Diane’s passion for what she does translates into numerous rewards that motivate her every day. “The greatest reward is changing lives, one person at a time,” reflects Diane. She loves so many things about her business:

• Watching a woman find her passion and gather up the courage to take action on it.
• Being around other female entrepreneurs that share the same journey.
• Unfolding challenges and the variety that each day holds.
• Working hard and seeing results.
• Looking back and realizing how far she has come in the last 5 years.
• Appreciating that she has accomplished things that she never thought she could do.

After taking the free Which Jane Are You? assessment at www.JaneOutoftheBox.com, Diane discovered that her Jane type has changed over time. “I just took the assessment again and I am an Accidental Jane. I used to be a Tenacity Jane, but now that my business is five years old, I feel that I am turning a corner. Each year has had challenges and successes. As an Accidental Jane, I love the flexible schedule, control over how I spend my time, and the relationships and connections that my business provides. Watching my clients live their dreams is amazing and my dreams are bigger too. 2010 is my BE BRAVE year as I take on new and exciting projects, including writing a book and launching a national association, the National Association of Christian Women Entrepreneurs. There is always more to learn! I was a Tenacity Jane for a long time and was shocked to find that I was no longer. I was used to being Tenacity.”

Diane’s Lessons Learned for Tenacity Janes and Accidental Janes:

Lesson #1: Get help!: I finally got a virtual assistant this year and what a difference that has made.
Lesson #2: Speak your Truth: Figure out your ideal client and stop trying to be everything to everyone.
Lesson #3: Be Brave: Step out and do things that scare you…you will never know until you try!

After taking the free Which Jane Are You? assessment at www.JaneOutoftheBox.com, Morgan describes her entrepreneurial journey through a “Jane’s” eyes. “Passionate about my career and financially challenged,” reflects Morgan. “That describes both my Jane type as a small jewelry business owner and the reason for starting my own business. As an elementary school teacher, my passion for teaching children and desire to contribute positively to the world around me was all-consuming. My Go Jane Go spirit began to evolve into a need for more balance in my life outside of school, as well as the need for supplemental income.” Morgan began making jewelry as a creative and therapeutic outlet. “Making jewelry gave me the gift of peace,” breathes Morgan. “I didn’t want a second job, I wanted to make jewelry! Go Jane Go kept going as I turned my hobby into a business, and became a Tenacity Jane. I used to believe I had to choose: teach or become a successful businesswoman. I discovered that I didn’t have to. I also discovered that my particular passions and 24 hour time constraints made me the quintessential Tenacity Jane; passionate about my career(s), financially challenged, but moving forwards and hopeful!”

Morgan finds that the rewards of owning her own business are intrinsically entwined with the creative aspect of her vocation. “Jewelry becomes sentimental when attached to special people and memories. It brings me peace personally to create something that can capture and hold those memories in a way that can be enjoyed every day; celebrating, commemorating, and recognizing the big, important moments and the simple, everyday joys of life. It makes me smile to see a bride wearing her wedding jewelry to work! While the beautiful gown of her bridesmaids may still hang in the depths of their closet, she can rest assured knowing that her gift of jewelry really can be worn again!”

What is Morgan’s advice for other Janes? “I am fortunate to have found a couple of fellow businesswomen who have become my mentors,” says Morgan. “They not only give me sound advice, but talking with them inspires me and motivates me when I need it most. It is important to surround yourself with people that believe you can succeed and share your enthusiasm of the small steps along the way. It’s a journey all right! A wonderful, scary and rewarding journey! While jewelry is an accessory that pulls together an outfit and coordinates all the individual pieces, Peace of Jewelry is MY accessory. It pulls me together and helps me to coordinate all my Janes. (Still working on the Dough, though!) My vision of what Peace of Jewelry CAN be keeps me going. That gives me Peace.”

A recent study from Jane Out of the Box, an authority on female entrepreneurs, reveals there are five distinct types of women in business. Based on professional market research of more than 2,500 women in business, this study shows that each type of business owner has a unique approach to running a business and therefore each one has a unique combination of needs. This article outlines two of the five types and provides ideas they may consider before changing their entrepreneurial type.

Merry Jane is a woman business owner who is building a part-time or “flexible time” business that gives her a creative outlet that she can manage within specific constraints around her schedule (whether she’s an ad agency consultant or she makes beautiful artwork). She may have a day-job, or need to be fully present for family or other pursuits. Representing about 19% of women in business, she realizes she could make more money by working longer hours, but she’s happy with the tradeoff she has made because her business gives her tremendous freedom to work how and when she wants, around her other commitments.

