7 Things I’ve learned from my first week as a full time small business owner

I’ve officially completed my first week as a full-time small business owner…wow it feels weird to say that! For a long time, the reality I am currently living felt like a very far away dream. It felt like a “wouldn’t it be nice if I could…” type of thing. Until I realized this year that I was running out of excuses to NOT do this full time! I had more to lose by NOT making this leap. I am so beyond grateful that I went full time with my business when I did. Along the way in my first week, I learned a few things and saw a couple of main themes that I wanted to not only keep in mind for myself but also to share with you as you continue on in your small business journey! No matter what phase you are at currently in your small business, I hope this inspires you and encourages you!

So here’s what I’ve learned…

Set the healthy boundaries now…like seriously right now

I think my first few weeks as a small business owner are honestly going to be the most pivotal. This is when habits are being set. Boundaries are either being put into place or they’re being neglected. There’s no reason to wait to put healthy boundaries into place! 

If I don’t want to be working past 5pm, now is the time to start sticking to that. If I don’t want to work on the weekends anymore, now is the time for me to start putting that into practice! There’s always going to be a reason to work into the evening, to pull the laptop out before bed, or to tell my husband “just give me five more minutes”, but what I realized quickly is that I’m not going to make those changes unless I make hard and fast rules for myself to follow right now. 

That’s the only way I am going to stop myself from continuing on with those bad habits I want to break. Prior to going full time with my business, I was working allll day and allll night on two different jobs, my full time job and my small business. Now that my small business IS my full time job, I honestly don’t want to be working all night anymore. So sometimes this means that even if I didn’t get something completed that I wanted to get done that day, I still have to hold myself accountable to putting that work away once it’s time to make dinner and transition into the evening as well as quality relaxation time with my husband. 

Protect your time as much as possible

Before my first week as a full time business owner, I knew I wanted to have certain days that would be dedicated to meetings and other days that would be time for heads down work with zero distractions. Unexpectedly, I ended up having an influx of new leads for my business right before my first week as a full time business owner, and I ended up scheduling them all at random times throughout the week lol. What a mistake that was. 

This resulted in a LOT of interruptions for me throughout the day. This is going to look different for everybody, but what I really need in order to stay on task each day is to have days blocked off where I’m not in any meetings whatsoever. Even just a 30 minute meeting can take a lot of time when you factor in prep before the meeting and taking care of notes/follow ups after the meeting has concluded. By the time I’m ready to get back into a task, it’s already been over an hour and before I know it, the work day is quickly coming to a close! 

So I know that going forward, I need to pick “no meeting days” and fully stick to that schedule as much as possible. I’m learning that it’s okay to just let somebody know that I’m not available for meetings on Fridays for example. It’s just part of the boundary setting process for me so that I can protect my time, serve my clients, and stay productive!

Don’t be afraid to take advantage of the perks of being your own boss

One of the big perks of being a small business owner full time is being your own boss and setting your own schedule. There’s so much freedom and flexibility that comes with this, and if you’ve become a small business owner, you’ve worked really hard to get there, which means you deserve to fully take advantage of the perks of being your own boss! 

This means that you don’t have to be chained to a desk all day. It means that if you want to watch tv while you work you can do that. If you want to go run errands during the day, you can do that! If you want to go see a movie during the day, you can go do that too!! One thing I’m learning is that I worked hard for this, so there’s no reason for me to wait to start enjoying the benefits of this newfound freedom.

Set a timer for admin tasks

Admin tasks and email can tend to take up a lot of time for me if I’m not careful. It can quickly become a method of procrastination more than anything else! What I’ve found is that when I plan to only spend 15 minutes on a task like this, I tend to get things done quicker and check that “respond to emails” task off my list a lot sooner than usual. 

My general rule of thumb is that I respond to emails within 24-48 hours. Some emails that come through are more urgent than others, but I recognize that it’s okay for me to not have an immediate response to every email that comes through throughout the day. Sometimes I have to unplug from email and just focus fully on the client work that has to get done! It’s not the end of the world if I have some unread messages waiting for me while I work on other time-sensitive projects. If I operate like the whole world needs me 24/7 and I have to be available for it, then I’ll never get anything done!

Opt for a change of scenery at least once a week

In my first week as a full time business owner, I primarily worked from my home office which I definitely enjoyed! I’ve worked hard to make my office feel cozy and exactly how I wanted. I love spending time in my office with the warm glow of the twinkling lights on my Christmas tree and some of my favorite artwork I’ve created posted on the wall in front of my L-shaped desk. I always feel inspired when I’m in my office. 

But I also noticed that it was like a breath of fresh air for me to get out for a change of scenery on Friday when I went and worked at a local coffee shop for the day. I had fun drinking my coffee, people watching, and even listening to some of the many interesting conversations happening at tables close by to my cozy corner setup. It was great for me to have a different routine on Friday and to go somewhere fun as a special treat for me to finish out the week!

Have a plan for food

I found it difficult to fuel my body with food throughout the day. A lot of days I didn’t make time for lunch or simply just didn’t have food prepared. This helped me learn that I need to be intentional about planning out my lunches just like how I do for dinner. I can’t perform my best when I’m low on energy and not eating enough food. 

I learned that if I want to take a lunch break I have to just intentionally MAKE the time for it, set work aside and just give myself a bit to take a break, eat and maybe even watch a tv show while I do it. It’s so healthy to give yourself breaks throughout the day, and it’s so beyond important to nourish your body so you can keep performing at your best.

Not everything has to be done in a day

This was a big learning curve for me! Although this was a philosophy I lived by prior to going full time with my business, I also saw that this manifested itself differently for me now that I’m a full time small business owner. 

Because I now have full time hours to put towards my business, it feels like everything SHOULD be getting crossed off the list each and every day no matter what because I have all the time in the world, right? What excuse do I have to not get it all done? That’s honestly how I was feeling and what I was thinking for those first couple of days on the job. 

I realized quickly though, that I needed to give myself the permission and freedom to not only reprioritize, but end my day leaving some tasks simply incomplete. And with that mindset, not only did I meet every single deadline I had last week, I also didn’t feel like I was running myself ragged trying to get things done. It felt like a healthy and balanced way to tackle my to do list. Everything ultimately got done on time and when it needed to be completed. While priorities shifted throughout the week from time to time and I had to be okay with being flexible with myself, none of that had a negative impact on my work, deadlines, or client relationships. In fact, I would say it only helped my productivity.

While going full time with your own business can feel intimidating, I can truly attest to the fact that it also feels like embarking on one of the grandest adventures you’ll get to experience in life. We all have to work, so why shouldn’t it be doing something you love? 

I am so excited for what the next year holds as I continue to get into my new rhythm and routine as a full time small business owner! This feels like such a whirlwind and I am so grateful for every moment of it! If you’re a small business owner, I’d love to hear from you! What have you learned from your experience? Let me know in the comments!