Welcome to Episode 2.18 of Your Biz, Your Rules. In this show, we’re going to be exploring a few of my favourite ways to create more down time in your schedule.
Listen here:
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TLDR:
💛 Be mindful of why you want more down time.
💛 Share your intentions with other people.
💛 Set work hours for yourself.
💛 Schedule in down time.
💛 Batch your content.
💛 Use an app blocker and switch off your computer at the end of the day.
Show notes:
Welcome to Episode 2.18 of Your Biz, Your Rules. In this show, we’re going to be exploring a few of my favourite ways to create more down time in your schedule.
And as a recovering workaholic and business obsessive, I can promise you they work. But only if you implement them and give them a go.
1. Be mindful of why you want more down time
Simply stating that you want a “better work life balance” isn’t usually enough of a motivator! You need to get specific about why you want that down time. It will be so much easier for you to stick with if you do this.
Look at all of the different areas of life e.g. health, personal development, relationships, home environment, hobbies, etc. and ask yourself, what would have more down time make possible in this area of my life? When you have a clear image of what you want instead of working, you have much more motivation.
Something that has really helped me with this is the Energy Driver Spreadsheet by Sarah Steckler. This is all about habits that refuel your energy and that are more related to down time than work time. It’s a really handy tool that helps me stay on track with the things that I said I wanted.
2. Share your intentions
Let people know that you want to create this amount of down time each week or each month and tell them why.
Be intentional about who you share this with too. Think about the people who will actually help you to enforce these desires such as your coach, your VA, loved ones, friends, etc.
It might also be helpful to give them some pointers on how you want to be challenged if they notice that you’re not taking that down time!
3. Set work hours for yourself
Whenever I share this tip with people, I see a lot of resistance – especially from creative types! I’m not saying that you have to work a 9-5 schedule or create a restrictive working pattern for yourself. You can work when you choose to work.
What I have found really useful is to have a cap on my working hours. So I don’t have a set schedule, but I do have a maximum amount of hours that I will work in a day based on what I know about myself.
This will be very different for everyone so this is more about knowing yourself, knowing your capabilities, knowing your patterns and building a schedule accordingly, while also factoring in this desire for more down time.
I like to use Clockify to track my time when I’m working to track everything that I do. This isn’t about working against the clock or trying to be productive every minute of the day, it’s simply so that I know that I’m not exceeding my hours cap.
This can be really challenging, especially if the “norm” for you is work mode, work mode, work mode!
4. Schedule in the down time things
If your down time is just a big chunk of nothingness, it can feel really stressful and bring a lot of anxiety because then all you are doing is trying to fill your time whilst also thinking, “I should be doing X, Y, Z” or “I could be doing X, Y, Z right now”.
So when you plan your week, spend some time deciding what you’re going to do during that down time and blocking out chunks of down time in your calendar.
This can be as simple as blocking out time for things like lunch breaks, gym sessions, breathwork, friend time, art classes, etc. Remember to refer back to the reasons that you really want down time.
5. Batch your content
This allows you to keep your business presence alive without always having to be present.
Tt’s also one of the most effective ways to clear off your mental to-do list, so when you do have down time, you’re not trying to remind yourself you need to post a post or send an email, etc.
I have a program that will guide you through doing this in a really simple, effective, seamless way – Batch Like a Bitch. Batch Like a Bitch is a 30-day Bootcamp-esque program that helps you develop and hone a content creation and distribution system that works for you! It’s not about me giving you a plug-and-play strategy that is mandated – it’s about co-creating something that works for you and your business.
6. Use an app blocker and switch off your computer at the end of the day
When you you reach your hours cap, switch off your computer. I remember when I was really in the midst of workaholic mode, I would check my computer every single time I walked past it!
By switching off your computer, you’re creating an extra step by waiting for your computer to turn on and then logging in so you’re less likely to do “one quick thing”.
I also recommend blocking your energy draining apps for set periods each day. I’m not saying that you can’t scroll TikTok, if that’s what you enjoy doing. But I am saying it’s good to have chunks of time each day where you take a break from those apps that do deplete you a little bit and do connect you with work.
I just use a free app called Stay Focused but there are loads of apps out there that do this. I also use the Newsfeed Eradicator when I’m on my desktop to prevent mindless scrolling!
Your Challenge
Your action step is to take at least one of these tips and implement it today. I’d love to hear how that goes for you, so feel free to reach out to me on Instagram and let me know!
Links mentioned in this episode:
- Energy Driver Spreadsheet by Sarah Steckler
- Clockify
- Batch Like a Bitch
- Stay Focused App
- Newsfeed Eradicator
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