Jenny Blake’s “Free Time”
If you are feeling overwhelmed, under-resourced, and overburdened — welcome to the club!
You know that feeling when you're so busy you don't even have time to sleep? Or when you're so stressed out that you can't see straight?
It's a familiar feeling. And it's one I've been dealing with for a long time. I used to be a workaholic — I'd burn the candle at both ends, trying to do everything perfectly and over-committing myself. Then I'd crash and have nothing left for my family or friends. Does this sound like you too?
But then, last year around this time, I went on a career break and learned that there's more to life than just working non-stop. And last month's experience with COVID-19 ironically reminded me to slow down once again…
In particular, I was inspired by Jenny Blake's book Free Time: Lose the Busywork, Love Your Business to approach my business and work differently. Instead of working as many hours as possible and trying to be perfect at everything, I now focus on what's most important: the work that brings me joy.
Busywork is the enemy of free time.
We all know that feeling: you're so busy, you can't even catch your breath. You feel like there are always a million things to do and not enough time to get them all done. That's the busywork trap. It results from misplacing priorities.
Busywork is the stuff that doesn't matter. It's the stuff that takes up space on your calendar and drains your energy but doesn't actually help you achieve your goals. It might be deleting emails or answering questions about your business that someone should be really asking someone else.
The problem with busywork is that it's easy to do — it takes very little effort to clear out some clutter from your inbox — but it feels productive because it makes us feel like we're getting things done. But if we don't stop and think about what truly matters, then we end up spending hours doing busywork so that we can check off items on our to-do lists.
Busywork doesn't make sense in the long run because it doesn't help us get better at what we do. In fact, it can actually have negative consequences on our productivity over time, which means we end up wasting time on busywork instead of doing actual work that makes us better at what we do and helps us reach our goals faster.
How to avoid the busywork trap.
In Free Time, Jenny Blake follows the principles of a heart-based business. She describes a path that has worked for many entrepreneurs looking for a way out of the busywork trap in their businesses. She says that most of us are guilty of busywork at some point in our lives: doing things that don't move us forward in our careers or businesses and that don't make us happy. For example, we might take on more responsibilities at work than necessary or do things just because they're expected of us rather than because they're meaningful or fulfilling.
Free time is important. Realise that you cannot be on-the-go mode all the time. Burnout is a real issue. If you don’t make time to take care of yourself, you will get to the point where you will become mentally and physically drained. Consequently, you will go into survival mode (eat-sleep-work, repeat).
Free time is what allows us to recharge our batteries and get back to work with new energy. It gives us the space to think about our goals and why we're doing what we do.
Jenny Blake has a wealth of experience with this kind of thing, and she's written this book based on her personal experiences, as well as interviews with other successful entrepreneurs who have found success in balancing their work and their personal lives. She talks about:
How to prioritise what matters to you to avoid feeling overwhelmed by all of the tasks that are constantly competing for your attention.
How to create a structure for yourself so that you don't lose track of what needs to be done today and what can wait until tomorrow (or never).
How to set up systems that will help you stay organised so that no matter how busy things get at work or home, there are always clear channels through which information can flow without causing chaos or confusion.
Build the lifestyle you want.
Jenny Blake’s Free Time is all about how to use your free time as a way to grow your business. It's not just about taking more time off or planning trips to the beach. It's about ensuring you're doing all the things that will take your business to the next level while still allowing yourself time to relax and enjoy life.
Now that you've read the summary of the book, here are a few things to think about:
Are you ready to earn twice as much in half the time, with joy and ease? All that, while serving the highest good for all involved?
If the answer is yes, then start by changing how you work. Download my Productivity Tools For Mastering Chaos!
Free Time is about exploring how to free your mind, time, and team for more of your best work.
I hope you'll give Free Time: Lose the Busywork, Love Your Business a try. We all know building a business takes a mental toll on us. It's the thing we don't talk about because, well, it's too hard to even think about! But the truth is: if you're not taking care of yourself, you can't take care of your business.
Take advantage of smarter systems powered by “Delightfully Tiny Teams” to achieve your goals instead of doing everything yourself. I'm here to help! I love helping entrepreneurs find ways to grow their businesses by transforming their digital presence from chaos to clarity.
Achieving scale in business doesn’t necessarily require having a big team. You can free up the time required to create higher value for customers by investing in systematised processes and tools.
Takeaway: Learn how to be more productive, less stressed and a better entrepreneur with these tips for freeing up your time.
Overall, I've learned so much from the book and am happy to recommend it to business owners and entrepreneurs out there. While short, it gives many helpful tips and advice on how to get more free time, with and without your team.
… And if you're looking for some extra inspiration, check out these other useful resources for conscious entrepreneurs:
How to gain control of your free time, Laura Vanderkam, TED Talk
All it takes is 10 mindful minutes, Andy Puddicombe, TED Talk
Special thanks: Jess, I have been brain-crushing on Jenny Blake’s content ever since you recommended this book to me! Thanks very much.
Jessica Marati Radparvar is the founder of Reconsidered. She helps impact leaders drive bigger, bolder, more sustainable change. Through content, courses and consulting, she is working toward a vision of a more thriving, just and resilient world.
Please note that some of the links above are affiliate links, so if you choose to purchase something — and thank you for doing so! — I will receive a small commission at no extra cost to you. You are essentially buying me my cappuccino with oat milk. Win-win. ☕🌱
That's all for today, have a great weekend ahead!
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