brassblogs

Yes, I’m terrible. Here it is, January 4th, and I’m just now wishing everyone a “Happy New Year”. I had a reason, though… I wen to West Virginia to visit with my family and we were down there for almost 2 weeks. My mom doesn’t have a great internet connection and… well, we tend to not spend our time with electronic devices anyway.

So, that being said, I get “Inglorious Basterds” as a present over the holidays, and I watched it. And I liked it. It was actually pretty toned-down for Tarantino. (Seriously, that dude ain’t hooked up right. I’ve always said that if he weren’t making movies, he’d be a serial killer. I guess it’s good he has a more constructive outlet for himself. But I digress.)

Anyway….

Being away gave me a lot to think about. It’s funny what your mind does when you are away from the wired world. I think it actually brought me more into focus and starting a good general direction to go in. Yeah, I know I started my sabbatical in October, but I didn’t finish my client work until right before I left. I probably should have just started it January 1 (like I had originally planned) – but then again if I had, I’d probably end up starting in March. That’s just how things work out I guess!

One thing I really have noticed is time. A lot of people will tell you that when you run your own business, it’s 90% paperwork and crappy stuff, and 10% fun. I think I’ve realized the reason I’ve let my business run away with me is because I’m still in the mindset of an employee. When you’re someone’s employee you get to work at a certain time, you leave at a certain time – you’re on a specific schedule. When you’re at work, you work – you do tasks that are assigned to your position.

Now, granted, when you run your own business it’s basically the same thing. (Usually the “schedule” isn’t there, but otherwise, yeah, everything else is the same.) The difference is in what the tasks are… when you work for someone they are delegating tasks that can be handled by someone else. Duties and responsibilities that are necessary for the short-term – menial labor, if you will. My mindset has been in that. So when I worked every day, I felt I had to schedule 4-5 clients per day, and I had to work at least 8 hours per day for my clients. I would put my own business at the side, and work on it during evenings and weekends. I was becoming burned out because all I was doing was working – my family relationships were suffering, my mental health and my physical health were suffering because of this mindset.

But while I was away, I realized that my tasks are not only of the “menial labor” deal. I owe it to myself, my family, and my business – and to my clients – to treat myself as my own client, and give myself time to accomplish what I need to be successful.

I’ll say that this is not a New Year’s resolution… but a New Year’s Revelation. ::the clouds part and the angelic choir can be heard from above:: So this morning, I began with the first day of my new scheduling system. This morning, I will be dealing with my home, my family, my health.After lunch, I will be dealing with my work. During this sabbatical, I will consider my “work” to be getting things in order (as I would for a client) and attaining new skills. So morning is mental and physical, afternoon is work.

And I will not feel guilty about it.

I just hope I can stick to this!

Happy New Year everyone – and I hope you have your “Revelation” soon (if you haven’t already!)