7 Tips on
a Balanced Life

Vered Neta

S ince I started my first job at the age of 18 I was used to working 12-14 hours a day, 7 days a week, eating my lunch next to my desk and sometimes even sleeping in the office.

If I took a week vacation once or twice a year I was busy thinking what is going on and what crisis is taking place without me.

Now, don’t get me wrong, I loved every minute of it. But…

After a few years I started to notice that:
• I had a constant migraine
• I had several miscarriages
• My daughter kept complaining that I love my work more than her
• My family complained that all I have to talk about is… work

• The only friends I had were from work
• When I did spend a quiet dinner with my husband we didn’t have much to talk about, except business

This went on for a while, until I had to face the music and tell myself the truth:
‘My name is Vered and my life is out of balance.’

I realized at that moment that if I’ll continue down that road, soon I’ll find myself miserable, sick and… alone. I had to change. So I did.

Today:
• I put my family and health at a higher priority than my work
• I work 3-4 hours in normal days and 12-16 hours during training days.
• I regularly take days off, mini vacations, and long vacations alone or with my family.
• My migraines disappeared
• I work out regularly, which keeps my body in shape and my energy high.
• I spend more time with my daughter and my husband and we keep inventing ways to connect and things to experience together.

I still spend the majority of my time working, but I do only what I love doing – and my life is in balance again. If you’re struggling with creating balance between your business and personal life, here are a seven [and one] tips to get you started:

 
#1
Delegate
This was [and still is] my big lesson. The question you must ask yourself is: ‘If you can earn € 100 an hour for your business, why are you still doing € 20 an hour administration tasks?’ I know that women think that just because they are great at multi-tasking they could do it all… WRONG! If you don’t learn to delegate you will never perform at your best and will not fulfill your potential! See tip 7a in this blog.

 
#2
Create good systems
Good systems are the secret to delegation, because they allow others to complete tasks competently without you. Developing clear instructions for each process in your business allows you to take a break and speeds up training when someone new comes into the business.

 
#3
Take mini-breaks
Put mini-breaks in your agenda. At the very least, schedule yourself a day off twice a month and a long weekend every 12 weeks. Make it regular, and make it happen. Don’t use your break for catching up on business. Spend your break with family or friends, or sailing or painting or anything else that makes you happy.

 
#4
Clean up your client base
Do you have clients that take up far too much of your time for very little gain? Find a polite way to stop doing business with them or pass them on to other professionals.

 
#5
Prioritize
The secret to booking your time effectively is knowing what’s important and what can wait. Effectively prioritize your to-do list.

 
#6
Learn how to say no
One of my biggest learning points in my business career was the realization that I don’t have to agree to everything and with everyone. Use your priority criteria to identify requests that simply aren’t worth your time. Women are trained from early age to be ‘nice’ and therefore saying ‘NO’ is a huge challenge for most women. We still think that if we’ll say No they [who ever 'they' are…] would not love us anymore. It’s time you grew-up and realized that having to say ‘NO’ to those items that are not on your priority would lead you to a much higher success and higher self-esteem.

 
#7
Drop perfectionism [click to tweet]
Striving for perfection is useless. Nothing in this world made by man [or woman![ is perfect, and nothing will be. So if you are a perfectionist take my advice, 'Get Over It!'

And one more because this one is so important...

 
#7a
Stop multitasking!
Studies show that people lose 60% of productivity when doing more than one thing at once. So, force yourself to focus your full attention on the task or activity at hand.

 
As I see it , your business should support your lifestyle and not the other way around. So if there’s any chance that you’re getting off balance, stop now and change course before it’s too late.

Have a magical day!
Vered

 
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What are your thoughts, tips and ideas on how to bring more balance into your life?
Simply add them in the comment box below.
Thank you!

Vered Neta

Trainer, coach and author of 'Financial Independence for Women'. Helping to create personal, business and financial success. I am the co-founder of Open Circles Academy, and founder of Balanced Business Women. My long term goal is to support women on their path to become conscious millionaires and leaders in their field of expertise. Let's connect on Facebook or follow me onTwitter.

 
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