What is this work-life balance you speak of?
The truth about work-life balance is that it’s different for everyone and it’s not achievable all the time when you’re trying to build something. Just like personal finance, it’s personal. My idea of balance may not even really be considered as a balance to most people. The idea is open to interpretation, really.
So let’s cut to the chase.
I’m an introverted workaholic who’s obsessed with Instagram and building my blog.
I also have what I like to call Wonder Woman Syndrome. I think I can do it all and try to do it all.
I do relax but probably only in shorter spurts compared to most people. Although I find it hard to relax in yoga class when we have to lay in corpse pose. My mind just does not want to shut off. I’m mentally making a to-do list, reminding myself about reminders, thinking of ideas for my next blog post, or what to write for the newsletter.
The moment you consciously decide to become a wantrepreneur (I got this term from Favor the Bold Communications), which I consider basecamp, you’re already juggling.
Although I cannot physically juggle things, when it comes to activities, I’ve pretty much been a juggler for as long as I can remember.
When I was a kid I had weekly dance lessons, math lessons, and piano lessons. In high school, every year I made sure to join at least a couple of sports and/or activities every semester. I just have that busy bee nature in me. And I like to try different things. Lots of different things.
I don’t do very well at all-inclusive resorts because I can’t spend an entire day just laying at the beach, let alone an entire week. Sure, a couple of hours is fine, but then I get bored. And antsy. I feel like I am wasting time and would rather be out exploring. I can’t seem to slow down. At least for long periods of time.
For the majority of 9 to 5’ers, their idea of balance is being able to leave work at work and usually relax or catch up on errands after work and on the weekends. After work, I want to be able to do the things I want to do as well. But these things involve a lot of time, effort, frustration, banging my head on the desk, brainstorming, list-making, planning. My brain doesn’t shut off just because the day job is done. It shifts gears and goes into overtime.
Yes, I do make time for my family and friends when I can and when it counts, but you have to understand that when push comes to shove, I have no problems saying no. My family is pretty understanding about that, which I am thankful for. They are pretty busy themselves, so even though we don’t see each other that often, I appreciate the times we do get together.
If I said yes to anything and everything, then I would have never made any progress and would have lost the focus and momentum that is necessary. Sh*t, for better lack of a word, would not get done. It’s ok to make time for yourself and your goals. You need to. There’s absolutely nothing wrong with that and I’m not sorry for it. I highly doubt Olympic athletes, the stars of Game of Thrones, police officers, surgeons, etc attend every single social soiree out there.
I have fun. I swear I do. But it’s just not as often as everybody else.
Truth is, I’m just not a social butterfly. I’m not a people person. I’m horrible at small talk and am often standing awkwardly during these conversations. A lot of the times I prefer to be alone. No, I am not lonely. There is a difference between being lonely and being alone. Aside from food, shelter and water, along with a few books and notebooks, I feel I could survive and maybe even thrive being stranded on a deserted island.
Which makes complete sense as to why I enjoy working from home and am in love with the idea of being an online entrepreneur.
The truth is when you’re focused on building something- whether it be a blog, business or brand, it becomes your life. The lines that normally divide work life and personal life quickly disappear, causing work to become your life. That boundary is gone. There are none. You may have the opportunity to re-draw those lines once your business is established, but even then you may not choose to do so.
For the record, I am tired ALL THE TIME. But there are various forms of tired. There is the I’m tired, but not sleepy tired. The I’m burnt out tired. The I’m sick, can’t get off the couch tired. The I just worked out, feeling good but my muscles are tired. Then there’s I’m tired, I don’t want to do anything else but work on my blog type of tired. Which is kind of how I’m feeling right now as I write this post. And eat a late dinner at 9:30 pm on a weeknight.
I swear my dad who is in his mid-60’s has way more energy than I do. He is always on the go. I supposed I got the always on the go from him, but unfortunately not his energy levels.
When the time comes for me to make that transition to a full-time entrepreneur, the equation will most likely be this: work = life. The list will grow even longer and there will be more plates to spin.
And I’m fine with that. At least I think I am.
I can relate to this somewhat. For me, I don’t know if my blog is considered work or “life.” I’m not getting paid (yet? maybe someday though?), so it’s not really a job. But it definitely requires enough work and research that it also seems weird to consider it something I do for fun. But the truth is, as much work as it is, this IS my version of fun (or part of it, at least).
That said though, I do think it’s healthy to get out (or stay in) and just chill from time to time too. It’s so different for every person though, so there’s no point in trying to tell someone else what they “should” or “shouldn’t” do… you’ll know when you’re doing what makes you happy!
I consider my blog to be a labour of love. People may think what I’m doing is a lot of work, but it’s all relative. Some people really enjoy cooking and I find THAT to be a lot of work. Meal planning, buying ingredients, prepping, cooking and then cleaning up after eating. It just seems to eat up so much of your time. I’d rather just skip everything else and go straight to the eating part. 😉
I did go up north for a couple of nights this weekend, which was the change of scenery I so desperately needed.
Umm, are we twins separated at birth? So much of this seems like you plucked it out of my head.
Here’s to a productive and fun and busy weekend for both of us!
So I forgot to mention that I am also a mindreader. Haha. I’m glad you can relate because I think some people may consider what I wrote a bit harsh, but it’s the reality when you’re working on something you love.
So, I’m not the only one who would be find stranded on a deserted island? I feel better now! And I know what you mean about your mind never shutting off! Mine is like that. I get home from work and all I want to do is work on the blog. I’m constantly thinking of ideas and things I want/need to do. But I love it! 🙂
And this is exactly why I can never relax when I do a Yoga class. 😛
I try to make as much time as I can to create space to listen to myself and what I want. I’m always feeling the pull of hustling after my 9-5 just to make THAT much more money (for me it would be strictly to achieve FI sooner) but at the time time I’m pretty sure I’d be burned out in no time. I think people are afraid of a little boredom. They are afraid of what that quiet time may tell them about their life. I personally HATE the B word: busy! I’m totally with you on alone time though. I LOVE it. I think that’s why I don’t get as excited about Fincon as everyone else. Too many people and too much talking.
I get overwhelmed really easily by too many people and too much talking. I don’t know which conversation to become a part of. Lol. I don’t get how some people would be bored if they had alone time. There are so many things you can do by yourself.