This podcast episode breaks down this topic in more detail. You can head over to your preferred podcast platform to listen or hang out with me right here. Keep scrolling to read the blog.
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Let’s talk all about one of our favourite topics; boundaries.
I know you cringe when I say the word boundaries because boundaries are not fun to talk about.
They’re not fun to implement.
They’re not fun to deal with when people cross them.
But if we are willing to go through the hard work of implementing them, we can use them to make our life better, to bring more freedom and ease to our life, especially when it comes to running our business. It’s definitely something that I notice with small business owners that can really help to reduce the overwhelm that they are feeling in business when they start setting boundaries.
In this blog, I’m going to cover what boundaries can bring to your life, the signs that you might need stronger boundaries in your business, how stepping up as a CEO in your business requires boundaries and also about some tips I have about setting boundaries. I’m also going to share some of the boundaries I have in my life and in my business, and also about how the millionaire CEO boundaries that everyone talks about doesn’t work for Mums in business.
Let’s dive in!
Firstly, let’s start with the signs that you might need stronger boundaries in your business. You might not be sure if boundaries will really help you, but these are the things that I have noticed that if you experience these things, then you might need boundaries in your business.
These are the signs that you might need stronger boundaries in your biz:
– You feel the pull in a million different directions
– You are constantly feeling overwhelmed with everything going on in your life
– You don’t have time to ever work ON your biz because you are always behind on client work or product creation.
– You say yes to everything because it is easier then saying no
– You feel increasingly resentful towards others
– You feel tired, exhausted and don’t have any time for yourself.
So what do boundaries actually bring to your life? This is something I’ve been thinking about a lot lately to really try and work out what do boundaries actually add to my life? For me personally, what I have found in my journey is boundaries have helped me feel empowered and in control of my life and my own time. Often I feel like there are many others in control of my time; clients, things I’ve said yes to, too many things on my place, friends, family, etc. When I am feeling this constant pull back and forth in lots of different directions, iit doesn’t make me feel empowered to make the best decisions for me, my business or my family. This can lead to feeling really overwhelmed, stuck and not able to process or think things through properly. I’ve found that boundaries really help to bring back that empowerment to my own time.
What boundaries bring to your life:
– You feel empowered and in control of your own time
– You create freedom in your life to do the things you desire
– Your relationships flourish because expectations are clear
– Your creativity increases because you have space to be creative and you aren’t drained
– Your business can start to grow and scale because you aren’t running into burn out all the time
I have always sucked at boundaries
Those are some of the things that I’ve found that boundaries bring to your life, some beautiful things that can really add value to your life and just help bring more ease and effortlessness to your life.
I think I also needed to preface this by saying, I’ve always sucked at boundaries. I’m definitely not saying all of this to you like, “I’m the expert in boundaries!”. Or that it comes easy to me, I actually have always sucked at boundaries.
You see, I love people. And I love to be there all the time for the important people in my life. And so I say yes, all the time. When it comes to business this means that I also always want to go above and beyond and always do more. So I overextend myself in personal and business…
So I am currently learning how looking after myself and putting myself first actually helps me to be better for those around me. I’m definitely finding more strength in myself with implementing boundaries because I’m starting to see more and more how boundaries are benefiting my life.
To step up as a CEO in your business you need to set boundaries. Otherwise, you are just a slave to your business – you are just an employee.
The millionaire CEO boundaries don’t work for Mummas
Things like getting up at 5am and spending 3 hours in your own personal morning routine without being interrupted, generally are pretty hard if you have little ones around haha.
But that doesn’t mean you can’t still have boundaries.
As online entrepreneurs who are growing our biz using social media we can easily get caught up with the trap of feeling like we need to be on social all the time.
I hear this all the time:
“But Amy I have to be on social media all the time so that I can grow my business… if I leave it for even one day my business will die”
Um… I promise you that your business WILL NOT die if you don’t get on it for one day!! 🙅🏼♀️
In fact, I often see businesses start to thrive when they implement boundaries around their social media because the way they are showing up becomes so much more authentic and strategic.
Some boundaries I have in my business that help me are:
👉🏼 I set aside time in my calendar to reply to DMs.
👉🏼 I plan my content monthly so that I only have to worry about stories during the month.
👉🏼 I don’t do stories on the weekends.
👉🏼 I flip over to my personal account when I finish work on Friday so that I’m not looking at my business account during the weekend.
👉🏼 I give myself social media breaks if I know I need them because I trust my audience and value them enough to show up with my best, and my best pours out of my looking after myself.
👉🏼 I have set hours I work because then I minimise guilt
👉🏼 I have clear communication channels set up for clients (Eg Skype & FB Group)
Honestly, the older I get, the busier my life gets. I think the more I’ve realised that I have no choice but to set boundaries if I want to thrive in this life. Because the more things that I have to juggle the more important it will become for me to learn how to prioritise and protect my energy and time.
The hardest part of setting boundaries is implementing them in the beginning, but once you get past that it becomes a dream. 💫
Ams 🌻