One Entrepreneur On Balance: Sandy Abrams

This is part of a series called "The Entrepreneurs On Balance."  This interview is with Sandy Abrams.

What are your general thoughts on balance (do you think it's realistic, achievable, a top priority, etc.)?

Balance is absolutely achievable if you make it a priority. You have to schedule time for exercise, family, friends, vacation. If having a life in addition to working is important to you, you just have to commit to allowing yourself to enjoy your "balancing" activities. Be present while you are doing your fun activities, don't go to the beach and bring your documents to scour over. Go to the beach and enjoy the beach! You will be that much more refreshed and energized when you return to work.

What have been your biggest struggles when it comes to finding or maintaining balance between your business and personal lives?

It's a constant juggle to try and fit in everything I'd like to fit in for both biz and personal. Unexpected events pop up all the time, I tend to feel guilty about missing events that I'd like to attend.  But over the years, I've learned that the guilt is worse for me if I miss a personal event, so those now take precedence.

What have been your keys to success when it comes to finding or maintaining balance between your business and personal lives?

Learning what matters most in my life and letting myself make balance a priority. I love what I do for work, but I also love my rich family life, my time in a yoga studio or on the beach or biking. So, I make it a priority to feel balance, as ultimately it makes all aspects of my life better.

Do you have any techniques or routines that help you maintain balance (example, keeping a daily journal)?

Yoga practice clears my head. I like to begin the day simply thinking about or maybe writing goals and end the day reflecting a little bit and tweaking the goals. Allowing just a few minutes morning or night to just think allows me to feel centered and focused rather than scattered and overwhelmed.

How important is balance to your success as a business owner or entrepreneur?

Balance is critical for success of a biz owner/entrepreneur. Otherwise, burn out is inevitable. I take full advantage of today's technology to allow me to have more balance and productivity. I recommend services such as eVoice and eFax, as they enable a true virtual office.  eVoice is perfect for individuals like me who manage both business and family matters from a home office or cell phone, but still want business calls answered, routed and handled professionally.  With eVoice, I can be out of the office, while still being accessible and know who is trying to reach me. In addition, eVoice enables me to receive messages via audio files or text transcriptions to my computer or mobile phone, allowing me to respond regardless of my physical location and respond immediately.

Any final thoughts on finding and maintaining balance?

Once you allow balance in your life and get a grip on time management, you realize how productive you can be in a full day. Having time for family, friends & fun makes for a more whole person, which I believe makes for a better biz person. Making decisions from a place of balance and focus beats making decisions hastily and frantically. You will feel more energetic, creative and focused in your work life if you are balanced rather than exhausted.

Sandy Abrams: CEO/ Moisture Jamzz, Inc. Founded in 1993 around her signature Moisture Glove, Moisture Jamzz has counted among its clients Bath & Body Works; the Estée Lauder Company,H2O PLUS; Crabtree & Evelyn; Bare Escentuals; Bed, Bath, & Beyond; Linens 'n Things; Stroud's; Bloomingdale's; and, QVC.

One Entrepreneur On Balance: Todd Gilman

This is part of a series called "The Entrepreneurs On Balance."  This interview is with Todd Gilman.

What are your general thoughts on balance (do you think it's realistic, achievable, a top priority, etc.)?

Balance is certainly necessary for an entrepreneur to maintain fresh perspectives and to cope with the massive amounts of stress that a business puts on both professional and personal lives. However, in my experience, the main focus of the entrepreneur shouldn’t be achieving balance at all costs from the get-go but, instead, working-in balance as their venture matures.

In the beginning, an entrepreneur can’t have it all and expect to create a successful business – you are either giving 100% of your effort to your new venture, or you are setting yourself up for failure. However, that 24/7 lifestyle isn’t sustainable, and a balanced personal / business life will become necessary. Failure to do so will crush an entrepreneur’s spirit and impair their long-term judgment (you can’t stay in the weeds forever!). Take a weekend off here and there. Shut down work after 5pm on Friday. If you’ve built your business right, you shouldn’t need to work 24/7 after your enterprise has gotten legs.

When will an entrepreneur know when to start creating balance in their life? They won’t, it’s just a gut feeling guided by maturity, but it doesn’t hurt to schedule some “me time” every few weeks just to be safe.

What have been your biggest struggles when it comes to finding or maintaining balance between your business and personal lives?

Like many entrepreneurs, I have a Type A personality, and my biggest struggle is accepting the idea that more hours working doesn’t always translate into positive outcomes. After a few bad business decisions due to lack of sleep, I soon learned that you can’t live in the weeds forever and expect that you can work your way through problems. It’s OK to clear your mind through exercise. It’s OK to recharge on the weekends with family and friends. It took some time, but I now appreciate that the benefits to balance aren’t immediate, although they make for a more well-rounded, thoughtful entrepreneur over time.

What have been your keys to success when it comes to finding or maintaining balance between your business and personal lives?

Good communication and “expectations setting” are the biggest keys to success I’ve personally found when creating balance between my professional and personal lives. You can’t be in two places at once, and there are only 24 hours in a day, so don’t make commitments you know aren’t feasible. Let your friends and family know that you are going to be focused on your venture for months to come; tell them that their support means a lot to you and be upfront about how busy you will be. Don’t feel bad about turning down fun events; your friends will understand if you’ve already communicated properly with them, and you won’t be filled with regret for being dedicated to your professional endeavor in the near-term.

Do you have any techniques or routines that help you maintain balance (example, keeping a daily journal)?