Because time freedom and creative stretch are so important to Merry Jane, she must make thorough examinations of other potential entrepreneurial types before making a change. Most Merry Jane business owners reported high levels of satisfaction with their companies, although most also said they would like to attract new clients and increase their income.

Considerations for Merry Jane:

• Time freedom versus growth: It is possible for Merry Jane to start work with more clients and make more money while maintaining her time freedom – it just may require some juggling. For example, Merry Jane could continue working a desirable number of hours performing the creative tasks she loves, but hire someone to help her with business-related tasks, such as taking information for proposals, sending invoices, and answering e-mails. Once she starts hiring team members, she may shift into the Jane Dough group. If she doesn’t hire team members but still wants to grow her business, she may find herself working longer hours than she wants to, possibly feeling overcommitted – a Go Jane Go.
• Creativity versus growth: Because Merry Jane business owners often started their companies as creative outlets, they may be disappointed if business growth affects their ability to flex their creative muscles. Again, hiring someone to handle non-creative tasks could lessen the impact, but any growth will require additional time from Merry Jane. Whether she tries to do it all, like Go Jane Go, or learns to delegate, like Jane Dough, is completely up to her.
• Timing: Merry Jane business owners often have myriad responsibilities in addition to running their businesses. They may take care of their children or aging parents, or they may have full-time jobs in addition to running their companies. Therefore, Merry Jane must consider the timing of any entrepreneurial type change. For example, if becoming a Go Jane Go or a Jane Dough means spending more time working on her business, maybe the transition can wait until her young children enter school, or until the business can support her not having another full-time job.

Jane Dough is an entrepreneur who enjoys running her business and generally, she makes a nice living. She is comfortable and determined in buying and selling, which may be why she’s five times more likely than the average female business owner to hit the million dollar mark. Jane Dough is clear in her priorities and may be intentionally and actively growing an asset-based or legacy business. It is estimated that 18% of women entrepreneurs fall in the category of Jane Dough.

Because most Jane Dough business owners report a high level of satisfaction with their businesses and with business ownership, it is unlikely that they would want to change to another entrepreneurial type. Jane Dough often already is living her ideal type. She brings home a high personal income, enjoys the strategizing on which she spends her time, and manages to fit in time for rest and relaxation. However, Jane Dough business owners can still benefit from the strengths of some of the other types.

Considerations for Jane Dough:

• Communicate like Go Jane Go: Go Jane Go takes business personally, and values her relationships with her clients as well as with her employees. On the other hand, Jane Dough believes business is business – and therefore, in her fast-moving style, she can sometimes communicate abruptly with team members who were inspired by her passion. Even if Jane Dough does not want to change her type, she may consider improving her communication skills so her team members feel valued and appreciated.
• Create like Merry Jane: Jane Dough absolutely loves planning and strategizing for the growth of her business. However, sometimes she is so visionary that she may not be as aware as she should be of what is happening on the front lines of her business. Jane Dough, her team members, and her business may benefit from her periodic “days in the field,” when she could stay abreast of the company’s daily workings, through time spent with the people and processes.
• Be a role model like Accidental Jane: Accidental Jane business owners define success, in part, by their ability to live life on their own terms – and to encourage others to do the same. Jane Dough, a successful businesswoman by anyone’s standards, could adopt a similar mindset and create a mentoring program in her business. Not only could she be a role model to a would-be entrepreneur, but she’d be giving back, like Go Jane Go.
• Stay passionate like Tenacity Jane: Jane Dough is undoubtedly passionate – she could not have attained her level of success without that passion. Sometimes, in the day-to-day operations of any business, though, things become routine, and the passion that drove entrepreneurs to succeed fades. Tenacity Jane business owners show courage, passion and determination every day – and all business owners should strive to do the same, no matter what their level of success.

From deciding whether it is time to make a change, or deciding that she’s already living her ideal type, every business owner must periodically consider where she is, and how that compares with where she wants to be. When the two align, she’s living her ideal type – and that is pure enjoyment.

