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Balancing your work and life: Learning to say no
There's so much pressure to succeed, how do you know where to draw the line and say no? Find out from the people who have experienced work:life balance first hand: read their words of wisdom.
"Problems arise when we don't plan for balance in our life. The business should not be the be all and end all. You have to book time in for yourself. I treat my family and friends like I do my work meetings. I book them in to my diary like anything else and they're never de-prioritised."
Christina Vaughan, Image Source
"When the business first started to become 'successful', people invited us here, there and everywhere. You have to harness your enthusiasm, retain your grassroots and seek to protect your family, by sometimes saying 'no'. Now I have stepped back from the business but I'm still the executive chairman and do a lot of PR and charity work. If I'm out of the house for the day, I still get my priorities right for looking after the family - by making sure there's food available for them! I love my time at home, too. I really enjoy just being a normal, everyday person. 'Nanny Nash' they call me!"
Carole Nash, Carole Nash Insurance
"I work an 8-5 day. The latest meeting I arrange in London will be 3.00 so that I know I'll be home by 6pm. I've never been a burning the midnight oil type of person - I simply don't have the energy for it and know I wouldn't perform at the level I expect of myself if I did work long hours. As a result, I've only ever had two days of absence from work - and that's the first time in eight years."
Liz Jackson, Great Guns Marketing
"Inconveniences like getting ill are the sort of things that disturb the 'balance'. One can have huge amounts of energy and sleep only five hours a night, but something as simple as a cold can knock you for six. To counter this, I eat incredibly healthily, because I know that if I don't get enough vitamin C and the right sort of foods then my system just can't take the strain. I have down time, too.
Laura Tenison
JoJo Maman Bebe
"Being based at home could be isolating for me but my husband works with me so it has never become so. We make a point of having lunch together and never taking business out of the work area. I try to take a walk each day - my one form of exercise."
Cath Collins, Cath Collins Ltd
"I insist on taking my holidays away from mobile phone reception and computers. I'm very capable of going away for a couple of weeks and not thinking about work. This summer, it will be in the middle of nowhere in Africa, and I know my kids get all my attention. In the early days, when things weren't quite so comfortable, it would have been in the Welsh hills instead. I love what I do and the life I lead, but I make sure I take as much of the school holidays off as possible."
Laura Tenison, JoJo Maman Bebe
"For a long time, I didn't exercise, there was no way to fit it in. But now I make sure I fit it in. I can be in the gym at 6.00 am or go for a run at 6.30 am. It gives me the energy I need to see me through the day. An online diary is relatively new for me and it's got my exercise slots booked in. It's so crucial and it's made the world of difference to my life and the balance I work hard to achieve."
Christina Vaughan, Image Source
Whether you find it hard to know when to stop, or don't know how to help your staff achieve a balance in their lives, use our best selling guide can show you how. Get The Simple Approach: Balance your life and work.
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