During our conversation with Sasha Back in Season 02 of CulturallyOurs, Sasha shared some strategies on how she copes with getting overwhelmed in her business. We have all experienced overwhelm at some point in our entrepreneurial journey. Partly self-inflicted and partly culture and society pressures make us want to go at breakneck speed to achieve our goals.
But that is not healthy or even sustainable. You can listen to Sasha’s tips on how she achieves work-life balance here.
We loved reading what Montana Pratt, a writer and creative soul living on the Australian south-east coast has to say about achieving work-life balance through slow living.
From Montana,
At the core of almost every entrepreneur are two things: to help as many people as possible, and to have more freedom. Financial freedom, freedom to do what you want, freedom to live your life on your own terms.
But how do you truly get that freedom?
We all spend a great deal of our time on things we think will make us a success. We take this course, implement that marketing strategy, go to this networking event. But you can have all of the bells and whistles and you can look like a success on paper, but if you don’t feel successful, then what is it all for?
On the surface, slow living and entrepreneurship sound like two diametrically opposed things. How can an entrepreneur slow down and still make waves of innovation and influence? Shouldn’t you be doing more in order to do better?
If you feel like success is getting harder and harder to reach, maybe you need to slow down and start seeing the idea of success differently.
Slow living is the answer to work-life balance
Sarah Jacobs, co-founder of The Wellness Project NYC, defines work-life balance as the “sweet spot where you get everything done, maintain healthy relationships, a healthy mind and body, and you’re still able to sip (not chug) your morning coffee.”
Whilst that might sound nice, realistically, it’s not something we can all achieve while staying completely sane at the same time. The crux of work-life balance means for you to be successful, you must have it all. And that’s a little overwhelming, to say the least.
The beauty of slow living is this: you don’t have to have it all; you are allowed to pick and choose what you have. Slow living gives you permission to not do everything. In fact, you can’t and you shouldn’t try. Unlike the world’s current obsession with work-life balance, slow living lets you off the hook from cramming everything in.
Redefining success
Redefining successWhat does success mean to you? Far too often, we allow the success of others to dictate what our own success should look like. If your competitor has 5,000 followers on Instagram, you start busting your butt to grow your following too. But if all you’re doing is holding you back from what you love, like spending more time with family, you are not succeeding sustainably or healthily. You are striving in vain.
Your life is your whole life. Your version of success in your business should translate to success in your non-working life too. Success on your own terms. Can you remember what drove you to dive into entrepreneurship? Our guess is it wasn’t sales targets or growth opportunities, but something more central to your overall well-being. And that’s exactly where you need to go back to.
Knowing what you want to achieve above all else is the best guidepost you can have. Everything you do, work or otherwise, should lead you closer to that one overarching goal.
You can start simplifying your life, slowing down and working toward your new definition of success by filtering everything you do through two lenses.
1. Does this help people?
Take everything you have on your plate. All of your business tasks, your social engagements, your outreach opportunities and sift through them. Do they all serve somebody? Do they serve you? If not, you don’t need them.
Tasks that aren’t beneficial to anyone are only wasting your time. Despite what you might believe, you don’t need nearly half the things on your to-do list. You are allowed to say no, and in doing so you create more breathing room in your life.
2. Does this move you closer to your ideal lifestyle?
The second question is a little trickier, particularly if your work and business goals have strayed somewhat and don’t align with your life goals.
Consider your to-do’s and your business goals. Why do you have them? Do they exist simply because someone else told you they are important? If achieving these goals don’t have the power to bring you closer to the freedom and flexibility you crave, you may need to reevaluate their place in your business.
Stop measuring your own success against that of anyone else. You, your business and your life are unique. Remember your life is the only life you get, so stop rushing through it and start living on your own terms.
Thank you so much Montana for this thought provoking piece. We completely agree that we are all unique – our paths are unique and hence our life is unique. Measuring success against that of anyone else is not healthy. And slow living using these tips you have shared is such a beautiful way to achieving freedom from the rushed pace of society.
Montana is a writer and creative soul living on the Australian south-east coast. A dreamer and list-maker at heart, Montana embraces slow living and simplifying as a way to live a life worth having, documenting her journey online where she explores all things simple living, zero waste and becoming a better version of yourself. When she isn’t writing, she says you can usually find her buried in a book, experimenting in the kitchen, or tending the garden.
{Credit: Words and Photos by Montana Pratt; Website: Montana Pratt ; Instagram: @montanapratt}
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