Is there such a thing as work life balance in small business?

Do you think that having work life balance in small business is achievable? And what

is there such a thing as work life balance in small business

about in the start up phase when there is even more pressure to work 24/7. Is it necessary to sacrifice family relationships in the name of business?

As I was growing up my parents  had businesses so I was aware, when starting my own small business, of the challenges and time effort required. My perception was that both Mum and Dad worked, all day and half the night, but were rewarded for all the hard work with businesses that enabled them to have, ultimately, a comfortable lifestyle. So it wasn’t until the last 2 of my children were teenagers that I started my children’s shoe store, and yet with that prior knowledge I didn’t fully understand the implications.

Here I am 5 years later and still working 7 days a week, and some nights too. It’ true, I have sacrificed time with my children, which no doubt I will regret. It’s widely known that no one wishes they had spent more time at work on their deathbed.

Since the death of Steve Jobs, many have found that they too are starting to think about how they have lost a sense of work life balance in their businesses. Jason Kottke in his blog lists the following quote by Jeff Atwood:

Startup life is hard on families. We just welcomed two new members into our family, and running as fast as you can isn’t sustainible for parents of multiple small children. The death of Steve Jobs, and his subsequent posthumous biography, highlighted the risks for a lot of folks. […] Stack Overflow and Stack Exchange have been wildly successful, but I finally realized that success at the cost of my children is not success. It is failure.

There are 2 others that share similar thoughts in the article. These entrepreneurs may change their work habits, and have an opportunity to achieve a greater work life balance. For me there are 2 great motivators for my business, personal fulfilment and making enough money to support my family. Those that have worked hard, made their mark and are financially successful can have both, a life and work.

But for the rest of us, that are still in start up mode and haven’t yet got to the point were we can financially step back, we are stuck between a rock and a hard place. We are not moaning and groaning about how hard done by we are, no, we just carry on. After all it was passion and a vision that started us in business so in the short or medium term most of us will not have a work life balance in small business. However I would challenge us to to take advantage of those times when we can slip away from work to enjoy activities with the family. Put the computer down for an hour or so as these times will never be repeated in our lives.