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The People Gardener Podcast with Rhonda Delaney
The People Gardener Podcast with Rhonda Delaney
Crafting Work-Life Harmony as a Small Business Owner
Ever wondered how to truly balance work and life as a small business owner? Join me, Rhonda Delaney, The People Gardener, as I share heartfelt personal experiences and invaluable childhood lessons to help you define your own version of work-life harmony. Forget societal labels and expectations; it's all about crafting a fulfilling life that brings you joy both personally and professionally. From the challenges of raising children to navigating your 60s, discover actionable steps to enjoy your work, prioritize your health, and schedule guilt-free time off.
Toward the end of this episode, I remind you to stay connected and inspired by joining my email list via my website, rondadelaney.com. Plus, don’t miss out on the Raving Fans Society app, available for both Apple and Google devices. Whether you opt for the free or the $49 per month membership, you’ll gain access to a treasure trove of teaching content, a resource library, and exclusive coaching sessions. Enhance your leadership skills and create a harmonious life tailored to your unique journey. Listen in and be inspired!
Well, hey there, welcome to the People Gardener podcast. I'm Rhonda Delaney, your host, also known as the People Gardener, thrilled to put this podcast together to help small business owners, new business owners, frustrated business owners and aspiring leaders, whether they're inside business or outside. Each week, we bring you some actionable steps so that you can actually improve your skill as a leader. That's what we're about. We're here to help you become a better leader by giving you access to lots of different perspectives. By giving you access to lots of different perspectives. The guests are varied. We're thrilled to have them. Get out your pen, get out your paper and be ready to learn Every single episode. You're going to be able to take something away that you can implement. Are you ready? Let's get to work. Well, hey there. Welcome back to the People Gardener podcast. Happy to have you here. This week. We're going to take a little bit of a break from talking about different platforms and software, and it's been in my head to talk about this phrase, this concept that I'm sure you've all heard Work-life balance. Sometimes it's referred to as that, sometimes it's work-life harmony, work-life integration. I just want to talk about life, your life and how you're feeling about your life. Are you happy with the amount of time that you are spending at work, building your business, and are you feeling fulfilled in your relationship at home and with your family? Are you okay with the ebb and flow of what happens between the two?
Speaker 1:Me, I am a I think the best word a chunker. I am an all-in, all-out, and I think it stems actually from when I was a kid. Dad would say when you work, you work. When you play, you play, and I think I've mentioned this before. I have three sisters, so the four of us girls were out. We're doing the yard work, we're in the house, we're cleaning whatever, wherever it was. Dad typically was outside and we're supposed to be weeding, and he would just lose it if we were sitting on our butts and actually weeding with one hand. No, you get up on your knees, you attack it, you pull weeds with both hands and then you're done way faster. When you work, you work. When you play, you play, and you'll be able to go and play sooner when you get this work done. So for me, really, I have no clue whether that's part of how my brain works, but I like to think that it has some bearing on it. But I find that if I just get in there and focus and get it done, then I can move on. That works for me. That might not work for you, you know, for a society that screams don't label, don't label.
Speaker 1:We've labeled what balance means. We've labeled how it's supposed to look for the business and the personal life you are, you, your life, your innate being, your personality, your family, the dynamics there. Every single person is unique and your scenario is unique. So what harmony looks like for you, what balance looks like for you, is different than me. I think about now I'm 65, next month and what balance looks like in my life now versus 30 years ago, when I had three kids that I was raising and responsible for and also working in a direct sales job, working in a corporation. It was really, really different and it's okay that it's different.
Speaker 1:Don't allow yourself to have somebody else tell you the definition of balance. Let's say harmony, integration, use whatever term you want. Don't let somebody else tell you how you should feel about your life and what your life should look like. An interesting definition as I was doing some research for this episode, I came across and I'm going to read it of harmony it's the quality of forming a pleasing and consistent whole. I really like that because that is unique to each of you.
