By: Anthony Chadwick- Founder and CVO, The Webinar Vet.

We all know it’s important for leaders to encourage employees to take time off work in order to rest and re-charge, but what about leaders themselves? Taking time off to avoid burnout as a leader is an obvious option, but it’s easier said than done.

So why is it important to take time off and what can leaders do when they feel as though this isn’t an option?

Find your own personal balance

As a business owner, try to find that balance between jumping in and stepping back now and again. The latter is particularly crucial, especially as a business owner.You tend to work an incredible amount which can often be more detrimental as employees may expect you to respond at any hour of the day and think this is expected of them too which can often lead to burnout and stress. Giving yourself time, whether that be an extra half an hour added on to your usual lunch break (or giving yourself a lunch break in the first place!), treating yourself to a nice meal, or having a Saturday afternoon off, allowing yourself these small graces can go a long way in achieving business success and improving your overall wellbeing.

Find what works well for you personally to achieve your best work / life balance throughout the week and once you do, stick to it!

Have the right team members in place

Having team members that you can rely on and trust to take care of the day to day running of the business is also helpful in avoiding those feelings of being overwhelmed and keeping up with the demands of the business. You need to know you can depend on your team if you need to pop out for a meeting or go on a work trip. Having theright team in place means that the business is being looked after, even when you’re not there, so you can spend your time working on the business, rather than in it.

Also make sure you have a solid recruitment process in place so that when you’re looking to bring in new team members you can make sure they are aligned with your business’ values and goals. That way you can have extra peace of mind that they’ll be able to deliver on your businesses objectives when you need to take time off.

Take regular holidays

If you have the right team members on board as mentioned above, try to take regular holidays throughout the year that will allow you the time to take a step back and relax outside of the business. They also don’t have to be particularly long either if you’re just starting out, a long weekend getaway could also be the answer. Ensuring you take breaks where you can, to allow you to reset, is crucial for your overall wellbeing, especially as a leader when it can be hard to “switch off”. Taking regular holiday’s will also allow you to be a better leader for your team, as it can reduce stress and burnout. It will also boost your team’s confidence by showing them that you trust them to get the job done while you’re away.

Stay fresh and be the enthusiast for the business

As a leader you set an example, so making sure you’re staying fresh and being the enthusiast for the business is crucial. By this I mean making sure you’regiving yourself the confidence and credit you need to reinforce all the great accomplishments you and the business have achieved and where your strengths as a company lie. Then amplify this to the wider workforce and also encourage them to share their achievements. By doing this on a regular basis you’ll be able to check in regularly on the progress you’ve made, limiting self-doubt and improving your overall wellbeing as a leader, because if you’re not championing your business, who will?

Finally, staying fresh is also a factor to consider for your wellbeing. Taking time off and stepping back from the business now and again will allow you to identify any gaps you need to fill and strengths that you can capitalise on. It’ll also make sure that you’re keeping up to date with your industry and be more attuned to potential competition. By giving yourself those breaks to detach you’ll be able to see your business from a fresh perspective and figure out your next move.

At the end of the day, whether you’re a business leader or not, we’re all in need of support and connection and we rely heavily on this during the colder months. With winter now in full swing, keeping the momentum and building on these core activities for yourself and your team, is key to keeping morale and wellbeing high.

About author:

Founder and CVO, The Webinar Vet

https://www.thewebinarvet.com/

Anthony Chadwick, a serial entrepreneur, is the founder and CEO of The Webinar Vet, a world leader in online veterinary education. He is one of the most recognised and respected thought leaders in the UK veterinary sector. Anthony is famous for disrupting the veterinary profession with new and innovative ideas to make life easier for vets and nurses. He is very passionate about providing high quality education and services to veterinary professionals in a very accessible and affordable manner which is also sustainable for the environment.

Anthony founded The Webinar Vet in 2010, when the word webinar was not in the veterinary dictionary.  A vet by trade, whilst at an internet conference he spotted a gap in the market to make veterinary education and training more accessible and affordable, via the medium of webinars. Trailblazers in the industry, the company grew very quickly and now has over 75,000 veterinary professionals accessing the training in over 120 countries. Students currently spend a combined annual total of over 200,000 a year training on the site. The Webinar Vet training has reduced travel mileage by several million miles since starting in 2010 with concomitant carbon reduction.