Sometimes you find you just have to sit back and think about where your life is really going and decide whether you’re actually doing the best you can, for everyone in it, including you!

As my business has been getting busier and I am focusing more and more time on how to drive it in the right direction I have noticed that several things in my life have begun to take a back seat.

Alarmingly, these are things that are very important in my life such as my family, my health and that all important exercise routine!

Late nights in front of the computer are becoming the norm, and when I should really be spending quality time with my family I am finding more often that my husband is out with the boys at the park kicking a ball around while I’m brainstorming an idea for work or writing press releases or blogs for the Working Women’s Network!

So, when my youngest son said to me at the end of the Queen’s Birthday public holiday “I haven’t seen you today Mummy” I decided it was time to start thinking about whether I was going about this the right way.

When your business is starting to take the shape that you had envisioned for it, it’s very easy to get caught up in the excitement of it all and forget about why, in many cases, you chose this path in the first place.

For me, the reason I started my business was so that I wasn’t at the mercy of a city job timetable and the end-of-day stress trying to catch the last bus home in time to collect the baby from childcare. It was so that I could be there for my children when they needed me to cheer on the sideline and suffer off-key notes with a proud smile.

Of late, my presence at the school has diminished considerably (though I do devote a lot of time to the rugby club so I guess that counts!) and, although I still manage to cheer from the sideline I decided that it was time to reflect on the advice given to the audience at last year’s Flying Solo Live! conference by Andrew May on how to slow down your life and start performing at your peak. Let’s face it, if it’s all work and no play, how productive can you really be?

During his keynote presentation Andrew tells us how we can slow down our lives by taking three day weekends, working out our most productive time of day and scheduling our critical jobs during that period (unfortunately for me, this does actually seem to be close to midnight!), taking time for ourselves during the working week.

So, with the school holidays fast approaching we have booked a three (actually four!) day weekend to the Blue Mountains. It will be a time to relax and unwind and leave the laptop, and Twitter and all other distractions behind. Am I nervous? Well, I have timetables I have to work to, but with careful planning I will be able to arrange things so that I can actually be away for a few days without the world ending.

It will be just the revitalising I need to come back and be so on fire my clients will be astounded! And, if you’re looking for some inspiration on how to get some balance back into your life and recharge your batteries, check out one of Andrew’s projects, Recharge Lounge. It’s full of tips and inspiration and gives you an excuse to while away a little time!

Karen

Karen Morris is the Working Womens Network media officer. She runs Inscriptions, a copywriting and PR Consultancy, is a contributor to Flying Solo and is a wife and mother to three active boys. She loves life and work and has an insatiable appetite to learn all things new, especially all things 2.0.

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