Survey: Small-business owners low on personal time but love their jobs

As a small-business owner, you’re familiar with the ups and downs of running your own company. Office hours often overlap with personal hours, and it can be difficult to differentiate between the two. A new survey from Constant Contact Inc. found that owners of small businesses feel their company impedes on their personal time, yet they would still choose the same path if they had to do it over again.

The survey
“Personal Sacrifices/Professional Rewards of Small-Business Owners,” a survey produced in conjunction with Small Business Week 2015, asked small-business owners about how they balance their work life with their personal responsibilities and family time. About 56 percent of those surveyed said they feel they can never be away from their business. Just over half claimed they don’t have enough time to focus on themselves and 43 percent said they aren’t able to take vacations. But, despite all of these feelings, 84 percent of participants would still choose to own a small business, even knowing what they do now about how much of their time and energy it requires.

Tips for taking back your personal time
You know how easy it can be to spend all of your energy working on the many aspects of running a business.  Everything from creating custom business cards to developing a marketing plan, to working on your company website and even ordering Post-It Notes and address labels requires time and effort. While you do need to spend a lot of time working on your business, it’s important to have a work-life balance. You need to make time to be with your family and friends in order to stay healthy and continue enjoying your business for years to come. Try these tips for taking back your personal time:

• Have set start and end times for each work day. This will allow you to stay on a consistent schedule and to always know when work time ends and personal time begins. Depending on what you do, there may be an industry standard that you can follow, such as working from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. or another familiar schedule. Make sure your clients know when they can expect you to be available and what hours are off limits. This will keep your customer satisfaction levels high and your personal life thriving.
• Use a stoplight system. Many small-business owners work out of their homes. While this is convenient in many ways, it can blur the lines between home life and the office. To keep your work interruption-free, consider using the stoplight system. Place a green piece of paper on your closed office door to signify that someone can come in if they need you. Switch it out for a red one if you have an important conference call or do not want to be disturbed. If you have kids, they will easily understand this method and possibly enjoy using the system. You will be glad that you can work uninterrupted but also be available to your family when the timing is right.