Speaker 1:You know, I think of the small business owner and I mean that's who this podcast is for the ones that have three employees, maybe 15, 20 employees. You might be doing, you know, a hundred thousand to a million, half a million, a million a year. Your world looks very, very different than mine, or different than each other. What decisions can you make that will help you? I want to say be at peace with your life, where you're not feeling this constant tug. I should be working. I should be with my family. I should be working. I should be with my family. I can't take time off because I can't leave, because I really should be taking this home with me, but I don't. I don't want to because I've got my child's baseball game. That is exhausting.
Speaker 1:How can you develop your plan for your work? And well, let's just talk about for your life, and your life encompasses your work and your family, your free time, your hobbies, your education, your growth. I mean everything that you do and what you're. No, I'm not going to tell you what you should be doing. My hope is that you would actually create a life that brings you joy, that that you enjoy not just yourself, but you can enjoy with other people. I'm going to read a few things that I came across in an effort to give you some food for thought about ways that you could start addressing how you live your life, and that is, you know, whatever time you wake up to, whatever time you get home, however much time you spend at your place of business or in your job, and the time that you spend with family, the time you spend on yourself. So these are just some things to be aware of and maybe have a look at.
Speaker 1:Are you enjoying building your business? Are you fired up? Do you like it? Does it give you a zip in your step? Let's say, what about your health? How are you doing? Prioritizing that? Are you scheduling some time off without guilt, without trepidation, but just saying hey, I'm gone, and trusting fully that your team is going to look after things while you're gone?
Speaker 1:Where are your expectations? Are your expectations realistic? Are you expecting perfection? Or are you at a place where you understand that there's going to be ebb and flows and, yeah, my expectations are reasonable? Are you being flexible, not only to yourself, to your family and to those that work for you, but to yourself, your family and to those that work for you, but to yourself. Or are you being super rigid? What about exercise? How are you doing with that? It's? Oh, my heart, my heart, really goes out to the small business owner.
Speaker 1:It's tough, right, it is Getting yourself started, getting the business where you want it. You still have to live a life. You cannot oh, here I am telling you what to do again be consumed by your business. You need to be multi-dimensional, not just this single dimension. We go back to the quality of forming a pleasing and consistent whole. That's the harmony, that's what we want.
Speaker 1:You know, something that people talk about is you know, don't take your work home and don't bring home when you go to the office. Well, the reality is, most people can't compartmentalize that way. It just doesn't, doesn't work, and, for goodness sakes, we are human, we are who we are and it's OK to feel what we feel. So bring all of you to all of your life, whatever that might be. Bring it to the workplace, bring it at home, bring it to yourself, and I want you to create a life that you are enjoying.
Speaker 1:Sure, there's going to be crappy days, and there's going to be crappy moments, and there's going to be times where you're tearing your hair out, and there's going to be times when you actually want to put your fist through the wall. Well, no, you would really like to, yeah, anyway. So there's no question, but that's part of life and that's okay. We just don't want to have to have a steady diet of that. And when you participate fully and you feed your soul, you feed yourself, you feed the things that really light you up. It's so much easier to deal with all of the stresses and strains both at home and in your business, and strains both at home and in your business.
Speaker 1:Be kind to yourself and take a look at all of the areas and spend time just contemplating. Okay, so how do I feel about my life? And identify any friction points and then start working on those. We me, I, I want you to live a life that you enjoy All of it the work, the business that you're building and operating, and the friends and family that mean so much to you. Harmony, integration, balance, call it what you will Live your life and choose how you're going to live your life.
Speaker 1:That's it for this week. We'll talk to you again next week. Well, thanks for joining me today. Just a quick reminder if you are not on my email list, go to my website, rondadelaneycom, and there's a place there that you can subscribe, keep you up to date on all things people, gardening and leadership. And also a reminder that the Raving Fans Society app is available on the Apple Store and the Google Store. I do have a free membership in there that you'll be able to access some of my material, and then there's also a paid membership, and right now it's $49 a month and you will receive access to all of my material, all of the teaching content, including a resource library that will really help you along, as well as group coaching every month and then quarterly bringing in guests that will talk on topics that pertain to small business owners and leadership. Thanks again for listening and we'll see you again next week.