Morning Rituals for Heart-Centered Entrepreneurs

Once upon a time, my mornings started like this…

Wake up to alarm clock set really early – even though I worked for myself, at home. I would rub my eyes blearily while checking my email from my horizontal position. Since I hadn’t yet defined my boundaries in my business, I would inevitably come across email in there that made me hop out of bed in panic that I was doing everything wrong. Then I would run downstairs, chug a bunch of coffee, shake off the sleep and set myself about the task of moving through my to-do list – all the while intermittently checking my Facebook page and twitter account.

….which would last until late in the night, when my sweetheart would look at me, frustrated, and ask me how late I was going to work.

Even though I was working all day and into the night – I wasn’t getting much done.

Even though I was pouring all of my heart into my work – I always felt like I wasn’t doing enough or that there was more I should be doing.

Even though I created my own schedule – I couldn’t find five minutes for self-care anywhere that I looked.

Even though I worked for myself – I felt like I was chained to the desk in someone else’s business.

If you’ve been feeling like that – I do not want you to feel like that for a single second longer. 

With a few simple tweaks in how you approach your work, you can immediately feel calmer and more relaxed in your approach to your business.The sweet spot here is in allowing yourself the permission to be a human being – and to have needs outside of the needs of your business.

Allow yourself to really know that you are able to do you best work when you have space and time to take care of your personal needs.

Carve some sweet space for yourself today by braiding these small acts of kindness into your day.

And, yes, these practices are beautiful to incorporate into your life even if you don’t work for yourself. 

Leading with Your Needs

As you wake up in the morning, pause for a moment before you reach to check your email or open up your calendar. Allow yourself to become still, feeling your feet on the ground and breathing deeply.

Check in with your body. How are you feeling? Are you thirsty? Do your limbs feel a little restless? Is your body yearning for something in particular?  Allow the wisdom to bubble to the surface. Don’t second guess yourself or judge what shows up. Simply allow the information to present itself.

As you make your plan for the day, carve out a few minutes in your plan to meet your needs.

Often times we avoid doing this because we either feel we don’t have the time or we don’t totally buy into the idea that we deserve it, but your business works when you do – and this includes your body and mental clarity.  Taking an extra few moments to take sweet care of your physical needs will go a long way in preventing against burnout and amplifying the energy that you have for every sphere of your life.

Ask Your Business: What do you need from me today?

Start your day of work with a business check in. Pour yourself a delicious cup of your beverage of choice, pull out your planner, and take a comfortable seat. Scope out the things that are on your agenda today – as well as the projects, ideas and marketing that are lurking out in the distance.

Ask your business, what do you need from me today?

What needs tending to? Where is your energy most needed? What have you been avoiding that is causing you to struggle?

Remembering the awareness that you had from your morning check-in with yourself, begin crafting a plan for your day that includes space both for your business and also for your personal needs.

Begin crafting a plan for the day.

Decide When Enough Is Enough

We can only do a couple of things each day – and do them well. When you run an online business, it can feel like there is always more to get done. Just because the internet doesn’t rest doesn’t mean that you don’t need to. Instead of surrendering to the overwhelm of all of the things that you could do on any given day, actively decide what you are going to give your attention to today or determine the length of your work day.

When you’ve checked the things off of your list or have worked to for the duration of your planned work day, grant yourself permission to finish work for the day. This is the where many entrepreneurs struggle, adding more and more onto their list for the day or feeling like they don’t deserve to rest when they’ve completed their tasks for the day. Resisting this urge takes practice, but when you can relax into setting your own parameters for enoughness for the day, we become infinitely more productive.

This is a highly personal decision, as only you will know when enough is enough, but remind yourself that though you are a business owner, you are also a human being. You require the sweet reprieve of rest and relaxation, so that you can have the energy to continue working each day.

You do not have to do everything today. You are allowed to rest.

And, your work will be better for it.

---

Sheer Magnetism :: Becoming a Beacon in Your Online Orbit Join a group of heart-centered entrepreneurs of all types in a six-week course on moving through anything that is energetically blocking you from shining brightly in your online world. Think of it as camp for your business. We are going to be talking about connecting with our right clients, mapping out new offerings that showcase your particular set of genius, and standing in our own personal power as we navigate the wild world of self-employment. To learn more about the next round of this course, skip on over here.