A family history of entrepreneurship set the stage for Janet’s future. “My father was an entrepreneur, and his father before him, and they never worked for the corporate world,” says Janet. “Through that experience, I knew that I wanted to pursue the life of a successful entrepreneur. My journey started at a young age, and I sold everything from cosmetics to plastic wear. Some businesses were successful, and some were not. While struggling to find my passion, I decided to get a ‘real’ job and held several corporate positions. When the software industry sent their call centers overseas, I job-hopped and experienced many layoffs. Knowing all along that the corporate world was not for me, I studied and passed my life insurance test and the California real estate exam, then used my financial knowledge and customer service skills to help many people live a life of financial abundance. Although I was a financial success, I was missing something.”

Janet found her passion after rediscovering her true calling. “What I finally realized was that I missed my computer software roots,” recalls Janet, “and deep in my heart I was a ‘geek’! I dove head first into Internet marketing and social media and started my new business in 2005, this time with a clear vision. I love to see my clients succeed with the least amount of stress and financial strain. When they follow a plan that shows them how to create multiple income streams through social media marketing, they enjoy more time and financial freedom. The greatest reward has been to see my clients businesses grow using my social media strategy.”

After taking the free Which Jane Are You? assessment at www.JaneOutoftheBox.com, Janet discovered that she is a Jane Dough “The assessment results were amazing!” says Janet. “Jane Dough is me – exactly! My focus is definitely growth and operations and I am moving forward! The first step has been to hire a team, including a personal assistant, so I can take on more business. Sometimes I strive for balance, and have been a Go Jane Go in the past. When I work weekends and evenings, I often feel guilty.”

What is Janet’s advice for her fellow Jane Doughs? “Don’t be timid. If you believe in what you are doing and are passionate about it, you have to share it with the world! The one thing that made a huge difference for me was to let go of what others thought of me. I am putting my business out there knowing that I am offering a top-notch service for my clients and I feel confident.”

At Jane Out of the Box, in-depth professional market research of more than 2,500 female entrepreneurs has revealed five distinct types of women in business. Each type has its own strengths, challenges, and desires. Jane Out of the Box’s most recent article, “Changing Your Type: How Entrepreneurs Can Become Exactly Who They Want to Be,” provides 5 steps for entrepreneurs to consider when changing their entrepreneurial type. The first step is to Choose a Jane, and this article provides more information about each of the Janes – so that those wishing to change their type have a well-rounded idea of the pros and cons of being a member of each group.

Accidental Jane is a successful, confident business owner who never actually set out to start a business. Instead, she may have decided to start a business due to frustration with her job or a layoff and then she decided to use her business and personal contacts to strike out on her own. Or, she may have started making something that served her own unmet needs and found other customers with the same need, giving birth to a business. Although Accidental Jane may sometimes struggle with prioritizing what she needs to do next in her business, she enjoys what she does and is making good money. About 18% of all women business owners fit the Accidental Jane profile.

Many Accidental Jane business owners eventually evolve into one of the other entrepreneurial types. However, many run successful businesses as Accidental Jane for years, fulfilled by their work without being overwhelmed by it. Accidental Jane enjoys her freedom, and her biggest challenges include maintaining an even workload and keeping the workload at a manageable level.

How Accidental Jane defines success:

• Enough income to meet needs.
• Enough, but not too much, work.
• She makes the rules (no politics, no mandatory hours, etc.).
• Freedom of choice (the who, what, when and how of the work).
• Flexible schedule/control of her life.
• Providing excellent products and/or services.
• Feeling fulfilled by the work.
• Pleasurable working relationships.
• Positive feedback, repeat business and referrals.
• A balanced life.
• Being a role model for others.

Some of Accidental Jane’s challenges:

• Workflow concerns. Many Accidental Jane business owners market when they need business, then get so busy they forget to market. This leads to an ebb and flow cycle, which usually smoothes out over time.
• Lack of a clear vision. Since Accidental Janes usually do not intend to start businesses, they often do not create long-term plans for their companies. They enjoy what they do, and may see potential for business growth in the future, but they don’t want the situation to change much immediately. This lack of a clear vision means Accidental Jane may have to make some tough decisions in the future – whether it means changing to a different Jane type or turning down new business to retain Accidental Jane status.

Go Jane Go is passionate about her work and provides excellent service, so she has plenty of clients – so much so, she’s struggling to keep up with demand. At 14% of women in business, she may be a classic overachiever, taking on volunteer opportunities as well, because she’s eager to make an impact on the world and she often struggles to say no. Because she wants to say yes to so many people, she may even be in denial about how many hours she actually works during the course of a week. As a result, she may be running herself ragged and feeling guilty about neglecting herself and others who are important to her.

