Richard Butler's work life balance tips

Richard Butler, a founder and director of BlueBerry IT, playing in his band The Immigrants.

Richard Butler is a founder and director of IT sales and support company BlueBerry IT. The company was formed in 2008 and has 10 staff - seven based in Nelson and three in Blenheim.

What have been the primary challenges for you as a business owner in terms of creating a work life balance?

In the beginning it has to be said we worked some seriously long hours. But as changes happened in the business - employees came on board and founders left - we decided it was going to be a lot more sustainable if we stuck as close as we could to the standard 40-hour working week.

Of course from time to time, especially in our industry, it's difficult not to work late because we often have to do server upgrades and things like that when no one is using the systems. We also have quite a few customers in areas like food production and healthcare who need 24-hour support.

So what are some of the the strategies you've come up with to meet those challenges?

We're careful that if we or any of our employees work late that we take time off in lieu pretty soon afterwards, because burning out is not a long term plan. Unless there's a really good reason, I encourage everyone to be out of the door at 5pm so they can go spend time with their families, and I do the same.

I'm rarely home after 5:15pm, although I do live fairly close to work. We plan our work to happen as much as possible within normal working hours so that we don't impact on our staff's and customer's personal time.

I also try to delegate as much as possible to other people; if something can be passed on to an employee, contractor or a supplier then I do my best to do that. Sometimes it seems easier to just do it yourself, but I think it's easy to get drawn into that way of working and suddenly you're doing everything and something else has to give.

How about life outside of work? How does that impact your work life balance?

I have a few hobbies outside work: mountain biking, Seido karate and playing bass guitar in a local band, The Immigrants. I find all of those a great foil to the stresses of working in IT. Mountain biking gets me out exploring and enjoying the scenery around Nelson. It's a fantastic place to live, so why wouldn't you?

Music is my creative outlet. It's a great way to unwind and create something special with other people. We're a live band and always play all our own music - and large portions of it are improvised as we play - and it's a wonderful experience sharing something you created on the spot with others. It's the polar opposite to IT where things are usually very structured, planned and organised. I've been playing music for about 30 years now and I can't imagine not doing it.

I've been practicing Seido karate for eight years now and just got my black belt last week, which was incredible. Seido karate teaches you so many things, although the main lesson is respect - for yourself and others. I think that's a great lesson for anyone in business, because if you have respect for yourself and others, you'll naturally do the right thing and I think being a person of integrity is about the most important thing in business.

Another thing I've found is that keeping fit and healthy - in body and mind - makes staying on track in your business that much easier.

What other plans or goals do you have in terms of creating a greater work life balance?

For a few years we've been toying with organising our business so we can work four-day weeks. We haven't got there yet but we're still striving towards it - the three-day weekend idea is very appealing! Bringing in a manager at some point in the future may be a good idea to help take the load off the owners.

There are lots of options but there are a few important points - you have to be able to let go of what you've built and you have to make sure that your business is not based on you. I think getting a great team around you is vital if you ever want to step back from the day to day.

What advice would you have for other business owners wanting to create a better balance between work and life?

Always make time for yourself and your family. If you're working 60 hours a week, you're not running your business, your business is running you. I know people who work silly hours but I'm adamant you can be successful and still have a good balance. My hobbies are totally different to my work and that helps me develop other skills that can be applied to the work environment, and that helps forge a better separation between work and life.

And a good friend of mine set up his smartphone so that he only gets emails in working hours. I haven't got that far yet but it does sound very appealing.

Coming up in Your Business: The sharing economy - where people share access to goods or services without actually owning them - is a growing trend. What are some of the companies springing up in this area, and how are they growing markets for their offerings? If you've got a story to share, drop me a note: nzhsmallbusiness@gmail.com