Building Balance

This first episode of the summer refire is all about how you can create a schedule that fits you, your life, and your business. This episode would fall under the DESIGN part of my productivity ecosystem, because planning for routines that help you reach your goals is ra key part of designing your business operations in a way that helps you be more productive. And if you have no idea what I’m talki...

***Let's start with an announcement for June*** I’m working on something kiinda big for you! I’m going to create an audio course for solopreneurs who have trouble sticking to their plans, or following through on the impactful tasks and projects that they know would propel their business forwards. Or, who want to spend more time outside of their work but have trouble sticking to those plans, too. S...

Have you thought about how saying NO could benefit your business, and through that, you? I asked Petchy come walk us through that in this week's episode. What we talked about: - how saying NO more benefits your business and brand - what kinds of things you could say NO to - 3 tips that make it easier to say NO without feeling crappy about it Solveig Petch [aka Petchy] is a brand strategist and ide...

A business coach can help you grow and evolve your small business, so you can move closer to the life and success you’d like to experience. A great coach can help you focus on your strengths while identifying areas in your business that could be shifted to see progress. Whether you’re looking to update a thing or two about your business, or you’re looking for someone to team up with long-term, I'm...

Mini series part 7: What if you could cut the time that you’re currently spending on marketing and admin tasks in half, so that you could spend more time on your paid client work, on your dreamy business updates, or just free that up for your life outside of work? During the past 6 episodes, I’ve been diving into what productivity actually looks like for business owners and how we can keep growing...

Mini series part 6. The tricky part with productivity, or not being productive, is that we often think that we just don’t have enough willpower to do the things, so we think we need to push harder. But usually that's not a solution that's sustainable. Feeling like you have to push yourself a ton (but you just can’t push yourself enough to get eeeverything done), that’s a sign that your productivit...

Solo business mini series part 5 – introducing the Productivity Ecosystem! In the past few episodes I’ve talked about why things tend to get complicated in solo businesses, how focusing on your most impactful tasks help us make faster progress in our businesses without hustle, and why it’s challenging to prioritize our most impactful tasks. So today I want to talk about how you can make it easier...

Solo business mini series part 4. You may have heard of the Eisenhower Matrix about 170 times before, because it’s a tool that many have found helpful for prioritizing their most important work and working more effectively. Time management experts talk about how you should focus on the tasks that are important but not urgent (and I agree), because that’s the stuff that helps you make progress. But...

Solo business mini series part 3. I’m just gonna give it away in this very first sentence; the one key shift that helps you make faster progress is to spend your time on tasks and activities that make the biggest impact. There are five types of activities that I see as the most crucial ones that make an impact for small business owners, which I'll dive into in this episode. Episode mentioned: Epis...

Solo business mini series part 2. Running a business of one feels in theory like it should be fairly simple. So how did things get so complicated? If you’re like me, you started your business to do the thing you love doing, while having balance, freedom, and flexibility in your life. But in reality, maybe it hasn’t turned out quite like that. Maybe you keep pushing through with to-dos late at nigh...

Solo business mini series part 1. It can feel daunting to reduce your work hours to build more balance into your life as a business owner, if you still need to grow your business and generate more income. Even if your schedule is stuffed with client work (and with everything else that comes with wearing all the hats in your business), you can probably reclaim some of your time for the things you'd...

Would you pause your regular weekly business activities, if it meant that you’d have time for creative thinking and could solve a huge thing in your business that would benefit you long term? I did *a lot less stuff* in my business in the past week, to let myself think and ponder about the big picture, my messaging, and my positioning – because my coaching business is growing slower than I'd like...

This week I'm chatting with my best business friend Lorin Galloway, a brand strategist and designer based in Cape Town, South Africa. Ever since I've known her, she's had great boundaries and structure in place in her business and family life, which is why I thought she would have interesting things to share on the podcast. Originally I was going to name the episode “Boundaries and structure in bu...

Today I’m going to talk about some psychological phenomena, some human tendencies, that might be making you feel like the successes you’ve seen so far haven’t really had the impact you had hoped for. When you understand why the highs of your business accomplishments don’t last, you can be more intentional about what you spend time on and make more sustainable changes to your happiness level. Episo...

If you moved through life with the experience that when you put in the work, you also see results and rewards, being a business owner can get a bit frustrating sometimes.  At first, I talk about what could be going on when that frustration feels extra strong, because when you understand it you can start to be a bit more understanding towards yourself and your situation. And after that, I talk...

What would it look like if productivity and work-life balance could coexist? In this episode I'll share how you can use the three pillars of the Finnish lifestyle to make it work: good design, wholeness, and sisu. The podcast episodes I mentioned: Episode 018: https://jennahellberg.com/episodes/018-finnish-way-to-get-things-done-while-feeling-happy Episode 025: https://jennahellberg.com/episodes/0...

If you’re feeling heavy because of what’s going on in the world, whether that’s in your corner of the world or somewhere far from it, I wanted to record a special episode for you. On Thursday last week I shared an IG post with a few tips with the go-to ways that I try to support myself when I'm not feeling quite like myself. That post seemed to resonate with people which tells me that people reall...

Let me introduce you to my first-ever podcast guest, Stacie Mitchell. Stacie helps people quit careers, jobs, and other things that no longer fit them – even social media! She's the host of the Something Even Better podcast, and is based in Colorado. Recently she published an episode where she covered truths about entrepreneurship and working for someone else. The episode got me really excited, an...

I don’t talk about productivity a lot because of how closely linked it is to hustle culture, and I don't appreciate the way productivity is usually talked about. But *so many* of the business owners I talk to tell me that they feel like they’re not productive enough, that I figured it would be worth addressing. If traditional productivity isn't a helpful model for business owners and creatives – w...

Miniseries part 2: I share the weekly practice that helps me feel calmer and in control of my time and energy for the week. Spending 20 minutes on a practice of your own at the start of the week can save you time, energy, and headaches. *As of summer 2022 I’ve felt like time has been going so fast that some of these prompts don’t need to be evaluated quite as frequently – so remember to implement...

Miniseries part 2: I share the monthly practice that helps me make decisions according to results and lessons from the past month. Instead of throwing spaghetti at the wall, I can see what has worked and adjust my actions accordingly. *As of summer 2022 I’ve felt like time has been going so fast that some of these prompts don’t need to be evaluated quite as frequently – so remember to implement wh...

Miniseries part 1: I share the quarterly reviewing and planning practice that helps me align my business to work with and for me, instead of molding myself to someone else’s way of doing what I do. Things in life and business can change quickly, so refreshing your goals, plans, and business throughout the year allows you to be more flexible than doing it only at the end of each year. *As of summer...

How often do you think about what your role is as the owner/CEO and the main talent in your business? Do you get to spend most of your time on those two roles – or does a lot of your time go by as a supporting cast member? Don’t forget to grab a screenshot of the episode and share/say Hei on IG: https://www.instagram.com/thejennahellberg Find mentioned/current resources here: https://jennahellberg...

It can be really tempting to try and tackle all the things at once, but it might lead to feeling like you don’t really have time for anything. I’ve noticed a lot of benefits from pacing myself, even if I don’t always want to when I’m in that super motivated planning mode. In this episode, I'll share some ideas for what you could consider as you're deciding what to tackle first, as well as how you...

Are you growing, scaling, or maintaining right now – and how does that impact what to spend your time and resources on? What are the differences between growing and scaling, and why is it important sometimes to just maintain the current level or revenue? That’s what I’m diving into in this episode. Don’t forget to grab a screenshot of the episode and share/say Hei on IG: https://www.instagram.com/...