Of all the five entrepreneurial types, Go Jane Go is undoubtedly the busiest, with more than a quarter of those interviewed reporting working more than 50 hours per week. Consequently, Go Jane Go business owners also take home the largest personal income. They often report feeling stressed and overwhelmed, but revel in being the best at what they do and being of service to others.

How Go Jane Go defines success:

• Making a positive difference in the world.
• Loving her work.
• Being the best at her work.
• Being in demand.
• Always learning and growing as a person and in her craft.
• Giving her all.
• Being of service to others – giving back.
• Doing the right thing/being a good person.
• Being decisive/action-oriented.
• Providing excellent products and/or services.
• Reaching the maximum impact.
• Making others (clients, employees, family, etc.) happy.

Go Jane Go’s challenges:

• Taking business troubles personally. She believes her work is a reflection of herself and often goes above and beyond to send a positive message.
• Difficulty saying, “no,” and therefore being over committed.
• Putting herself last.
• Perfectionism and the need to be in control. Her exacting standards make it difficult for her to delegate even small tasks.
• Never feeling she “has arrived.” Although, if pressed, Go Jane Go business owners will admit being experts at the top of their game, they also often feel like they need to do more to prove themselves.

Jane Dough is an entrepreneur who enjoys running her business and generally, she makes a nice living. She is comfortable and determined in buying and selling, which may be why she’s five times more likely than the average female business owner to hit the million dollar mark. Jane Dough is clear in her priorities and may be intentionally and actively growing an asset-based or legacy business. It is estimated that 18% of women entrepreneurs fall in the category of Jane Dough.

Although Jane Dough is what Jane Out of the Box researchers refer to as “a natural born entrepreneur,” she is not without her challenges. Although, on average, her personal income is slightly less than Go Jane Go’s, Jane Dough’s business income is the highest of all the five types. She works long hours, manages a team of people, and spends more time running her business and strategizing than she does “doing the work.”

How Jane Dough defines success:

• Being visionary and strategic (engineering a plan for ensuring success).
• Being confident/decisive and taking action or “going for it.”
• Staying focused on tasks that drive the business.
• Growth and expansion.
• Being in charge/in control.
• Creating an entity that lives outside herself, to be sold or passed on.
• Creating wealth.
• Being “smart” about business and marketing.
• Leveraging resources, including human resources.
• Creating results others can see.
• Feeling proud of her independence and accomplishments.
• Working hard.
• Keeping it all in perspective/taking the longer-term view.

Jane Dough’s challenges:

• Her team can’t keep up with her. Jane Dough’s vision is often on a grand scale, so she may require several different strategies that will ultimately contribute to the growth of her empire. This diversification may be a strong business growth strategy, but can cause confusion among her team members.
• Her team gets disenfranchised. Jane Dough, a fast-moving, passionate visionary, can sometimes become abrupt and directive in her managerial communications. Because they know exactly what they want to achieve, their directives may come across more like orders issued.
• Over-delegation. In her desire to achieve growth quickly, some Jane Dough business owners delegate too much to their team members – without enough input.

Merry Jane is building a part-time or “flexible time” business that gives her a creative outlet (whether she’s an ad agency consultant or she makes beautiful artwork) that she can manage within specific constraints around her schedule. She may have a day-job, or need to be fully present for family or other pursuits. Representing about 19% of women in business, she realizes she could make more money by working longer hours, but she’s happy with the tradeoff she has made because her business gives her tremendous freedom to work how and when she wants, around her other commitments.

Merry Jane business owners love their businesses, which they often report having started to allow themselves more time to attend to their myriad responsibilities. Most of them work only part-time for one of several reasons: they are stay-at-home mothers, they take care of aging parents, they want to nurture their creative side without spending too much time running a full-time business, or they’ve started their own business on the side in addition to working a full-time job.

How Merry Jane defines success:

• Flexibility to work when, where and as much as she wants.
• Meeting all of her obligations well.
• Enjoying a smooth-running life.
• Making a sufficient contribution to the household.
• Being recognized for her gifts and talents.

Relishing the freedom to say no.
Using her business as an outlet for creativity/self-expression.

