Experience a renewed interest in your business and balance in your life with a little help from lyrics by Mr. Ice, yes—Vanilla Ice.

When it comes to running a business, it can be tough to manage your life outside your entrepreneurial venture. It’s one thing when you work a standard 9-5 and then leave work at the office when you go home at night (I know, I know, this rarely happens). But, when you run your own business it does get harder to turn off your business brain and get active in your life outside your business. I can hear you right now, “Wait, what? There is something to life other than running my own business?” Trust me, I feel the same way! But, when everything and everyone demands your attention, how do you manage to do it all without losing it all? The reality is, if you don’t find a way to balance yourself you could head into burnout, which is really not fun. (I should know; I had 2 businesses that bit the dust because I didn’t heed this advice).

Well, luckily for you, Vanilla Ice (yes, as in “Ice Ice Baby”) has three words that will help you gain back some of that balance we all strive for, and help you have a fresh mindset when working in and on your biz. Ready for it?

“Stop, Collaborate, and Listen”

            -Vanilla Ice “Ice Ice Baby”

Stop:

Take a break from your business. Yes, a real break. I know it sounds crazy, but if you take a break from work you can actually come back mucho refreshed and ready to take on the world (or at least a new client).

What does stopping look like: Well, for starters, you should disconnect. Put an away message on your email, stop checking your phone every 5 minutes, and just go do something you love, whether that is riding a bike, knitting a sweater, or weaving a basket (if you really weave baskets, please send me a pic!).

Collaborate:

Now that you are feeling relaxed and ready to come back to your business in a big way, how do you get motivated again? Well, one way to motivate yourself is to do something new and exciting, something that will get your creative business juices flowing, and you know what? Nothing gets those business juices flowing (what does that even mean) like a good ol’ collaboration.

That’s right, collaborate my friend.

There are many ways you can collaborate in your business, and it doesn’t just have to entail working on a for-profit project with another person. One way that I have found tremendous power in collaboration is in masterminds. If you don’t know what a mastermind is, ask Siri right now to tell you. Actually, don’t do that because she will likely tell you it is a code-breaking game for two players. I will tell you instead…

A mastermind is a group of like-minded individuals who meet on a regular basis either online or in person to inspire and encourage one another, and keep each other accountable. A collaboration of sorts.

You can also collaborate by joining forces with other business owners to raise money for a cause you believe in, or start a business project with someone else (consulting with your lawyer for help of course).

Let’s face it; being a soloprenuer can be a lonely world. If you work from home it gets even lonelier (even for us introverts). Why not get out there and collaborate with others to make it a little more social?

Listen:

Epectetus (who??) said, “We have two ears and one mouth so that we can listen twice as much as we speak.” This is very good advice when it comes to finding balance in your business. Do you have a mentor or a coach? Listen to the advice they give you, which often comes from their own personal “learning it the hard way” experiences. By listening to good advice, you can save yourself the trouble of trying to figure things out on your own, which can save you from stress, which can save you from burnout…whew!

You should also listen to your customers. Want to launch a new product? Listen to the needs your customers have and make sure you are targeting the right pain points with that product or service. Trust me, your customers will tell you what they need if you listen to them. Ask some questions on Facebook, poll your favorite clients, and read the comments they are making about your products and services. By listening to your customers you can save yourself the headache of creating things that aren’t right for your target market, which, you guessed it: will save you from burnout.

So, as you get ready to go out and hit it hard in 2016 without burning out on your biz, don’t forget that age-old advice we found in the lyrical stylings of Vanilla Ice and remember to “Stop, Collaborate, and Listen”.