The ShootProof Six
It’s stressful running a photography business, especially when the busy season is in full swing. Learning to balance your workload can do wonders for your well-being! Here are a few quick tips for keeping your cool when the stress gets to be too much.
Lean on your systems.
Don’t reinvent the wheel. Let your systems do their jobs. Automate those e-mails, streamline your workflow, schedule out your blogging — make it as easy as possible to keep up while things are busy. We love systems like 17hats, Pixifi, ShootQ, and Táve for helping to automate your leads and booking processes.
Outsource some of that work.
Whether it’s accounting, editing, blogging, or album design, outsourcing some of the things that bog you down can create some much-needed breathing room while things are hectic. And sometimes a little breathing room is all your business needs to stop simply surviving and actually be able to thrive!
Manage your time.
Do away with the non-critical tasks. If you’re knee-deep in insanity and your calendar looks like a rainbow ran face-first into it, now is not the time to begin a new blog series or start watching that season of Breaking Bad that you’ve been dying to see. Cutting down the time spent on unimportant things will allow you to focus more quality time on the stuff that really matters.
Swallow the frog.
Do the things that you don’t want to do EARLY in the week. Don’t put them off! (We’ve also heard this called “Starting Ugly Early.”) Go ahead and check the things off of your to-do list that you dread the most (balancing Quick Books, answering looming e-mails, whatever it is), and then you can put those things behind you and look forward to spending the rest of your week doing the tasks that you are excited about.
Create opportunities to recharge.
Rest is especially important during busy seasons, and it’s usually the first thing to go when we feel pressed for time. Instead of chucking rest out the window altogether, take the little bit of spare time you DO have and create some space for intentional rest. This is really important because rest is the lifeblood of creativity.
Breathe.
Some things might not get done, and that’s okay. Give yourself space to fall short and be less-than-perfect. Do the best you can, and let that be enough.
Have some pointers to share? Give us your best tips for creating a stress-free environment! Comment below.
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