Merry Jane’s challenges:
Obtaining new customers and marketing the business. Most Merry Jane business owners reported being happy with their work-life balance. However, most also said they would like to bring in new business and make more money.
Setting appropriate fees. When starting a new business, Merry Jane may not have all the information she needs to set appropriate fees, such as standard industry profit margins, how long a project will take, the uniqueness of a product or service, and when and in what method payments will occur.
Striking the right balance. Many Merry Jane business owners want new customers – but not so many that they can’t still enjoy the freedom they relish.
Tenacity Jane is an entrepreneur with an undeniable passion for her business, and one who tends to be struggling with cash flow. As a result, she’s working longer hours, and making less money than she’d like. Nevertheless, Tenacity Jane is bound and determined to make her business a success. At 31% of women in business, Tenacity Janes make up the largest group of female entrepreneurs.

Nearly all of the financially successful women Jane Out of the Box interviewed say they went through a Tenacity Jane phase. They report that the lessons they learned during this time in their lives were invaluable and ultimately contributed to their longer-term success. Nine out of ten Tenacity Jane business owners reported dissatisfaction with their cash flow, and the majority reported being unhappy with revenue, business costs or personal income through the business. However, the good news is that it is possible to move out of the Tenacity Jane group and into another, and Tenacity Jane has the passion and determination to make that change.

Here are the key reasons an entrepreneur may fall into the Tenacity Jane category:
She has a craft or skill, but little or no experience with many of the activities necessary to run a business (such as marketing and sales, technology, operations management, and financial skills). This is the case for 40 percent of the “new businesses” in the Tenacity Jane category.
The business started undercapitalized or acquired more debt than can comfortably be carried given current revenue levels.
The business owner doesn’t charge enough for her services – she undervalues the work her company does and therefore, does not attain adequate levels of margin.
The business owner is trying to accomplish too much all at once. Lack of focus makes it difficult to drive income in any of the areas.
Something has changed in the industry or cost structure that has caused the once-prosperous business to falter financially.

Tenacity Jane business owners must carefully consider which of the above conditions best explains why they are struggling – and it may be a combination of those conditions. They key to moving out of the Tenacity Jane group and into a more comfortable stage is to understand how she got there in the first place.

Before departing on her type-changing voyage, a business owner must familiarize herself with all the benefits and challenges of her “ideal” type. For example, Jane Dough business owners report high levels of satisfaction. They also work long hours, manage a team of people, and spend more time managing the business than they do “doing the work.” Go Jane Go is in high demand and takes home a high personal income, and she often feels overwhelmed and over committed. Accidental Jane is satisfied, and reports some stress about the ebbs and flows of her work. Merry Jane enjoys her flexibility, and would like to make more money.

Each entrepreneurial type has its advantages and challenges – and each female entrepreneur must decide which are most important to her. Then, she can begin her journey to living as her ideal type.

Initially, Kimberly wanted to reach as many people as possible to support them in realizing their results, which required going out on her own. “While I gained so much experience while working within organizations both here and abroad,” reflects Kimberly, “I was limited to only eliminating organizational dysfunction within a narrow scope – namely those leaders and their teams within the company where I worked. Owning my own business allows me the freedom to broaden my scope of influence and make changes that make a difference in multiple businesses. In turn, I’m creating a better place for others to work.”

For Kimberly, there are many rewards stemming from business ownership, including seeing her clients experience results beyond what they imagined and working with them as partners. “Personally,” says Kimberly, “the greatest reward is my ability to work when I want and be able to do the things I love, which entails traveling the world with my family.”

After taking the free Which Jane Are You? assessment at www.JaneOutoftheBox.com, Kimberly discovered that she is a Jane Dough. “I come from a family of business owners and always ‘knew’ that I was destined to own my own business,” said Kimberly. “I get so much energy from knowing that this is my business to make thrive and making the choices that lead to success. I love growing the business through connections, collaborations and partnerships and am now ready to take the business to the next level. I think at one time or another I have been many Janes. Certainly when I started this business, I was a Tenacity Jane, venturing into a brand new market with no contacts and no support. In the beginning, I struggled with cash flow, but I had passion and a vision for what I knew was possible. My business plan and financial back up helped me make it through the tough times – I guess that’s my Jane Dough coming out!”

