Solo Practice

This article by Tejvan Pettinger discusses how to identify whether or not you are a workaholic.  It is very easy for the solo practitioner to become a workaholic, trust me on this.  I know I can be singularly focused when on a mission and the fallout can be very unhealthy.

Pettinger provides the following list of signs that you are a workaholic:

Are you A Workaholic?

Take a moment to consider the following questions:

• Is your first thought on waking about work?
• Is your last thought before sleeping about work?
• Does work take priority over everything else?
• Is your social life based around going out with your office colleagues to talk about work?
• Do you take work home with you at the weekend?
• Would you struggle to enjoy a 3 week holiday away from work?
• Is your greatest aim in life to get a promotion and the respect of your work colleagues?

If you can honestly answer 'yes' to a number of these you need to consider making some changes and the article offers some suggestions.

But from the perspective of a solo practitioner it can be daunting.  You are responsible for your own creation, your business.  How it is run, how profitable it is, how you are getting clients, keeping up on the latest technology, mastering skills or learning how to delegate to others are all daunting challenges.  To be able to turn off your brain at the end of the day somehow feels like you are abandoning your 'baby.'  It takes a unique skill to be able to do so without guilt or feelings of trepidation.   

As you are learning the time management skills in the early phase of your solo career, you should be learning not just how to allocate your time for marketing and networking, but also those techniques that help you to shut down and shut off from work.  Without implementing these techniques you are setting yourself up for burnout, ill health, disrupted relationships and other uneccessary problems.

I'm no master of this trick.  I'm still learning how to 'shut every thing down.' 

If you have techniques you have used or face the same struggles, let's discuss it.  Bet we can help a lot of other people, too.