
I invite you to do the same. You can, you know.
As you prepare to create goals for your business and your personal life in this upcoming year, I hope that you will make a full 24-hour day of rest one of your biggest goals. Your heart, soul, body, mind, and family will thank you.
Are you a small business owner overwhelmed by stress and disorganization, craving practical tools and coaching to help your business thrive? Check out The Success Squad here!
Disclaimer: While Kelly is a certified business coach this post is for informational purposes only and may not be the best fit for you and your personal situation. It shall not be construed as financial advice. The information and education provided here is not intended or implied to supplement or replace legal or financial advice. Always check with your own legal or financial team before trying or implementing any information read here. As an Amazon Associate Kelly also earns from qualifying purchases.