Kimberly has one key piece of advice for other Jane Doughs. “One of the lessons that I have learned is to focus, focus, focus,” stresses Kimberly. “Often in our businesses we get caught up in what I call the Shiny Red Shoe syndrome – so many possibilities (the shiny red shoes), and so little time. When we aren’t focused and aligned on our values, our goals and our priorities, we we grab at any shiny red shoe that is most attractive to us at the moment – even though it may not be the best choice to grow our business! Focus, Focus, Focus is a lesson that I use daily to keep my priorities in order and only take on those shiny red shoes that lead me to where I want to go.”

Free Interview with Michele DeKinder-Smith (Founder of Jane Out of the Box) and Dr. Patty Ann Tublin (International Relationship Expert)

Register Now! “Business Ownership and Romance DO Mix: 5 Strategies to Avoid the Biggest Mistakes that Impact Your Romantic Relationship and Your Bottom Line”

This one-hour call is for you if you are a female entrepreneur in a committed relationship and you sometimes feel like you might be forced to decide between your business and your romantic relationship – and you’d rather find a way to keep both – happily.

Free Interview with Michele DeKinder-Smith (Founder of Jane Out of the Box) and Dr. Patty Ann Tublin (International Relationship Expert)

Register Now! “Business Ownership and Romance DO Mix: 5 Strategies to Avoid the Biggest Mistakes that Impact Your Romantic Relationship and Your Bottom Line”

This one-hour call is for you if you are a female entrepreneur in a committed relationship and you feel like your significant other doesn’t support your entrepreneurial business because it isn’t what he or she wants you to do – and you want to know how to win that support.

The idea for her first book, “Honey, I Want to Start My Own Business, a Planning Guide for Couples,” which was published by Harper Collins in 1993, came to her when she was a newlywed. She recalls, “My husband quit his job two weeks before our honeymoon, to start his own business in the spare bedroom of the house we would now share together. I was the new stepparent to his two sons, pregnant a few months after the wedding, working full-time in a busy career as a Human Resources Director, and trying to manage the pressures on a new marriage of a business working out of the home and not bringing in much money. It wasn’t easy. I went to the bookstore looking for answers, but back then the concept of ‘work/family’ was unknown and no one was writing about the pressures of entrepreneurship on a marriage and family. The writing bug bit me – I thought, ‘I should write this book!’ That was an Accidental Jane moment. I had never taken a writing course, didn’t know anything about publishing a book, but with a Go Jane Go attitude I took the project on with a vengeance. It was like therapy for me! I haven’t looked back, only forward, and I’ve continued to write about what interests me.”

Although Azriela started her business accidentally, there are many reasons for keeping her entrepreneurial ventures. “My three children were born within four years, and I really despised the restrictions of a corporate schedule,” reflects Azriela. “I wanted to be able to care for my children, and also do what I loved – write – without corporate politics dragging me down. I have enjoyed the benefits of raising my children with the kind of spoiling I feel good about – a warm dinner and a smiling mother waiting for them off the school bus. They are teenagers now and they still need that love and attention!”

Azriela asserts that the rewards for owning her business are too many to count, “but certainly one of the top five are the privately commissioned Holocaust memoirs that I’m currently writing. My client is typically a holocaust survivor, in his/her eighties or nineties, who has merited to see grandchildren and great grandchildren and wishes for future generations to know the full story of their life. I spend months interviewing them, gathering family documents and photos and then create a professionally published book for everyone to enjoy. It is incredibly rewarding to give this gift to the survivor and his or her family. In my family, the holocaust survivors have died and all of their stories are gone forever because they were never recorded. Writing books and speaking professionally, as well as working as a journalist for an International magazine, have brought me in contact with the most amazing, wonderful people – including Michele DeKinder-Smith!”

After taking the free Which Jane Are You? assessment at www.JaneOutoftheBox.com , Azriela discovered that she is a Go Jane Go. “In the heyday of the Internet, I was Jane Dough for about two years and making a lot of money writing for business Internet sites. It didn’t last though because I moved on to more rewarding writing that pays less in cash, but more in spiritual dividends. I started as Accidental Jane and I’m squarely in the Go Jane Go camp now and have been for many years. I fit the Go Jane Go profile to a T. At last count, I have seven jobs and I love it that way (working for Jane out of the Box Media ranks as one of my favorites of course!) I also teach English composition and public speaking to Orthodox Jewish college-age boys, am working on several book projects and am helping to shape and edit future books that will be published in the coming year by Jane Out of the Box media. I have been juggling so many balls for so long, it’s normal for me.”

