Achieving Work-Life Balance: How I Did it in 2018 from a Top Toronto Corporate Headshot And Event Photographer
Achieving Work-Life Balance: How I Did it in 2018 from a Top Toronto Corporate Headshot and Event Photographer
In today’s blog, I’m coming clean. As the sole proprietor of my business, striking that beautiful work-life balance is challenging! With a young family at home and a group of professionals I’m proud to call my work family, it’s sometimes hard to make sure everyone is getting equal slices of the Liz Caruana pie ;)
The question I’m not always prepared to answer begins sometime in fall: will you be taking time off over the holidays? Any freelancer can agree that you want to make hay while the sun shines but with time as our greatest commodity, it’s precious and ultra-important to be smart about how we spend it.
This past holiday season, I planned in advance and blocked time in my calendar for my family and I. To solidify this decision, I booked plane tickets! I figured this way I wouldn’t be tempted to cut short the time I had carved out for myself to squeeze in one more shoot before the end of 2018. With tickets in hand, the plan was set in motion to visit friends and family across the pond - London and Oxford, England to be precise - as well as a stopover in my hometown of Toronto, Canada. All told, I was away for 18 days and it really gave me an opportunity to connect with old friends I seldom see, spend quality time with my family and refill my own cup. I cannot overemphasize how invaluable this is to freelancers and business owner/operators that dedicate their time around the clock to their clients and business development!
As for the trip, the usual tourist sites were stops on our list: riding the tube to Buckingham Palace followed by afternoon tea in Cinderella’s carriage (a highlight for my 3.5 year old daughter and to be honest, me too). While in London we also visited the British Museum which hosts the largest and best Egyptian exhibit. Our visit was made even better as our escort (and friend) is an actual Egyptologist (I had to google it too). Experiencing it with her as our guide was a special treat that had my daughter asking the following day if we would be seeing the sarcophagi again!
We puddle-jumped, literally and figuratively to Oxford, where we experienced some of the fiercest rainfalls I’ve seen. England knows rain and if you’re dressed appropriately, actual puddle jumping can be quite fun.
Following that, we jet-setted to my hometown of Toronto and hit up some of my favourites, including renowned St. Urbain bagels from the St. Lawrence Market. I’m sorry to report that there’s no photographic evidence of said bagels because we devoured them so fast! Time spent with family in Toronto was bittersweet. In many regards it feels like no time has past since we last caught up in person but the growing little people serve as a reminder that time indeed, flies by.
As for work, it never truly stopped while I was away. Although I can’t physically be on site shooting, there is always work to be done. Such is the life of a freelancer and business boss lady! I can’t fully rest without keeping up with emails, always chasing that inbox zero goal or reaching out to prospective and returning clients.
Which brings me to my final thought. As I reflect back on 2018, I definitely did a lot of things right, including achieving a healthy work-life balance. I learned new tips, tricks and hacks to improve efficiency, worked with some incredibly talented individuals and fostered the client relationships that keep this ship afloat. I plan to take all of this with me into 2019 and look forward to the new working relationships that are yet to come as well as the memories to be made with my friends and family.
Thank you for supporting me this past year. Whether we’ve worked together or you’ve just been following along on my blog, I appreciate you. If you’d like to connect in 2019, don’t hesitate to contact me today. After some rejuvenating time away, I’m in full on work mode and would love to meet with you. As always, keep following my blog, where I share tips, tricks and insights as one of Toronto’s Top Corporate Headshot and Event Photographers.You can also connect with me on my google website and LinkedIn.
Toronto Corporate Headshot Event and Branding Photographer and Videographer