“Rest” is a scary concept for many entrepreneurs. You may cringe every moment that you relax, thinking that your competition is using that moment to move even further ahead. However, without rest, you’ll quickly burn out. Resting and recovering from the trials and tribulations of running your business will help you perform better over the long term. Here are 5 ways you can rest when you need to, even when you don’t feel like it.
1. Be Alone
You might find it fun, even energizing, to be around people, but social activity is also inherently draining. It might even convince you that you’ve rested, when all you’ve actually done is expend more energy. If you want to rest, sometimes you’ll have to isolate yourself for a few hours.
The good news is that you don’t have to sit in an empty room doing nothing. Doing something almost mindless or something you can do by rote is a great way to relax without getting bored out of your gourd. You can do this before you go to the office and get a little more rest, or after you come home so you can begin the process of shutting down for the day.
2. Keep Your Brain Busy on Something Else
Trying to stop your brain from running is a pointless endeavor. If it wants to do something, it’ll keep you up until it gets what it wants. The good news is that usually you can keep it busy with something not work-related, something that you find fun and relaxing, and you’ll feed it the stimulus it needs. A good video game or a puzzle can keep your brain under control while simultaneously letting you blow off some steam.
Don’t expect to find the relaxation activity of your choice in a snap. Some things you find fun, may not be the kind of thing that lets you wind down after a long day. Experiment with different activities until you find a few that work.
3. Put It on Paper
Inspiration can come from anywhere, and from anytime – and considering the challenges you face as an entrepreneur, you can’t afford to miss a single one. Doing so runs the risk of simply forgetting a critical strategy or idea that could help begin to turn the tide in your business’s favor. The fear of missing out on one of these thoughts can consume you. Unfortunately, these ideas can also come when you’re trying to rest, which might provoke you into embracing some unscheduled overtime just to see if your idea works.
Instead of doing that when you’re supposed to be resting, just write it down. Put down your thoughts in an idea journal, and refer to it when you’re on the clock. You can even extend this idea and fill in a journal every night as a way to process the day.
4. Visualize Your Rest
One of the best tips you can follow as an entrepreneur is to visualize your goals and how you plan on accomplishing them. This cements these thoughts in your mind and keeps you on the ball when things inevitably get hectic. However, the benefits of visualization don’t end there. You can also use it to help yourself relax.
Get your mind off the business and onto more relaxing ideas by thinking about things that you find restful. Think about how you’ll be sitting in your favorite chair or watching your favorite show at home. That’ll help you refocus yourself and get in the mood to wind down.
5. Engage in Some Exercise
One of the best ways to rest is to simply tire yourself out. That might sound like a strange need, given how difficult running a business can be, but some days will leave you more energized than exhausted, which can make resting a little difficult. Fortunately, there’s something beneficial you can do to tucker yourself out, and that’s to exercise.
Exercise improves you physically and can help you get a good night’s rest. The good news is that studies have shown that exercising at night won’t keep you up, so feel free to schedule after-work gym sessions whenever you want.
It cannot be overstated how important it is to find rest as an entrepreneur if you want to sustain your business and health for the long term. If you can’t, you’ll most certainly find yourself burning out at some point. It’s better to make the time for rest and self care now, and you’ll perform better as a whole. Your business will also stand a better chance of lasting for the long term, as will you.
