Networking and work-life balance tips for micro-entrepreneurs
Finnish Institute for Occupational Health informs 10th October 2017
The Finnish Institute of Occupational Health has published two guides for entrepreneurs. The ‘Networks - providing support for entrepreneurs’ guide is intended for entrepreneurs who want to expand their social networks. ‘Work, private life, and time management - Entrepreneurs’ guide’ offers tips for balancing work with other aspects of life and for efficient time management at work. The guides include interviews with entrepreneurs who share their experiences and tips. The clear, practical guides are available in four languages.
Many entrepreneurs work long hours and take fewer days off than others. One in three entrepreneurs struggle with balancing work and private life. However, some entrepreneurs have no difficulties finding that balance. One can also develop one’s time management skills.
– A good first goal is to give enough time and dedication to the things that one considers important. This is why every entrepreneur should put taking care of one’s well-being on the agenda, says Barbara Bergbom, Senior Advisor at the Finnish Institute of Occupational Health.
The ‘Work, private life, and time management’ guide also introduces time management tools and gives examples of efficient time management.
Networks support both business and well-being
Networks help entrepreneurs to expand and develop their operations. They can be a source of new co-operative partners and clients and help the company to increase its sales and improve its efficiency. Networks can also give rise to new ideas and insights and help the entrepreneur to develop products and services and one’s own expertise.
– Networking with other entrepreneurs is also an excellent way to let go of work, facilitate the coordination of work and personal life, and share thoughts and worries non-entrepreneurs might not always understand, says Auli Airila, Specialist Researcher at the Finnish Institute of Occupational Health.
The ‘Networks – providing support for entrepreneurs’ guide focuses on the benefits of networking and introduces different networks and the main requirements of network-based work. The guide also offers practical tips for getting to know other people.
– A genuine interest in other people is a good starting point. When interacting with others, it is wise to focus on things that are likely to make the other person feel valued and important. However, pretentious behaviour or flattery are not good, either, entrepreneur Yusuf Mohamed comments in the guide.
The Finnish Institute of Occupational Health has produced these two guides in collaboration with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Helsinki and NewCo YritysHelsinki within the ‘Well-being at work for foreign-born entrepreneurs’ subproject that is part of the ‘Promoting the well-being of micro-entrepreneurs through networking’ project (2015–2017). Other activities of the project include well-being workshops for entrepreneurs where the participants discussed factors affecting well-being at work and coping as an entrepreneur. The guides are available in Finnish, English, Estonian and Russian. The Finnish Institute of Occupational Health will publish the third guide in the series, ‘Occupational Health Care and Occupational Safety for Entrepreneurs’ later this autumn.
Further information:
Senior Adviser Barbara Bergbom, Finnish Institute of Occupational Health, tel. +358 043 824 3765, barbara.bergbom(at)ttl.fi
Specialist Researcher Auli Airila, Finnish Institute of Occupational Health, tel. +358 043 824 5472, auli.airila(at)ttl.fi
>>Networks – providing support for entrepreneurs
>>Work, private life, and time management – Entrepreneurs’ guide
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The Finnish Institute of Occupational Health (FIOH) researches, develops and specializes in well-being at work. It promotes occupational health and safety and the well-being of workers. It is an independent institution under public law, working under the administrative sector of the Ministry of Social Affairs and Health. It has five regional offices, and its headquarters are in Helsinki. The number of personnel is about 560.
