Being self-employed is harder than I imagined. Watching business go from making the good profit to rapidly failing. I have learned a lot, And not necessarily all of the things I learned involve my businesses.
When you become self-employed, you become more aware of yourself, Your habits and thought process. You no longer have a supervisor shoving things down your throat, Whether they are beliefs or other influences. You think you'll be the same person when you are self-employed? Think again!
While my core values and goals in life are the same, It's amazing how much my habits and the way my brain works has changed.
There are some bad habits that I saw myself picking up over the past year That you should avoid.
This is a bad one. You are at home working, and you have access to an endless supply of food. You can stop at any moment, Cook yourself something and eat it. you can run the store.
Not only is snacking incredibly distracting, But It can lead to excessive weight gain.
Plus when you are self-employed you can "leave" work anytime you want. Which I'm guilty of. It's so easy to grab a container of peanut butter and munch on it while you work.
Be mindful of how much you are eating in the day. I've resorted to using "Prep COntainers" which I put my meals in. I'm allowed to have three a day right now, But I'm going to eventually cut it back to 2. (Eating Breakfast and lunch Help me lose weight and sleep better).
You need to decide what your dietary needs are, And try to avoid snacking when you aren't supposed to.
Wait... You quit your job so you could get away from structure?
Well too bad.
The structure is the best way to have a productive day. For those of us who can't handle the structure, Plan to have a couple of days of ultimate freedom where the structure doesn't exist.
I made a mistake when I changed my sleep schedule. So I figured since I'm self-employed I can do what I want right?
So I started staying up AS LONG AS I COULD working. Everyday. Each day I'd stay up a couple of hours later. I'd then get so exhausted I'd "Crash". It was so exhausting, and I thought I was more productive. But it turns out I wasn't. Not only did I wake up extremely tired, But I also couldn't get myself working for a few hours after I woke up. When I have a normal sleep schedule, I can usually start working within a half hour of waking. I realized that Having a structure and a plan for the day made it much easier for me to get things done.
This is pretty much the same thing as structure.
Routines get boring after a while, but they allow you to save your willpower for the more important aspects of your day. So you aren't wasting time on unimportant things. Such as what you wear etc.
My routine involves getting out of bed and changing into a tank top and shorts which I wear for the day. This outfit is already laying out for me when I wake up, And I have 3-4 Identical outfits for everyday.
It's easy, and I don't have to think about it.
I also go for a run everyday; I don't have to think about it. I just put on my shoes, Change into a short sleeved shirt and go. It's easy.
The routine of doing these things allows me to get the benefit without thinking about it.
Remember: When you are self-employed. The projects NEVER end! You could write 1,000 books and still have things you want to do. But in the end, You need to have a social life, And you need to get out there. It's not healthy for you to stay locked up at home all the time.
So get out, Go for a walk or meet up with friends. Just do something.
