“Time Off” As An Entrepreneur: 3 Ways To Achieve Work-Life Balance

As an entrepreneur, you don’t really get time off.

You have to make time, sometimes against all odds.

Most people I know who are entrepreneurs and business owners work 365 days per year in some way, shape, or form. When they take a weeklong vacation, they’re still checking emails and responding to urgent messages. It’s one of the things that’s a bit of a misnomer when it comes to “entrepreneurship.” Most people think becoming an entrepreneur is what will give them freedom, when in reality, running a business may give you more choice, but less freedom in the traditional sense.

Everything is on you.

I’ve had many vacations where I’ve ended up spending a full day in the hotel room, working late nights based on shifted time zones, or working from my phone in every taxi ride to maximize the time. Other vacations have been more low key and I’ve been able to check out more fully. In both cases, the responsibility and accountability remains — ultimately, no matter what happens, it’s on me, which means I need to (or get to if we want to reframe it in a more positive light) keep tabs on all of it.

So, how do you manage time off as an entrepreneur when you never really have the luxury of stepping away completely?