We All Need A Rest...What About You?

Are you an entrepreneur that works around the clock and seldom takes time for yourself? If you answered yes, you may want to read more.
As I build my magazine business, I find I work harder now than I did when I had a nine-to-five job. I am up all night writing, thinking, planning, and ensuring I am on top of my game. But when the weekend arrives, I find myself exhausted. I have cram so much into my week that I neglect to do something fun for myself. I realize I cannot function like this any longer. Not only is it unhealthy, you lose so much life when you have just one focus.
I now understand that I have to find what I call “pure time” for myself- which means  time that I do not do anything related to my business. I just relax and enjoy life. As I mentioned before you can lose so much time and forget about other things that are important. For me, I have forgotten how to do absolutely nothing or enjoy a hobby. For example, I love bookstores. I have not enjoyed browsing and lingering in the magazine section finding books and magazines of interest in months.
I have come up with tips that I am going to adopt to get me back on track. For me being a wife and caring for my family is most important to me besides my business. After re-evaluating my goals I wanted to share the tips I will use to reconnect to my “pure time.”

1. Schedule specific time for your “pure time” at least once a week. It can be an hour or half a day. But schedule the time like you would with a client.
2. Reconnect with your hobby or activity that brings you pure joy. Choose an activity that releases the stress such as a vacation, exercise.
3. Spend time with friends and family.
4. For married entrepreneurs, adopt a date night; it can help recapture the fire.

In thinking about my work-life-balance, I found this article that provides other tips to think about as you move forward in your journey. I am going to start now by scheduling time to go to the bookstore this week. Click Here
What steps are you going to take? Let me know at DamitaShanklin@aol.com.

Damita Miller-Shanklin is the Founder/Publisher of Ujima Magazine(www.ujimamagazine.com) and the co-host of Ujima TV with Damita and Evelina.

Networking Makes Me Sweat

When I started my business almost three years ago, it was suggested to me that I attend some networking meetings. This made me very uncomfortable because I don’t do well meeting strangers or starting a conversation. But after trying to avoid it, I finally attended some events.

Most, if not all, of the networking events I attended were for women business owners and entrepreneurs because for me I needed to connect with other women who could identify with my journey of being a small business owner. I attended luncheon events where I was supposed to get up, introduce myself, and start conversations with whoever was walking by. I did not do well with these activities. My palms became sweaty and I didn’t know what to say besides “hi.” I soon learned that attending networking events with a lot of people did not work for me. But what about getting my brand out there and how could I help people to recognize my magazine was in the community?

As I thought about the amount of time and money I spent attending these events where I was too uncomfortable to get anything out of it, I decided to take a different route. My mentor, Florence Maxwell, taught me that you have to develop relationships with people to get most things done. This particular way of networking is slower and depends more on true relationships with people. I do one on one networking because I find it to be more personable, there is clearer communication, and the person you speak with gets to know you and your business better. I have been doing this type of networking the last four months and I find it more compatible with my personality and my comfort zone.  I feel so much better and no one has to see me sweat. Not to mention these contacts are more beneficial because you can be specific about who you meet with and it cost less than paying for a networking event that may not give what you need in return.

This is not to say I don’t attend any networking events, but when I want to talk to someone about my business or what they do, I contact them directly and set up a meeting. This way may not work for everyone but it is an option for people like me that have a hard time meeting people in big open spaces.

Forbes Women always have good articles that speak to the woman entrepreneur. Take a look at an article by J. Maureen Henderson entitled 3 Myths About Networking That Need to Die.

Even though she says one of the myths is “I’m a Terrible Networker” has to stop, I still feel I am not a good networker in big settings but I do real well one on one.

How has networking helped your business? What are your thoughts about the networking myths presented?

Email me at DamitaShanklin @aol.com or post a comment on our wall at facebook.com/ujimamagazine.

Damita Miller-Shanklin is the Founder/Owner of Ujima Magazine and the co-host of Ujima TV with Damita and Evelina.