How to take time off as a solopreneur or small business owner

You might think it is impossible to take time off as a solopreneur or small business owner, but I’m here to tell you otherwise. It is a known fact that the majority of self-employed people (freelancers, solopreneurs, small business owners etc) struggle to take sufficient holiday and definitely take a lot less time off than their employed counterparts. However, taking time off to recuperate, relax and re-energise is key – especially if you are running your own business. Keep on reading to find out how to take time off as a solopreneur or small business owner.

How to take time off as a solopreneur or small business owner - Pin

This page may include affiliate links, which means that if you choose to make a purchase, I may earn a commission. This commission comes at no additional cost to you.

HOW TO TAKE TIME OFF AS A SOLOPRENEUR OR SMALL BUSINESS OWNER

Plan to take your time off in advance and put it on the business calendar

The first step to taking time off as a solopreneur is to decide when you would like to take time off. When you are the only person in your business you definitely need to plan ahead to ensure that you can take time off without it have a detrimental impact on the business.

Sometimes you might want time off for a specific reason that involves other people (attending a wedding, visiting a friend, having an extended family holiday etc). Normally in these circumstances, it is easier as a solopreneur or small business owner to keep to your word and take that time off because you’ve made the commitment to others and don’t want to let them down. When an invitation comes in, check your business calendar and see if there are any major clashes. If there isn’t, book it in straight away. If there is a clash see if you can make changes to accommodate the time off.

Where I see most solopreneurs and small business owners struggling to take time off is when they need to take a break just for themselves. The fact is working constantly isn’t good for you or your business. You should plan for regular breaks across the year. I find the best way to do this is to make the decision at the beginning of the year. When you are sitting down and planning out what is going to happen in your business work out at that moment of time when you’ll take some breaks. For example, maybe there is a natural time of year when business is slower and it makes sense to take a break then (for example I always take time off over Christmas since most of my clients have a break then too). Another option is to think about when you will need a break. For example, if your business does launches or hosts live events then it might make sense to have time off straight afterwards to give you the ability to recover.

Don’t have an annual plan for your business? Don’t worry I can help you!

I work 1-to-1 with solo and small service-based business owners to create annual plans for their business. This covers everything from financial monthly goals, introduction of new services, launches, ongoing marketing, and, of course, holidays!

To find out more about how I can help you to create an annual plan for your business fill in the contact form here or book a discovery call here.

Let your clients or customers know in advance

One of the reasons why you need to plan your time off in advance is so that you can effectively inform your clients with lots of notice. One of the major things that stops solopreneurs and small business owners from taking time off is being worried about how their clients will respond. Remember that everyone is allowed time off. You just need to ensure your clients know ahead of time so that they can prepare themselves and take the necessary actions to ensure it doesn’t have a negative impact on them. When you are informing your clients be sure to tell them when you’ll be away and what they need to consider. For example, if you are going to be uncontactable (and I would recommend you are) let them know that. Also, if you have clients that usually send things with short turnaround times let them know you won’t be accepting any new work from a specific date. This will help ensure you have enough time to complete all new requests before taking your break.

Batch create and schedule your marketing

As a solopreneur or small business owner you are likely doing everything in your business, including your marketing. Thankfully technology has made it easy for you to take time off whilst still having your marketing running as usual. Social media posts, blog posts, podcast episodes, YouTube videos and emails can all be created and scheduled in advance.

If you aren’t already batching creating your content, then this is a great time to give batching a go. Batching content means creating the same type of content over and over again and it is a great time saver. Find out more about batching and how it will save you time here – how to save time by batching your marketing content here.

Now unfortunately not everything can be scheduled in advance for example live video. Maybe you have a Facebook Group that you go live in every week. There is no way around it you have to do that in real-time and that has to be you. For this type of activity, you’ll have to make a choice about whether you are happy to do just that thing or whether you tell people ahead of time you are on holiday and will be back in a fortnight etc.

Put your autoresponder (out-of-office message) on

It’s nearly time to take your time off, which means it is time to turn your autoresponder on. Setting an autoresponder, or an out-of-office message, means that anyone who contacts you will know you are away and won’t be expecting a reply.

If you are really worried about missing something important that why not have an autoresponder that says “I’m currently out of the office until June 16, 2021 and this inbox is not being monitored. If your email is urgent and really needs my personal attention please email [alternative email address that isn’t used for anything else]”. The beauty of following this system is that then you only have to monitor one email address that should only get emails that are urgent. This means you can rest assured knowing you are contactable and haven’t left anyone in the lurch but doesn’t leave you checking your normal inbox and getting sucked into unnecessary work.

Enjoy your time off!

Hurrah! You’ve done it. You’ve done everything you can to make sure you can take some well-deserved time off and it does not have a negative impact on your business. Now it is time to go enjoy yourself. Forget about work and have fun (although be sure to have a little notebook with you as usually the best ideas come when you don’t expect it).

Try as much as possible to stick to the boundaries you set. If you told your clients you wouldn’t be contactable then don’t check your emails or phone. If you said that you’d be checking your alternative inbox once a day then stick to that!

There you have it! You now know how to take time off as a solopreneur or small business owner.

It is absolutely possible to take time off from your business, but at the end of the day you are the only person who can enforce it. In the UK it is mandatory for an employee to have 28 days of paid annual leave per year, but as a business owner you get to set what is mandatory for you!

In the comments, I would love to know how many days you plan to take off in the next year.

WANT HELP CREATING A BUSINESS THAT GIVES YOU THE WORK/LIFE BALANCE YOU DESIRE?

I believe that anything is possible with a plan. When it comes to creating a business that enables you take home a specific amount of money and allows you to take a specific amount of time off it is just a numbers game.

That is why I work 1-to-1 with service-based business owners to help them set their financial goals, ensure their pricing is right and then create a marketing strategy that enables you to attract enough ideal clients who is willing to pay that price.

Sound good? Well, we can do this all in just one day! You can find out more and book a Strategy Day by clicking here.