Welcome back to Your Win-Win Teacher Business. In episode number 24, we’ll be talking about three reasons taking a vacation might feel hard as a teacher business owner.
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Read the transcript:
[00:00:00] Welcome back to Your Win-Win Teacher Business. In episode number 24, we’ll be talking about three reasons taking a vacation might feel hard as a teacher business owner.
[00:00:40] I’ve been in business full time for eight years and I have a lot of experience navigating all the big feelings that come along with taking vacation as a small business owner, I also support other teacher business owners by watching their stores for them while they are out of office. Over the years, I’ve picked up some tips and tricks about what makes vacation go smoothly.
[00:01:04] So as part of my re-entry to the office after spring break, I wanted to share some vacation thoughts with you.
[00:01:12] If it feels like you can’t possibly step away from your business, then it is time for us to meet for a coffee chat to get to the root of where those feelings are coming from. Most likely, this is a sign that all of the information about your business lives in your brain and only in your brain. Not only will that lead to burnout, but you can’t do your best work when you feel like you are on the verge of shortcircuiting at all times.
[00:01:41] At first brain dumping into a notebook can help, but the big lasting impact comes when we start to move our systems and our recurring ways of doing things into a digital project management tool. When we go digital, we provide ourselves the opportunity to share information and signature processes with others.
[00:02:06] Only once we’ve gone digital can we invite others behind the curtain to provide support. And before you tap out of this episode and tell me you can’t afford support, I’m well aware of the cost of eggs. I hope you’ll head to cook family resources.com/hiring-guide and grab my free guide filled with tons of free steps you can take to move in this direction and not spend a single penny where it isn’t needed.
[00:02:35] I also just wanna say that it’s possible to have someone come in and watch your business for you while you are in recovery from surgery or on vacation or on maternity leave without taking on the long-term stress of payrolling an employee 12 months a year. But it does take some time to build systems so that others can step in and provide support, whether it’s on an ongoing or a limited basis.
[00:03:04] So you wanna get the ball rolling on systems sooner rather than later if being able to step away is a goal on your heart. So the first reason it often feels hard to step out on vacation is likely the fact that all the information on how your business operates is currently living inside your brain.
[00:03:23] Moving to a digital project management tool is a great step towards a more collaborative business where support is possible. Another reason it can feel hard to take a vacation might be that it’s really hard to turn your business brain off. If it’s challenging to turn your business brain off at the end of the work day,
[00:03:45] that’s the place we start. I know your business is your baby. I know there is always more you could be doing and learning. But your business is a job and it’s a job you created so that you could live your life in a certain way. Please don’t miss out on that life by letting your business brain take over the show.
[00:04:09] The first step to being able to unplug on vacation is developing an incredibly firm out of office routine for the end of the day. Where do you work? Stick to that. What time does your workday end? Stick to that. What days are free of work tasks completely? Stick to that. It doesn’t feel like that’s a step on the path to taking a vacation, but exercising that muscle is a really important part of the process here.
[00:04:43] When you wait one to two business days to answer an email and the world doesn’t come to an end, you prove to your mind that it’s safe to turn your business brain off. When you slide a task to Monday, instead of sneaking into the office over the weekend in an attempt to finish it all, whatever that even means, you’re giving yourself the opportunity to see with your own two eyes that your business was okay when you didn’t work over the weekend.
[00:05:15] There’s a whole module of coaching about how to set up a schedule for success inside my DIY systems course, but this is also a frequent topic people unpack with me during coaching sessions. I work with clients who desire a four day work week. We talk about why they want to work a four day week and what their hopes and dreams are for that additional day.
[00:05:38] We talk about which day of the week would be the best choice to work towards dropping. And gradually we take steps to show their brain that this can be a safe choice that doesn’t impact the bottom line in a negative way. It takes systems, it takes communication, it takes bravery, but there always is a path to the schedule of your dreams.
[00:06:02] Once we can step away for an evening, then we can practice stepping away for a weekend. Once we can step away for a weekend, we can practice a three day or a four day weekend. And once you’ve convinced your brain that stepping away from your business for four calendar days can be A-Okay,
[00:06:21] we can practice one business day, two business days, et cetera, until we work up to that full week. It’s a hard pill to swallow, but it’s going to be pretty challenging to step away for three months of maternity leave if you’ve never taken a full week off inside the business before.
[00:06:40] We walk before we run. We create systems and practice them before we need them. You don’t want to be building out of office SOPs from your hospital bed or on the way to a wake. So while this might not be popular advice, every business needs an out of office game plan. The final reason it might be hard to take a vacation from your business is that you’ve overbooked your capacity past the point of no return.
[00:07:08] When there’s no breathing room, it’s impossible to batch ahead a few pieces of content. When there’s no breathing room, you can’t learn to make systems or take action on that learning. This is a recipe for disaster because life will happen. A stomach bug or a natural disaster eventually will strike and tasks will start to pile up.
[00:07:30] We all want our businesses to grow and we want to make as much money as possible, but hustling as hard as we possibly can 24 7 likely isn’t the path to get there, and I’m not sure why it’s the path we turn to first. If you listen to the stories of big successful companies, they describe some periods of long hours from time to time but rarely do they report that working more, more, and more made their business big and successful. More often we hear that stepping back to get really honest about what the true needle movers are for the business that are working, leaning into those, and ruthlessly removing things from plates when they are classified as busy work and noise –
[00:08:21] that’s where the magic happens. Just because you can take your laptop on vacation doesn’t mean you should. Just because you can check work emails each night so that you don’t feel behind when you return from your trip, doesn’t mean that’s the business life you’ve been setting out to create. Just because you tell people you have a flexible job,
[00:08:45] doesn’t mean you’re leveraging that flexibility and making the most of it to truly live your one beautiful life on this earth. Just because you’ve always run your business by yourself doesn’t mean that’s the path to the highest possible revenue, or the most enjoyable year of business for you.
[00:09:05] I say this with love, it can be really hard to notice the blind spots inside our own businesses when we’re running the show Solo. A quarterly strategy call as an honest touch base on how you spent your time and what results those efforts brought – that might be the best gift you could give your business and yourself
[00:09:24] this year. When someone has me build them a project management system during a VIP week, they often come back on my calendar quarterly for a strategy call, and those calls are the highlight of my week. If you feel like you never have enough time, let’s get to the bottom of that feeling and shake up your schedule.
[00:09:44] If you feel like your business brain never turns off, let’s make a plan to have your business work for you, not the other way around. If every detail of your business operations currently lives in your brain, let’s move that mental mess into a digital system where someone could step in and provide support during your next vacation.
[00:10:05] My spring break was magical, and as I step back into my office today, there are lots of businesses to touch base with and plenty to catch up to speed on, but I’m refreshed and excited for all the work tasks on my desk. Deadlines were all set with this trip in mind and my out of office dates were communicated in advance.
[00:10:25] I got to read books, snuggle my pup, ride rollercoasters, try new foods, navigate new places, and share laughter with those I love. I didn’t check email or pack a laptop, and my business shows evidence of growth during the time period I was away. The resources that I’ve created were there when teachers and business owners needed them.
[00:10:48] The long form content and guest interviews I had done in the past continued to work their magic while I was off the grid. It’s not only possible to take a vacation as a small business owner, but it’s important. As we start looking ahead at your summer vacation plans, know the contact form on my website is always a good place to share your swirling thoughts and questions.
[00:11:12] You tell me what’s feeling sticky inside your business, and I’ll help you identify the best next step to feeling better.
Here is a playlist of other episodes I think you will enjoy about SYSTEMS AND ORGANIZATION:
