If you’re a small business owner, you’re probably busier than the typical employed worker.
A New York Enterprise Report survey found that:
- 33% of small business owners work more than 50 hours per week
- 25% work more than 60 hours a week
A Bank of the West Small Business Growth survey on business owners’ biggest challenges stated that:
- 43% of business owners identified “always being on the job” as one of the biggest challenges they face
- 39% identified “balancing work and family”
That same survey also asked small business owners to provide pieces of advice they’d give fellow owners. The top two were:
- Make time for your family (62%)
- Don’t be afraid to ask for help (58%)
Both pieces of advice make sense when seeking work and life balance.
However, as we’ve seen in the above stats, many business owners are challenged to leave work behind. As for asking for help, 70% of small business owners prefer to do everything themselves according to a UK survey.
Not following those two pieces of advice may be having a detrimental impact on your health and family life.
The Impact of Long Hours at Work
Working long hours can have significant implication for your health. Studies have shown that long work hours cause poor sleeping and eating habits. Long term impacts may include health issues like:
- Hypertension
- Digestive troubles
- Chronic aches and pains
- Heart problems
- Depression
- Anxiety
- Insomnia
Too much time spent on work can have a significant impact on relationships. In this day and age, it’s nearly impossible to “leave work behind” when you consider the availability of laptops and cell phones. Often your spouse may feel estranged and disconnected as you spend much of your time on your computer and cell phone.
Quite simply, if you spend the majority of your time nurturing your business and not nurturing your home life—you could lose your spouse and family.
How a Virtual Assistance Can Help You Achieve a Work and Life Balance
Hiring a virtual assistant may be the best way to accomplish advice number 2—don’t be afraid to ask for help.
Many business owners are turning to virtual assistant firms like Business Solutions Unlimited to delegate many of their daily tasks. By freeing up their workload, they’re able to spend time with family and favorite relaxing activities.
These business owners are finding that they can hire a wide variety of skilled professionals through a virtual assistance firm at a cost much lower than hiring staff. Firms like Business Solutions Unlimited can provide professional virtual assistance services like administrative, marketing and bookkeeping.
Additionally, hiring virtual assistants can make business owners more productive. By delegating tasks, business owners can turn their attention toward other tasks important to their business and revenue.
Too Busy? Delegate Your Tasks
The demand for professional and skilled virtual assistants is growing. Industry experts predict there will be 1.8 billion active customers for virtual assistance services by 2021. Maybe it’s time you consider joining this trend.
Find out how delegating tasks to a virtual assistant firm like Business Solutions Unlimited can help you achieve a positive work and life balance.
Give us a call at (904) 429-4588 and let us get to work on your business tasks while you work on getting some balance back.