Going through life is not always an easy sail. Managing the high demands of a business is challenging enough. Unfortunately though, we sometimes go through storms in our personal lives that will inevitably cause our business to suffer too. Difficulty to concentrate, reduced level of personal performance, negative thoughts, pressure, feelings of stuck-ness, low mood, etc. are just some of the things we experience, that will most definitely have an impact on our business. And, of course, it depends on the nature of the business, whether you have a team or you are running it solo that will make it different for everyone, but there are some useful things we can all do that will help us while going through a challenging period in our personal lives.

• Confide in someone you trust

Just talking about what worries us can sometimes make us feel better. Keeping a problem to oneself can feel isolating and stressful. Letting things out can be very liberating. Choosing someone we trust, but who’s not emotionally involved and won’t jump in with advice of what we “should” do, probably makes more sense.  It’s easy to be judged or criticized, but it doesn’t help, it makes things worse. Sometimes just a certain look can tell a hundred words.

• Give yourself permission…

…to be vulnerable. We sometimes need a break from having to constantly be strong, from demonstrating that we are on top of everything, from being “perfect”, just because people will otherwise judge us. I’m not talking about allowing the negative feelings to overtake our lives completely, I’m talking about honouring them and finding our learnings from the situation.

• Set some boundaries

For some people, work can serve as an escape from the problems they are experiencing everywhere else in their lives and that really helps. If, however, you are struggling to focus, then forcing yourself to get organised can sometimes make a big difference when trying to keep business and personal life separate. Start each day with a list of things that need to get done and force yourself to do them- use rewards, bribes or whatever else that will motivate you.This won’t just distract you from thinking about the crisis, but will also bring some sense of achievement and ‘normalness’ to your day.

• Look after yourself

Decide on a certain amount of time each day (even if it’s 20-30 minutes) that you’ll dedicate to something that makes you feel happy- whether it’s going for a walk, listening to your favourite piece of music, meditating, watching something funny that makes you laugh out loud, giving someone a hug, etc. Whatever it might be, it will make you feel more resourceful. Staying stuck in an un-resourceful state helps no one.

• Deal with the problem

We sometimes want our problem to simply go away, to sweep it under the carpet , to pretend it doesn’t exist. Without the appropriate action, however, it rarely does. Get help, speak to whoever you need to speak to, but take an action and remember if you keep doing what you’ve always done, you will keep getting what you’ve always got.