How am I able to do it – run a business, a family, and a household, without (completely) loosing my mind?
#1 – I Get Help – Delegate!
Difficult for many of us perfectionists to do, but necessary if you want to achieve big results in more than one area of your life. It’s very hard, if not impossible, to do everything 100%, at least not at the same time.
Personal Assistant – I hired someone to run my errands, 3 hours per week. She does my grocery shopping, dry cleaning run, mail & bank run, Target shopping, office supplies, and returns to the mall. She also helps me with organizing closets and sorting through piles of stuff for charity, as well as random projects, like finding a good long term storage place.
Virtual Assistant - I have a virtual assistant for my business who answers my phone, answers my email and website inquiries, transcribes audio, formats documents, does research, compiles data, does data entry, and other random stuff. She works for me 2-10 hours per week.
Miscellaneous Delegation – guy who does the lawn every other week, service that cleans the house every other week. Occasional babysitters (no family in town to do that).
#2: I’m always learning
I’m constantly taking online classes, listening to audio self-study programs, going to seminars, watching DVD classes, and reading books (about 2-4 per week). About business strategy, writing copy, financial planning, law, personal growth, computer software, law of attraction, and … astronomy, linguistics, decorating, travel, child development, and … biographies and fiction (epic fantasy). Keeps my brain constantly growing, and gives me tons of ideas for my business & life.
#3: I know myself
I hate cleaning, so I hire that out. I would go nuts with Gracie here all day, so she’s in preschool some of the time. I never remember to pay the bills, so I have most of them on autopay. I forget to do our IRA contributions, so I have them on auto investing. I forget to buy fruits & veges, so I have them delivered.
#4: Cut out what’s not working
I stopped watching TV after Gracie was about 6 months old. I still watch some nature, history, and science shows, some movies, and educational DVDs, but I stopped watching regular TV shows. Wow, that gave me hours every day to spend on other stuff — my business, reading, playing with Gracie, or whatever. I quit volunteering with the Junior League. It’s a great organization, but I was not getting much out of it anymore, and it was a HUGE time committment, especially in the evenings (and I always had to get a babysitter). What a relief to resign – now I can spend my volunteer hours and dollars exactly how I want, targeted to my particular goals, and on my ideal time schedule.
Do you have secrets to your success? Leave a comment and share your ideas …
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I'm Elizabeth Potts Weinstein, a writer, teacher, and coach.