In honor of Professional Wellness Month we wanted to pass along some tips that entrepreneurs need to keep in mind when it comes to taking care of their health. It’s so easy to become bogged down in the day to day operation of your business that you forget you need to take care of yourself. Burnout is a fact of life for entrepreneurs. In order to give your clients 100% you need to give yourself time to kick back, relax and recharge. As accountants we understand the pressure of “crunch time” but we also know that in order to perform at our peak, we need to take time and enjoy ourselves as well.

Here are five tips we offer you to take care of yourself so you can continue to grow your business and prosper!

1.  Just as you do a To-Do list for your daily business activities you need to have a To-Do list for your personal activities. Put a trip to the gym or a massage therapist or a walk around the neighborhood as one of your daily calendar items. Your health is as important as the health of your business!
2. Plan your day because you will find if you’re prepared for the day ahead you won’t be as stressed. Of course, all business owners know that not all days go according to plan, but having a plan lets you know you are making progress on your daily goals.
3. As an entrepreneur it’s easy to burn the candle at both ends but you need to get a good night’s sleep in order to function at peak performance. Your memory will be impacted and stress hormones are heightened if you don’t get enough sleep. Also, anxiety and depression can be the result of a lack of sleep.
4. Make time for friends and family. At the end of the work day all you may want to do is go home and relax in a quiet room. Recharging your internal batteries by spending time with friends and family engaged in enjoyable activities makes facing the next day more pleasant.
5. Take a mini holiday. You might not be able to close up shop and slip away for a week or two vacation but certainly you can take a weekend day off, right? Okay, if you don’t think you can do that then how about taking a 10-20 minute mental health break in the middle of each workday. Use your mini vacation to grab a cat nap, take a quick walk around the block, read a book, or engage in some other non stressful activity.

Your clients, your family and friends and your mental health will appreciate your taking the time to refresh and recharge and take care of yourself!