Working harder is not always smarter. Burnout is common among business owners and staff who are pushed to the limits. Ultimately, it’s not good for business or your personal life to be burning the candle at both ends. But how on earth are you expected to fit it all in?!

Here are some useful ways to create a crystal clear line between work and the rest of your life.

• Draw the line: Switching off at the end of the day requires discipline. When you get home, turn off your notifications (Slack, Facetime, everything!) and make a point of saying to yourself: ‘I’m going home and I’m going to be me.’
  
  
• Prioritise: Write down what you do each day, week, month and how long it takes you. You’d be surprised how many opportunities you’ll find to manage your time better.
  
  
• Set ground rules: It’s way too easy to ditch the gym/friends/family to finish off that ‘last thing’ at work. Make a list of unacceptable personal actions and check it often to make sure you’re respecting your own boundaries.
  
  
• Get your ‘om’ on. Meditating, or stopping to take five deep breaths does wonders for your stress levels. Next time you’re waiting for something (traffic, coffee, a creative idea to emerge), just breathe.
  
  
• Delegate at work AND at home: The more time you spend working ‘on’ your business, the better - so delegate the repetitive, time consuming jobs or the admin/accounts work to other staff members or outsource. Are you spending precious weekend hours doing things you don’t enjoy? Could you hire someone else to take them off your hands?
  
  
• Schedule breaks: Personal life suffers if you don’t make time for it. Schedule in your exercise/relaxation/downtime as if it were another work responsibility. Soon enough it’ll be your favourite ‘appointment’ of the day.
  
  
• Lead by example: Striking the right balance between your work and personal life will inspire your staff. And, research says employees with a good work/life balance are more motivated, productive and satisfied. Win-win!