• Email
    • Facebook
    • Instagram

Desk Life Project

Work From Home

  • bring it in HOME
  • so basically… ABOUT
  • pull up a chair BLOG
    • Inspiring Interviews
    • Startup Stories
    • Freelance Life
    • Entrepreneur Goals
    • Lifestyle & Wellbeing
    • Location Independence
    • Co-working & Events
    • Creative Inspiration
    • Blogging & Social
  • (free stuff!) SHOP
    • Cart
    • Checkout
    • My Account
  • let’s chat CONNECT
    • Contact
    • Work with Desk Life
    • Feature your business
  • check this out Cool Things
    • London Events

March 26, 2018

Why you shouldn’t feel guilty turning on your out-of-office

When you run your own business and you deal with clients, it often comes with an unspoken assumption and inner compulsion to always be available to everyone, all hours of the day, all days of the week, perhaps even all days of the year. Particularly as a newly self-employed person, the pressure is always there to be working as much as possible, and taking a day off is almost unheard of. It’s easy to become burnt out working at this pace, so here are a few things you may want to think about next time you turn down a great day out because you’re worried about leaving your emails unattended.

Busy is not a badge of honour

While this quote flutters around on Instagram from time to time, it’s actually very poignant for those running their own business. Dealing with naysayers who predict your failure in the beginning stages of your business can make you feel like you need to constantly update them with how incredibly busy you are and how in-demand your product or service is. At the end of the day, being busy does not equal hard working, it does not equal more money, and it does not equal more success. Whether you are taking a day off because business is slow or because you simply don’t feel like adulting today, it’s all OK.

Make yourself more sought after

Being constantly available at all hours of the day may be great for your clients, however if you are hoping to be booked more in the near future, you may not want to give the impression that you are sitting by your laptop refreshing your Outlook every ten seconds in hope that you’ll receive an email. Going out for the day and turning on your out-of-office response shouldn’t mean you lose all of your clients in one day, it simply means they will assume you have a life that you are happily living outside of work, and that’s a more healthy way to be living anyway.

Your wellbeing comes first

If you’re wondering what lie you could possibly concoct for your out-of-office response that is appropriate, you can stop now. It doesn’t matter if you’re taking the day off to go see an old friend, or you’re heading off on holiday for a few days, or you’re sitting in your pajamas at home catching up on a TV show that you love. None of it matters. Telling your contacts that you are having a personal day is absolutely fine, and totally acceptable, so don’t feel that you need to make excuses or justify your actions.

Always remember that running your own business gives you the freedom to say no sometimes, and to shape the life you want. Put your wellbeing first, dial down the ‘busy’, and enjoy a day off once in a while. You deserve it!

Photo: Georgia de Lotz

Filed Under: Entrepreneur Goals, Freelance Life, Lifestyle & Wellbeing Tagged With: business, career, day off, emails, entrepreneur, freelance, holiday, location independent, out-of-office, self-employed, vacation, wellbeing, work life balance

Previous
Next

About Caitlin McAllister

Caitlin is a freelance writer usually based in London, a keen traveller, and an avid snow globe collector. She regularly writes copy and content for both blogs and brands, including Time Out London, and founded Desk Life Project in 2017 to create a community of freelancers and entrepreneurs like herself. You can follow her updates and get in touch on Instagram @caitmca.

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

You are…

Follow us on FB

It’s time to stop scrolling through what Sally ate yesterday, and start seeing motivational, inspiring content on your feed, starting with the Desk Life FB page.

Sign up here.

  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Instagram

Looking for something?

Read Desk Life Project’s Privacy Policy here.

DESK LIFE IN YOUR INBOX

We ♥ positive vibes.
We do not ♥ spam.

This error message is only visible to WordPress admins

Error: No connected account.

Please go to the Instagram Feed settings page to connect an account.

  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Instagram

Copyright © 2022 · Desk Life Project · Hello You Designs