Keeping a daily “to do” list with tangible, achievable goals is my personal secret to maintaining balance.  Lay out the 10-15 items you want to accomplish today, and make sure they are specific (“build website” is a terrible to do list entry, whereas “sign up for a domain name” is much more achievable”). The tangible daily to do list keeps a business owner motivated throughout the day (since it’s enjoyable to see the list dwindle as the hours pass by). But, more importantly, it forces an entrepreneur to stop work at some point in the day. There’s always more work to be done with a business venture, and daily to do lists are great ways to avoid overworking while also maintaining efficiency during the day.

How important is balance to your success as a business owner or entrepreneur?

Balance is of paramount important to the success of a business owner. Entrepreneurs will struggle to keep fresh perspectives without balance, and will end-up wasting time on fruitless business endeavors if they can’t recharge from time-to-time. And, of course, finding balance is key to a happy personal life; the last thing an entrepreneur needs is the distraction from a messy personal life clogging their thoughts during the day.

Any final thoughts on finding and maintaining balance?

Balance is necessary but, like most things in life, it isn’t a black or white concept. Part of being an entrepreneur is learning your limits, and you’ll need to actively appreciate when it’s time to step-away from your venture. Working hard in the beginning is necessary, and a business won’t be successful without hard work. But, force yourself to lay-down your pencil at some point during the evening, and actively take time-off work starting with a few free weekends. You’ll maintain a fresher perspective, and you’ll soon develop a keen sense for when it’s simply time to stop working and enjoy your friends and family.

Todd Gilman is the founder of United We Tab, an online startup that creates and sells accurate, legal guitar tablature (a form of sheet music preferred by guitarists). United We Tab has developed the “iTunes of Tablature” by bringing advanced software, a wide selection of legal products and affordable pricing to market. The company’s website, UnitedWeTab.com, launched in April 2010 with more than 12,000 legal guitar tabs.

One Entrepreneur On Balance: Beth Buelow

This is part of a series called "The Entrepreneurs On Balance."  This interview is with Beth Buelow.

What are your general thoughts on balance (do you think it's realistic, achievable, a top priority, etc.)?

It depends on how you define balance! The word balance has become a catch-word that means “having it all.” For instance, a balanced life would be having my career, family, friends and hobbies all coexisting and getting equal energy and attention. I’ve found it helpful to reframe the concept of balance in terms of alignment. Alignment is not about equal time or energy. It’s about being able to be fully present, at choice and in resonance with our values. In this way, balance is a state of being and a mindset. And since whether or not we are aligned with our values is a choice, balance is at our disposal at any time. It’s not something we have to wait to experience until we have more time, money or other resources.

There’s another barometer I use to gauge my balance: energy. As an introvert, I need a healthy dose of alone time to recharge my batteries after expending lots of energy running my business. Being in alignment means that I’m honoring my needs and have enough energy to do what I want to do.

What have been your biggest struggles when it comes to finding or maintaining balance between your business and personal lives?

Working from home, the boundary between work and personal time is very blurry. And because I love what I do, I get into a flow of work that’s challenging to break. Ideas and inspiration come at all hours, and I want to be able to capture them whenever they happen. This doesn’t bother me; it bothers those I love, because they want my full presence and energy when I’m with them. The alignment between my work and values is very clear. However, certain values – such as contribution and connection – are not consistently reflected in my non-work relationships.

What have been your keys to success when it comes to finding or maintaining balance between your business and personal lives?

Being aware of the boundary blur has been a big awakening. I don’t think I realized how much I was doing it until my husband pointed out (lovingly, of course!) that I was working too much and too hard. I was compromising my values of how I want to be in relationship. So I’ve realigned by making a commitment to turn off the computer earlier, to take the weekends completely off as much as possible and to be fully present when we’re together. I also am better able to articulate why my business is important to me, which helps me communicate better with my husband when I feel I need some extra space to be in work mode.

Do you have any techniques or routines that help you maintain balance (example, keeping a daily journal)?

I am beginning to implement an evening alignment exercise that emphasizes values, intentions and priorities. Using a dedicated notebook, I’m taking time at the end of every day to plan for the next. Each day page will include an acknowledgement of the specific values I want to honor that day (such as patience, compassion, humor or abundance); an intention for how I want to experience my day; and detailed priorities and tasks. This approach centers my priorities in what’s most important to me.

As for my energy, I acknowledge and honor what my mind, body and spirit need to support my best work. I take naps when I feel the need and there’s time. My intense focus means I can sit working for hours and not get up, so I try to give myself periodic breaks by doing non-work activities, such as unloading the dishwasher, folding clothes or playing with the cats. I’ve heard about scientific studies that show our effectiveness and attention starts to decline after 45 minutes of work, so my goal is to take a break every 45 minutes to refresh my eyes and mind… it doesn’t always work out that way, but I try!

How important is balance to your success as a business owner or entrepreneur?

It’s extremely important! Since many of my coaching clients bring energy and balance challenges to their session, there’s an element of “walking the talk” for me. If I am living in balance, then I can ask questions and make observations from a place of experience and authenticity. Beyond that, my success is closely linked to how well I’m in alignment in every aspect of my business. It’s important that every choice be made in the context of intention and values. This is what keeps me balanced.

Any final thoughts on finding and maintaining balance?

Balance looks different for different people. What works for me, might not work for you. Be willing to notice when you feel out of alignment. Take time to reflect on what doesn’t feel right. Remember that you’re always at choice, and determine what choice is going to best serve you. I’m a firm believer that if you make choices based on your personal values, balance will come naturally.

Beth Buelow is founder of The Introvert Entrepreneur, which provides services and resources to support the success of introverts in an extroverted world. She is particularly passionate about working with introverted entrepreneurs to understand, own and leverage their strengths. As a certified professional coach and licensed Living Your Vision® facilitator, Beth offers personal coaching, group coaching, workshops, teleclasses and retreats. You can learn more and connect with Beth at TheIntrovertEntrepreneur.com.