Not having access to any paid holiday time is something all self-employed people are painfully aware of. Understandably, that makes it much easier to ignore the need for time off and power on through.
Powering on through is really useful when you’ve got deadlines to meet, but it’s a fast-track to exhaustion and even disillusionment. To take care of yourself and your business, time off is essential. Here’s why you need to prioritise it just as much as work time.
You’re not a machine
Losing sleep and working long hours will catch up to you eventually. Tiredness can break down normal connections in our brain (yes, really!), make us more emotional, less rational, and struggle to remember and retain information. None of this is particularly ideal when you’re doing complex brain work and managing lots of things at once.
Remember you’re human and you need rest like anybody else. Even if you’re not feeling the burn out just yet, you could be experiencing subtle warning signs, such as frequent colds, insomnia, forgetfulness, anxiety, and a change in appetite.
Distance can be healthy
Even if your work is your life, taking a break from it can be really useful. Having a few days off here and there, or getting out of the country for a while, gives you a necessary escape from your daily grind. Distance helps you feel refreshed, gain clarity in tough situations, and work out what negative habits or patterns you might have formed unconsciously over time.
You don’t even have to ask anyone
One of the few downsides to paid annual leave is the fact you don’t have completely free reign over when you take it. Your boss would have the final say, and if you don’t get in there quickly you might have to choose your days after everybody else in your team.
When you’re the boss, you can book time off whenever you want. It can fit around your other commitments, you won’t be restricted to booking holidays at specific times of year, and you can make up the time later if you need to. It’s far more flexible than you might have realised.
Relying on yourself is tough
Most people who move from working full-time to self-employment can recognise it’s more rewarding, but a lot harder.
Being solely responsible for generating business, keeping clients happy, and all that admin, means you’re always ‘switched on’. Some full-time roles require just as much dedication, but without the extra burden of being the only person in charge. Surely, it’s about time you had a bit of a break from that!
Now you have permission to turn on your out-of-office, all you need to do is work out how you’re going to spend your downtime. It doesn’t matter what you do to wind down or enjoy yourself, you just have to promise to leave your to-do list alone and come back to it well rested!
Solna can help you easily stay in control of invoices whether you’re in your home office or waiting in the departure lounge. Automated reminders and clever insights help you chase late payers and do credit checks on new customers. Best of all, it’s completely free.
Do more of what you love and less of what you don’t. Get started now.
in LND