Azriela’s advice for other Go Jane Go’s is inspired by her harried but satisfying Go experience. “Well-intentioned people might tell you that you are taking on too much, or that you should slow down,” cautions Azriela. “Only you know if that’s true. The real key is doing work you love, and working for and with people you respect and whose mission you believe in, so you want to support them in their work.”

1. Plan, plan, plan. From scheduling a vacation or retreat for a company’s “quiet” season, to creating a contingency plan if contact from a team member is absolutely critical, entrepreneurs will find that they can more easily enjoy themselves if they have carefully planned every aspect of rest and relaxation as it relates to their business.

• Decide on availability. If availability is not an option, provide team members with written instructions about exactly what to do during the vacation, and delegate decision-making authority to a specific person. Always provide emergency contact information, just in case. For partial availability, provide contact information only to a limited number of team members, and then check messages or e-mails periodically. Hint: being totally available by cell phone for an entire vacation not only takes away from the ability to relax, but it also takes attention away from traveling companions. Make a vacation a true vacation, and if it’s impossible to keep the phone off all the time, just check it a couple of times per day.
• If bills are due during a vacation, go online and schedule them to be paid when they’re due. Or, get them ready for mailing and ask a team member to send them on the appropriate day. Similarly, invoices can be made out ahead of time and then sent out on schedule.
• If winter is the busiest time of year for a business, reduce stress by planning the vacation for the summer. Similarly, if an entrepreneur is expecting a huge shipment of inventory and knows she’ll need to unpack it and get it on the shelves right away, she should arrange to return from her vacation before the shipment arrives or to leave for the vacation well after she’s had the time she needs to get it settled in. Working around such obstacles will allow the entrepreneur to truly relax while she is on vacation.
• If possible, delay the start of a new project until a few days after returning from a vacation. This provides time to check missed e-mails or phone messages. If that’s not possible, consider making all the preparations before leaving so it is possible to begin immediately upon returning. Ask a team member to help return calls or e-mails so it’s possible to devote more time to the project right away.

2. Take a real vacation. It may sound obvious, but many business owners find it difficult to remove themselves from their work, even for a short time. However, an entrepreneur will function at her best when she is revitalized and energized. Here are some tips for getting the most out of vacationing:

• Keep a notebook handy to jot down ideas that arise during vacation. Once they’re written down, put the notebook away for future use. Use this technique to temporarily “put away” the new ideas without worrying about forgetting them. This way, it’s possible to truly rest – and even if that rest provides excellent brainstorming opportunities, it’s possible to put them away until the vacation is over.
• Retain a positive mindset when thinking about leaving the business behind. Rather than worrying about whether the team can handle things, think of this as an opportunity for them to take responsibility. Rather than worrying about customers’ reactions to the vacation, consider that they’ll admire the strong and capable team taking care of them during the vacation. Notify customers of the upcoming vacation and take care of any concerns before departing.
• As mentioned above, limit availability. Spend time reconnecting with traveling companions, enjoying the new scenery, and recharging. Spending an entire vacation checking e-mail and answering the phone does not allow for true rest and relaxation – and it does not reenergize anyone.

3. Make vacationing a priority. Give it as much importance as every other appointment and obligation. Even if it is not feasible to take several weeks off, or to travel to a faraway location, everyone needs time off – even if it is one day per week. Here are some tips for ensuring that time:

• Schedule “self-time” into the calendar. Literally. Schedule a lunch out with a friend, a pedicure, or a walk on a favorite trail once or twice a week. Make these appointments and stick to them. Even an hour-long break from work and all that comes with it can be refreshing enough to boost productivity and spirits for the rest of the day or week. If longer vacations aren’t possible, these shorter appointments will suffice – but try to plan for a longer vacation at some point in the future, and then look forward to it.
• Fit vacations in with longer-term plans and treat them as important as semi-annual business planning retreats or annual workshops. If something comes up and makes the vacation impossible, be sure to re-schedule the vacation immediately. Don’t cancel reservations – reschedule them. Putting off a vacation indefinitely makes it less likely to happen.
• If a traditional vacation isn’t possible because of time or money constraints, plan a mini vacation somewhere close by to your home or business. It’s inexpensive, requires less planning, and you can vacation for only a day or two if necessary.

Vacations don’t have to be long, far away, or expensive. But they do have to be. Rest and relaxation provide hard-working entrepreneurs with the time they need to come back to work feeling refreshed and ready to dive back in.