Just inquiring...as it seems like I'm having fewer and fewer weekends (even 1 day off) for just myself and my family. My last weekend off from anything cake related was back in June. And my next weekend off is in November when I decided we are GOING to take a vacation. Then it appears that the slower season will begin when I get back.
But...I've a couple of people recently who have cake businesses have warned me against the burn out.
Now, I LOVE making cakes but, at times I feel pretty stretched already. I don't want to give it up because I'm just starting to get back into it again AND I really do love it. But, I need tips to avoid gettting to a place where I feel like I am overworked and stressed out.
What are all your tips and advice on how to avoid feeling like you are completely burned out? I'm depating scheduling myself off a weekend every month and sticking to it ~ take no Weddings on those weekends.
I know that will be hard to do during the busy time but, it sounds like a good idea, if I knew I had one weekend a month that cakes were completely off limits. Any suggestions? What do you do? TIA

First, I'm a nurse by profession; baking & decorating is my stress reliever - for now. My hope is to open a full bakery business sometime mid-spring 2008. I'll preface this too by adding that my children are grown; however, I do have a grandson that spends most weekends with us. I'll probably be able to relate more to your type of burnout then, but from my perspective now, I'd have to say you need to definitely schedule yourself some time away, not only for yourself, but for you to enjoy your family as well. My full time job requires me to work a lot from home, so in that respect, I feel as though we have something in common. I'm salaried, so some days are busier than others - that's just the norm. You have to treat a home based business just as if you were punching a time clock. You set your hours and your days off, and stick to them. Set yourself a schedule for when you are going to accept orders, prepare those, deliver, etc. If a project takes more time than anticipated, that's just part of it, unfortunately. I always advise to keep a separate cell phone or your personal cell phone for your business and the home phone for personal use only. I also have a computer and fax designated for work only - which I alone am allowed to use, and another for everyone else. Working from home has it's perks, but you still have to learn how to separate and manage your time well. Teaching the family to honor this was the hardest for me. They initially thought that since I worked from home, they could call, drop by unexpectedly, etc.; but now they know the rules and I have to sometimes remind them that I am not available on such and such day, as I know in advance I will be busy, so they know I can't deal with any outside distractions - it's a work only day. HTH

hsmomma - amen to what the previous post stated. You need to find a time and space for yourself and try to stick to it. I don't bake for a living (nor will I ever) - I love my job and at times I get completely burned out when I put the wrong part of my mind into it. Set a 'date' with yourself once a week and don't let anyone/anything break it. Go shopping, spend an hour at your favorite bookstore, hit the gym, etc... Stress is a natural part of life and even though you are doing what you love, there are still hassles associated with it. Several years ago I picked up a book at the library titled "The Artist's Way" - it helped me greatly in enhancing my creativity, setting goals (and sticking to them), managing stress and focusing. Just a thought you may want to try something like this. Good luck and enjoy your vacation!