If you're always doing, you never have time to think

Thinking is so important. It's where creativity is unleashed. It’s where you can make plans and strategies. It’s where you can dream big and let your mind run wild with all of the ideas you want to bring into this world.

It’s what will facilitate growth and clarity in your business because it moves you from working in your business to working on your business.

But we often don’t leave ourselves time to think. We don’t schedule it into our days like an appointment with a client or a lunch date with a friend.

In a very busy world where we are connected to what everyone else is doing at all times, there’s a certain pressure to be busy.

And where there’s this need to always be productive and busy (and to have something tangible to show for it), blocking off time to essentially “do nothing” can seem absurd.

However, time and time again, research reveals that mental rest is just as important as physical rest.  

If you’ve ever had a great idea in the shower or on a walk, you know the power of uninterrupted, intentional reflection and thinking.

So, how do we make space for this thinking? Here are 4 ways to start.  

Decide what’s important to you

To make time and space for thinking, you need to find some time.

And I get it; as a small business owner, this might seem like an impossible task. There are always things to do and projects to tackle.  

But if we want to have a powerful impact with our business, we need to get strategic with the tasks that are worth our time and energy and outsource, delegate, or remove the tasks that aren’t, i.e., choosing what not to do.

From there, we can prioritize what’s important to us and our business and craft our schedule in a way that makes sense.

 Will it be hard to loosen the grip you have on your business and invite others in to help you? Probably. We often want to maintain control over our business, and expansion can introduce growth pains that weren’t there before.  

“Taking the leap and outsourcing is a big step, but when your business can't grow beyond its current capacity, or you're working all hours of the day and night to get things done, and the to-do list keeps growing, then it's time to outsource.”

-       From my blog, Reclaim time with delegation

 Will it be hard to say no to things when you’re constantly feeling the allure of shiny object syndrome? Likely. New tools and networks often have a lot of hype around them and seem to make incredible promises about the growth, success, and ease they’ll bring to your business.

But when we cut down the amount of work we’re doing and the number of different directions we’re going in, we can get laser-focused on the needle-moving activities of our business, leaving more time and space in our schedule open for thinking.

Get accountable

Block off time in your calendar for thinking, and ensure that you’re being held accountable to the dates and times you set for yourself.  

If you aren’t clear (with yourself and others) that this time is just as important as any other meeting, you’re likely going to have a hard time protecting it.

It’s very easy to cancel on yourself when no one else is being impacted, but you need to respect these sessions!

Consider finding someone who will hold you accountable to these time blocks, or make it easier to hold yourself accountable by:  

• Shutting off distractions like your phone and email

• Blocking off the time in your calendar like an actual meeting so your clients can’t book with you

• Setting an alarm for the start and end of this time block and treating it like a real meeting

• Shutting the door and putting up a “do not disturb” sign if you’re staying in your office or leaving the office altogether so you can’t be disrupted

 If you don’t take this thinking time seriously yourself, no one else will.

Set boundaries

In the same way you set boundaries around this thinking time, set boundaries for when you work in your business.

Recognize that while thinking time is important, it also isn’t going to give you an immediate return on your investment.  

Remain clear on what your money-making tasks are, and ensure you’re leaving yourself sufficient time to serve your current audience, support clients, and bring in new business.

Great ideas won’t do you much good if you don’t have a nurtured audience and raving fans to test them on!

Respect your thinking time while you grant yourself the time you need to work with your clients.

Find your frequency and commit to the process

Decide on a frequency for thinking about your plans and strategic direction. Whether you want to schedule thinking time daily, weekly, monthly, or quarterly, this isn’t a “one and done” activity.

We are constantly absorbing information and content, which can muddy or complicate our own ideas and directions for our business (let alone lead to overwhelm and inaction).

Rather than continuously looking externally for answers, consider the fact that you likely already know what you need to do and what your next steps are. You’re just not giving yourself time to sort through your ideas and get clarity on (or revisit) your big picture goals and values.

Once you get clear on the strategy, you can also begin planning out the steps you need to take to begin implementing.

If you don’t give yourself time to sit in the planning and ideation phase, you’ll likely start taking action on a number of projects that don’t make sense for your company.

Commit to making thinking time a regular part of your business activities so you keep making the right choices.

What to do after you’ve given yourself time to think

This time isn’t about just thinking and then having nothing to show for it (though don’t put pressure on yourself if you don’t have a life-altering idea right away either).

It’s about making good use of this time to think over current dilemmas, future plans and strategies, the direction you want to take your business, etc., and then implementing what comes up.

 When you take action on your ideas, you’ll gain clarity on next steps and what else needs your attention in your business.

Plus, you’ll see the incredible impact of these thinking sessions -- giving you the new perspective, direction, or shift you needed for your business growth and success.