After a challenging two years, it’s important for small business leaders to use January as an opportunity to establish new personal routines for the year ahead that can help set themselves, and their businesses, up for success. While there’s no silver bullet to managing your wellbeing during these unpredictable times, it may be helpful to identify key moments in your day that you can positively influence.
At Xero, we encourage both customers and employees to take the time to intentionally build their best day at work. For example, pausing for self-reflection: what does an ideal day look like for you and how do you feel when you achieve it? Also, setting up your environment for success: can include using sensory triggers to enter ‘focus mode,’ making routine work hours, and switching off tech to separate yourself from work. You should also make time for energy recovery, which can mean: eating healthy, practicing mindfulness, staying active, or keeping a regular sleep routine. Finally, strengthen your interpersonal connections to increase team wellbeing overall.
Putting all of that into practice, let’s say you know that this next month is going to be busy. Plan ahead by making time for socializing, setting times for exercise, and prioritizing a healthy diet. Connect with your team and share how you are going to implement recovery moments in your day. Build accountability with one another.
While it may seem like you don’t have the time to focus on tactics like the above with all of the other ‘to-dos’ you have on your list, the truth is that you won’t be able to do your best work if you’re not prioritizing your own wellbeing. As a small business owner, investing in yourself is investing in your business.
We’ve always known that the road out of this pandemic would be tough, but the resilience of small businesses across Canada has been awe-inspiring. Regardless of what 2022 brings, I encourage everyone to use these techniques to help build your best day at work for this year and beyond.
Faye Pang,
Canada Country Manager for Xero
Faye Pang is the Canada Country Manager for Xero, the global small business platform with more than 3 million subscribers worldwide that are dedicated to making business beautiful. Faye brings nearly 15 years of experience building businesses from the ground up. Prior to joining Xero, Faye helped launch Uber Freight into the Canadian market. She also helped launch the Uber Eats app in Toronto in December 2015, scaling the business from 80 restaurants on launch day to 20,000 partners by the end of her tenure.
