5 Ways to Recharge as a Successful Entrepreneur

Feel like you’re running on empty? These five ways to recharge your internal batteries will help you practise self-care and live a happier life!

How to Recharge Your Mind and Body

As a successful entrepreneur it is easy to get caught in the trap of ‘busyness’ so your daily routine needs to include time out to recharge and re-energise. It is easy to push this to the back burner, but it is a beneficial way to increase productivity and boost your business.

Here are five simple ways to recharge, and whether it’s for five or 50 minutes, it’s worth building at least one into your day!

5 Ways to Recharge

1. Go for a walk

An easy way to recharge is to get outside for a walk. Whether you walk for five minutes or longer, the combination of movement and fresh air is a great boost to your mind and body. You can walk slowly and meditate, catch up with a friend as you walk (in person or on the phone), give your heart and lungs a workout by choosing a brisk pace, OR listen to a book or podcast as you stroll along.

If you work from home, then why not create a morning and evening ‘commute’ by going for a brisk walk before you start work and then again when you log off. It’s a lovely way to energise yourself and it bookends your working day nicely!

Walking is one of the simplest and best ways to recharge so make it part of your day by scheduling it into your planner.

2. Make time to move

Whether you call it movement, activity, exercise or fitness doesn’t matter, moving fast or slow is an effective way to relax and recharge yourself. You could go for a brisk walk, fit in a gym session, pop into Pilates class, check into an online yoga session or do any activity that gets your heart pumping and/or your muscles working. Choose whatever you enjoy and have time for and give it your full concentration for the allocated time.

Not only will this give you a break from work and a chance to recharge and refresh but exercise also has mood-boosting properties and a whole host of physical benefits as well.

So, ease exercise into your daily routine and reap the mental and physical benefits.

3. Refuel to recharge

Often, when we are working flat out on a project or running or zooming from meeting to meeting, we forget, or just don’t bother, to eat. However, your brain needs fuel to function just as your body does so get into the habit of stopping for lunch. If time is short, then prepare an easy to eat lunch at the start of the day or, at the very least, have a few healthy snacks such as fruit or nuts ready to go.

You can make up a big batch of soup for the week and this is a great idea for two reasons. Firstly, you can pack it full of healthy vegetables and protein, and secondly, it’s hard to eat at your desk so you get at least a ten-minute break to heat and eat it. Remember that refuelling also includes keeping hydrated so keep a water bottle by your desk for regular top-ups.

Treat your workday like a long journey when you would definitely stop at the services regularly for a break and a bite!

4. Step away from the screen

Whether you realise it or not, staring at a screen all day can be physically and mentally tiring. Eyes can become strained and dry, and vision can get blurry. We also tend to sit with poor posture, slumped forward, head at an unnatural angle, belly relaxed which, believe it or not, is more tiring than sitting in good posture! Taking a short break regularly to straighten and stretch your body can give you a needed recharge, improve your posture and give your eyes a break.

So, stand up, stand tall, look side to side, roll your shoulders back and down a few times, stretch your arms out and back, and gently round and arch your spine. Do a quick relaxation or meditation session, or simply take a few deep, slow breaths.

If all else fails, changing your environment from desk to table for a while can give you the break you need to get back to work with renewed energy.

5. Plan your breaks

Maybe this should be number one! When you plan your week or day, actually block out time to recharge as if it was an appointment. Whether it is five minutes every hour or two, or longer blocks scheduled once or twice through the day, your ‘recharge appointments’ are important as they boost productivity and achievement so let’s start making them non-negotiable.

Track your energy levels over a few days and see when your normal slump times are, schedule a break at those times and notice your energy and productivity increase.

Remember, that giving your brain a break means your subconscious mind can do a bit of work for a change and those new ideas could start to flow.

Recharge Your Mind

So, there you have it, five small ways to recharge when you feel drained. If you give it a go for a couple of weeks you will start to notice the difference in your energy levels and productivity. And who knows, you may even get to enjoy your breaks so much that you start to plan more recharge opportunities like coffee with a friend, a massage or even an entire day at a spa!

About the Author

Sarah Bolitho is a Transformation Specialist who helps women to harness their habits so they fall back in love with life. She has over thirty years of experience in behaviour change and health-related activity and as well as working with her clients, she delivers training to health professionals and fitness instructors on how to support their patients in adopting positive lifestyle habits.

Sarah relaxes and recharges herself by walking, ideally by the sea or in the mountains at sunrise or by sitting with a coffee and watching the world go by!

> Her website www.fabnewlous.com