When you have your own business, the idea of a traditional nine-to-five working day goes out the window. But with that comes the risk of working around the clock and leaving no time to decompress or properly connect with the ones you love – which, as we all know, is the fast track to stress, burnout and relationship challenges.

Here, three pros reveal what work-life balance means to them, with insights into how they have adopted a healthier and more sustainable approach to running their businesses.

Why it matters
“Having work-life balance is so important,” says Kristin Stojcevski, interior designer and owner of Rocco Revolution. “I find that if I don’t allocate time for ‘life’ it leaves me feeling rundown and uninspired.”

“It’s also really important if you want your business to be sustainable over the long run,” says John Wright, architect and director at Wright & Gray: Architects. “If work takes over your life, the people you care about will suffer – your family, of course, but also your employees.

“There’s also the risk you might become a very boring person!”

“A really good example of poor work-life balance is when lockdown happens,” says Sarah Heyes, interior designer at Provoke Design. “Staff cannot come in to help so your workload increases, children are at home and have to be homeschooled, and clients still want to see their designs,” she says. “This experience has really emphasised the importance of work-life balance for me.”

How these pros found a better balance
Stojcevski says:

• Be strict about your working hours: It’s easy to fall into the trap of working late into the evening, so giving myself a cut-off time is really important.
• Keep correspondence with clients via email: Of course, I still get the occasional text or after-hours call from a client, but I always brings these back online.

Heyes says:

• Delegate: Employing staff has helped me feel less stressed, more productive and able to continue providing good customer service.

Wright says:

• Make time off a priority: When we set up our practice, we agreed on a generous annual leave allowance and a five-yearly sabbatical break.
  There is nothing like removing yourself from the office for a break, and especially getting overseas, to refresh and inspire. Travelling as a family brought us close and gives us happy memories. Taking time out was difficult when I was sole director, it became easier when I took on another shareholder, and even better when we were able to hire some senior people.
• Establish sound practice-management skills: These include financial planning and work scheduling. Sound management helps us minimise the stress of being over- or under-worked, hitting financial difficulties, or having unhappy clients or staff.
• Choose the right staff: We have hired capable people, whose skills complement ours. There is nothing more satisfying than seeing someone do a better job than you could do yourself. Delegating and mentoring gives others the opportunity to grow, and lets me focus on the things I enjoy and do best.

Use tech to streamline your day-to-day
These pros have also embraced technology to help achieve a better work-life balance. “Going paperless and embracing technology such as Houzz Pro has been a game-changer for us,” says Stojcevski.“Having everything we need on our desktops means that we can make things happen so much quicker with the click of a button.

“Not only has it helped us communicate better in the office, but it has enabled us to produce professional, detailed and considered documentation for our clients,” she says.

“We love the invoicing system on Houzz Pro. It’s such a fantastic tool to not only help keep track of payments, but also supplier lead times,” says Stojcevsk.

“The software just makes life easier,” says Heyes. “I can track and follow up leads, organise client communications and marketing, and my staff can do the same.

“I feel l can provide a very professional service – and more efficiently,” she says.