When to take pause in business and when to ask for help

As a business owner, there are lots of things we have to figure out ourselves…from our services to our target audience, marketing and positioning, networking, finances, the list never ends! 

But one of the things I think is really hard to learn how to do is figure out when it’s time to pause and when it’s time to get help in your business. 

A few months ago, I was feeling unmotivated and things weren't clicking. 

I knew I was really tired and a bit overwhelmed but I didn’t know whether I needed to pause or bring in some extra help. Keep reading  to see what decision was right for me. 

The truth is, both pausing and bringing in help can be equally beneficial to your business, but sometimes certain things that may appear to be signs of tiredness are  actually signs that it’s time to start expanding your team or asking for help!

But how on earth can you tell the difference? 

The good news, I’m here to help! Let’s start with those signs I just mentioned…

The signs and symptoms of being overwhelmed in your biz

There are so many signs that might indicate you’re tired or feeling overwhelmed, and I’m not just talking about wanting to take constant naps!

Here are the most common ones I (and others) experience:

• Loss of enthusiasm. That general feeling of just not wanting to show up and do the work. Things feel draining and you just can’t be bothered with it all.

• Feelings of dread toward certain tasks on your to-do list. We’ve all been there, those odd tasks you keep pushing further and further down your list in the hope they’ll one day disappear. 

• It’s taking you longer to create to the standard you’re used to. You’re working slower and it feels like more effort is needed to get your work up to its usual amazing standard. 

• Lack of creativity. Those ideas have stopped flowing and it’s getting harder to come up with (let alone implement) new business ideas.

• Brain flog or lack of clarity in what to do next or how to show up in your business. 

These symptoms can then show up in your business in very negative ways. 

For example, from a marketing perspective, it could mean you aren’t putting as many social posts out and when you do, they aren’t offering as much value as usual and your enthusiasm is missing. 

Or perhaps you’re missing emails that come though, you don't have the energy or time to respond to new enquiries or track leads, you can’t strategise for the future and everything sort of comes to a halt. 

It’s never fun feeling like this, and if you don’t do anything about it, it could really impact your business…and not in a good way!

What to do when the overwhelm/exhaustion gets too much

My biggest piece of advice if you’re feeling like this is to give yourself permission to pause and slow down.

As a business owner I know, this is a lot easier said than done! 

But slowing down doesn't always mean stopping completely. Instead, it could look like creating a priority list of things that are absolute must-dos for the week but giving yourself flexibility so you can change things within your schedule if you need to.  

If you are going to do this though, you have to be stern with yourself and stick to that ranking order. This can be tricky, especially if you are feeling overwhelmed as you’ll probably think that everything needs to be done and each task is as important as the one before. But the reality is, some things can wait.

So take a breath and prioritise. 

After you’ve done this, put some things in place that will give you a bit of breathing room.

Add in content schedulers or automation. If you’re someone who shows up on their social media every day, dial it back a bit and try only appearing twice a week for a couple of weeks. And if doing any of the above seems too much and you haven’t even got the brain power to put these things in place, it’s okay to take a short break!

Your whole business isn't going to crumble in that period. If you need complete rest, don't be afraid to take it- treat it as if you did have a cold. Take some time to rest and then come back with a bang (aka, a renewed sense of energy and purpose!).

What to do if the pause doesn’t work

When I first started to feel overwhelmed, I tried to pause and implement the things I recommended above. 

I prioritised my workload,  I had Dubsado built for me to ease the pressure on myself and get some processes automated and I also took a step back from social media for a few weeks. 

But it didn’t really work…

When I came back into my business fully, things weren't much different so I realised I also needed help. 

I’d reached the capacity of what I could do by myself. I wasn't actually tired, I was just trying to do too much!

So I hired a VA to support me in my day-to-day and an OBM to oversee what was currently going on in my business and how I could improve.

Now everything feels more manageable and my motivation and energy are back!

So if you’ve taken a break and it didn’t really work, try looking for people who can help you! (Over my 8 years of working in marketing, I’ve built up some great contacts so send me a message and I’ll recommend someone if I can). 

You can figure out what help you need by looking at what tasks you do and don't enjoy and what falls into your zone of genius. Then outscore the things you don't want to do or don’t know how to do!

For example, if social media is something that drives you insane, hire marketing support, or perhaps your operations need an rejig,  perhaps an OBM or VA might be best placed to support you and your business. 

I really hope this helps you figure out what to do next in your business and makes you feel less alone if you are in the low-energy and motivation stage! It will pass, you just have to be active by either taking a break or getting some help!

And if you do decide help is what you need, and marketing support is included, get in touch, I’d love to support you too!