How important do you think your health is when it comes to running a business? And how well are you currently looking after your health?

 

There are some things that we tend to ignore or push to the background when it comes to running a business!

 

We become so focused on hitting milestones with our businesses that we often have to choose one thing over another. Sometimes we have to prioritise things and then forget about the less important ones.

 

However, your health is not less important than your business. Nor is it something that you should push into the background.

 

Actually taking time out focus on your health can be good for your business. It can replenish your energy, help you deal with stress and anxiety, as well as keep your body healthy and functioning.

 

If you’re always sick and tired, how do you expect to run a successful business?

 

So with that in mind, here are some tips, strategies and mentality shifts to implement so that you can have both a healthy lifestyle as well as a successful business!

 

Remove Unhealthy Thoughts

 

What do we mean by unhealthy thoughts?

In this case I’m talking about anything that is telling you to make your physical, mental, or spiritual health less of a priority.

 

Just to be clear, your health is not less important than your business success. You will not be able to enjoy the fruits of your success if you aren’t looking after your health. Nor will you be able to continue neglecting your health forever either.

 

Eventually, things catch up with people. Neglecting one’s health can take the form of a mental breakdown, anxiety, heart problems, diet related problems, or ruined relationships.

 

According to one medical study entrepreneurs are twice as likely to suffer from things like depression or addiction than a regular person.


So therefore, any sort of cultural or social pressure that tells you your business must come first above all other things… needs to go!

Do not feel guilty if some days you need to take a day off, or you need to focus on things like family or yourself.

 

Do not feel guilty if you have days that are less productive than others. Sometimes it is about being efficient with your productivity and not just being mindlessly busy for no reason. Micromanagers would rather be busy for no reason, than taking time off which will ultimately have positive effects for you. If you’d like to read more about this facet of micromanagers and see if they apply to you, check out my blog here.

 

 

Incorporate Physical Activity or Exercise

 

What are some common positions for desk employees and even women who run their businesses from home? You are probably sitting down for long periods of time.

Incorporating some physical activity helps your health in many ways;

 

Many successful people never forget to look after their fitness by incorporating some exercise in their routine. Jen Colton, of Flashpoint PR, not only regularly exercises on weekday mornings but also makes sure to vary them and work different parts of her fitness.

 

You don’t have to go from doing nothing to being an elite athlete. You don’t even need to buy a gym membership.

With recent events thanks to the COVID pandemic, there are many more options for at home workouts. You can find courses and even free videos to learn workouts, yoga, pilates, and dance all from home. Start by checking out what there is on YouTube!

Of course, now that most of us are no longer under lockdown restrictions, nothing is quite as good as a lovely walk through your neighbourhood or local park.

Find out works for you, experiment a little, and try and build a habit of exercise.

 

Take good care of your diet

 

Call it a temple, call it a machine. The truth of the matter is your body is at the centre of the work you do and the life you live.

 

Therefore, you need to make sure you maintain your health and protect your body well.

 

One of the ways to do this is by taking care of your diet. Feeding your engine with the right fuel, or keeping the inside of that temple clean.

 

When we hear the word diet, we often think of fads, trends, and a fit young woman on TV talking about the newest superfood. It doesn’t have to be that complex…

 

There are 3 components that I would like to talk about when maintaining your health and your diet.

 

1. Eating healthy, or putting in the right foods.

 

 

The first component is making sure that what goes into your body is good. “Good” covers a lot of different facets, but what are some basic questions we can ask to determine if a food is “good”?

Does this food count to my daily fruit and vegetable intake? What are the levels of sugar or fats in this particular food? How natural or processed is this food?

 

This particular blog is not advocating to follow any one particular dietary methodology, simply that you become more aware of the foods you put into your body. This is already a big step forward in living a more healthy and purposeful lifestyle.

2. Drinking enough water

 

If you’re like me, maybe you never even thought about how much water you drink daily. Various studies put the minimum amount of water at 2 litres a day. While others write 3-4 is optimal.

Just like what food you put into your body, the most important lesson when it comes to water is consciously preparing your habits to allow you to drink water.

This might mean you have to do something that you may never have done before; maybe carry around a bottle of water, or have a water filter or cooler in your office so its close by all the time.

Staying hydrated throughout the day can help with your digestion, managing your energy levels, and also improved brain performance. Which businesswoman doesn’t need these?

 

3. Staying away from harmful foods

 

Just like how we should be aware of what foods are good to put in our body. We should be aware of the foods that are bad for our body. And keep them away.

Cake, Ice lattes, and fast-food are all so tasty that you might initially feel some difficulty in leaving your “guilty pleasures”.

It’s not about cutting these foods out of your diet altogether. Rather being aware of how much these foods contribute to your health and consuming them appropriately.

As busy businesswomen, it can often be easier to buy fast food than to prepare it ourselves. After all, fast food got it’s name for a reason.

However these are normally not as healthy as a home cooked meal. You can decrease the amount of unhealthy fast food you consume by either meal-prepping ahead of time or looking into healthier food delivery options.

 

The importance of sleep

 

The last tip that I am going to give here is to look after your sleep.

 

We all may have very different sleep routines. Maybe right now you have young kids, or you work odd hours, or the only time you can work ono your business is late at night or early in the morning.

 

Whatever the situation is, find a sleep pattern that is right for you.

 

Enough sleep will help you gather your thoughts better, make you less irritable, and help you work for longer hours on whatever it is you need to do.

 

It is undoubtable that sleep is something you need to prioritise and you cannot skip it.

 

So don’t feel bad if you need some time off to catch up on your sleep. You are just recharging a well spent battery.

 

Give your body the attention it deserves

 

The main focus of this article has been looking after your health and how it can help you run your business better.

 

How can we do this? By being aware and conscious of how we treat our bodies. Listen to your body if it screaming out for something. And don’t be afraid to change your pattern or schedule to help preserve your body, mind, and health.

 

So, are you ready to be a healthy and conscientious businesswoman?

 

Have you understood that running a successful business takes more than just business skills?

 

 


 

Dr Raja Yasmin is the founder of the EQBIZ Academy. She has both real life experience running businesses as well as 20 years of teaching experience. Now, Dr Raja Yasmin is ready to help women become empowered through business. If you would like to receive a free marketing resource for your business, sign up here.