The following is a guest post by Courtney Rosenfeld of Gig Spark, a useful resource for those taking their first steps towards the gig economy, either to supplement their income or as a way to fulfil their dreams of small business success.
Many business-minded individuals are recognizing the benefits of having a side hustle or freelance gig in addition to their regular job.
According to CNBC, the ranks of the self-employed are growing substantially. You may find that your side biz provides you with such a degree of freedom and control over your income that you eventually want to turn it into a full-time business operation.
While this can be a great move from a professional perspective, small business success requires a good deal of energy. Hence it’s critical you make sure you’re caring for yourself.
Eat Right for Small Business Success
When you feed your body, you feed your mind. If you’re looking to start a side hustle or grow your business, you have to make sure you have the stamina necessary to give it your all.
Take adequate amounts of exercise, get into a regular sleep routine, stay hydrated and fuel your body with only the best fresh, whole foods. According to Precision Nutrition, meal prep can help you plan what you want to eat, and it encourages a system of healthy grab-and-go foods.
Entrepreneurs tend to spend a lot of time resorting to quick junk food. This can deplete your energy, and eventually this can have a negative impact on your business.
Boost Your Oral Health
Similarly to eating poorly, if you have poor oral hygiene, you’re putting yourself at risk for some serious problems. High blood pressure, osteoporosis and even cancer have been tracked to poor oral health.
Therefore, it’s essential that your brush and floss routinely, regularly visit your dentist for cleanings, and take care of minor issues before they get out of hand.
You may be surprised to learn that crooked teeth can make flossing and brushing more challenging. Not to mention that a crooked smile can affect your self-esteem.
If your teeth are misaligned, you can straighten them with an aligner. When deciding whether to get in-office or at-home treatment, you’ll need to consider the severity of your alignment issue.
In-office treatments like Invisalign are typically used for more severe cases, while an aligner like byte can treat mild to moderate issues.
Build in Personal Time
It can seem counterintuitive to take time away from building your business to make time for personal pursuits, but it actually serves an important purpose.
When you rejuvenate yourself — whether that’s by enjoying a hobby, visiting with friends, getting in exercise by hiking, dancing or biking — you recharge!
Even just sitting and reading a book or listening to music gives your mind and your body a brief respite. Make sure you are one of the most important appointments that you schedule on your daily calendar.
You’re not short-changing your business — you’re giving yourself a much-needed energy boost.
Hire It Out
There are a lot of small day-to-day details around running a business that can be time-consuming when you’re the business owner.
Consider hiring out certain tasks, whether that means having someone who can run errands, handle customer service, work your books, or even take care of things like delivering packages or handling your office cleaning.
This is an investment that can free you up to focus on more important elements of business operations.
Create A Small Business Structure
If you’re starting a side hustle and trying to turn it into a small business, advanced planning will be critical to your success.
Consider developing a business and marketing plan to help you chart the way and set the stage for operational growth.
Registering your business as a limited liability company (LLC) can offer you some protection from liability and make it easier when it comes to tax filing.
It’s exciting, launching a side gig or small business, but small business success means getting all of your business ducks in a row and taking care of yourself in the process.
Take it slow and build in time for personal care and don’t be too shy to ask for help when you need it.
What are your thoughts on self-care and small business success? Please leave a comment below to let me know your thoughts.
Hi Paul and Courtney, After 3 years I’m finally taking those breaks and not working 18 hour days! I used to worry that it would not continue to generate an income if I wasn’t doing something for the business.
However, getting more sleep helps a lot to be more organized and in the end get more done.
Thanks for your tips!
Hi Lisa and thanks for your comment. It’s true… sleep is REALLY important!