Find your C-level balance: 3 work-life concepts for passionate business leaders
If you’re a CMO of a small to mid-sized business — and especially if you wear that hat in addition to other C-level hats in your own startup — you are constantly thinking about every part of the business and how you can leverage strengths, minimize weaknesses, and make people aware of how awesome your brand, product, or service is.
Chances are you could use a few more hours in your day.
You’re responsible for not only communicating your brand’s unique value to the right audiences but for delivering leads that will drive growth for the business. Even if you have a team to help you out, the buck stops with you. You’ll likely be involved in all major decisions — and more than that you’ll want to be!
To be a great marketing thinker, you’ve got to have passion for the work.
But that doesn’t mean you don’t need time to step away. It’s critical for your health as a person AND for the health of your brand that you find ways to recharge, refill your creative well, and attend to life beyond business.
You may be nodding your head, but also be thinking, “Is that even possible?”
Yes. Having been born into a small business family, worked for a small business, and run a small business, I have learned a few tricks along the way. There’s no magic formula, but here are 3 key concepts C-level leaders can use to both grow a business and maintain balance.
1. The art of the time block
When you’re a business leader, everybody wants your time. If you’re not careful, you’ll find yourself with a back-to-back calendar that barely gives you time to think.
Time blocking is an incredible time management method for anyone wanting to find more balance or make more space for productivity. And with a little thought, time blocks can be tailored to your exact needs.
To try it, break up your day into blocks of time that you will spend on one task or a group of similar tasks. Rather than looking at your email all day, set a block where you’ll respond to email. Rather than run to meetings all day, set a block where you will attend to productivity on a key project or research need.
Those who time block love it because it allows total focus on the task at hand. Put aside that neverending to-do list. Give your brain a break from multi-tasking. You may be surprised at how much your brain thanks you, and how much you accomplish.
Time blocking also helps you to prioritize tasks and plan your day based on your sense of what matters most, or your energy level. Get your teams to respect your time blocks by noting them on calendars for all to see. It’s an excellent way to feel like you own your schedule rather than it owning you.
2. Take care of your animal
No, this isn’t about adopting a pet. This is about making a pet of yourself. For real! The tip comes from Elizabeth Gilbert’s book on creative living, Big Magic. Gilbert reminds us that we as humans are just animals. She goes on to point out that we would never treat a beloved pet the way we often treat ourselves. It’s so true.
Animals need healthy food, water, exercise, sunshine, and sleep, right? But we’d never ask an animal to go without what they need. So why do we routinely deprive ourselves of these things? Perhaps as big-brained humans, we think we can skimp on these basics and “catch up” later. What if you refuse to fall into that trap?
In order to perform your best, take care of your inner animal. Carve out time to exercise, eat your veggies, and get some sleep. It may seem simplistic, but if your health (or mental health) is out of balance, you are not going to be able to perform well at work. Period.
The good news is that C-level business leaders who understand the need to take care of their inner animal are the best ones to work for. Prioritizing health, starting with everyday self-care, is a foundational way to amass a great team.
3. Say I do to delegation
Yes, your business is your baby. It’s common to feel that if you leave it alone for one second, something terrible will happen. But that’s just not true — in fact, the opposite is true. One of the best things you can do to find balance and grow your business at the same time is to delegate.
No matter how hard you try, it’s impossible, or at least unsustainable, to do everything yourself. Instead, focus energy on laying down concepts and guides that will empower others to join and aid your quest — whatever that may be for your unique business.
Having people you trust take things off of your plate can be life-changing. Again, you’ll still be involved in everything. But delegating the leg work — so you can hear a top-line report, approve a direction, or give feedback — frees you up to focus on the things only you can do.
For example, rather than writing everything yourself, define a set of brand messages that empower your team to create content you can review. It may be tough the first time you try, but with your feedback, your team’s ability to create something you value will grow.
And if you don’t have the skillsets in-house for brand positioning, messaging, or website and digital marketing projects, then outsource it! A nimble, expert agency team like Merrygood can partner with you to push content and design projects forward while keeping you in the driver’s seat.
Like delegating to a trusted partner, outsourcing is a great way to optimize your team’s expertise while forging into areas outside in-house skillsets. You and your team are the experts on your business and audiences, but an agency can help you leverage and apply that expertise. At Merrygood, we position our clients to review pivotal work and offer expert guidance on how to reach their business goals online.
4. Practice asking for help
If you’re a C-level marketing or business leader — even if you call yourself an entrepreneur, solopreneur, small business owner, owner-operator, proprietor, or founder — you’ve got a lot on your plate. As you strive to grow your business and achieve a work-life balance, remember:
Asking for help is often the best thing you can do for yourself AND your company.
Start small, and practice often. You can ask your team or partners to respect your time blocks. You can ask your team’s help in cultivating a workplace culture that values caring for the inner animal. And you can forge a team that supports you when you delegate, including key partners like Merrygood to maximize your bandwidth.
And when you’ve gotten the support you need to keep yourself balanced, you’ll have time and energy to recognize opportunity, to focus on growth, and to keep fueling the vision that makes it all worthwhile.