Tips To Help When You’re Going Through A Creativity Slump!

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We have all been there, sometimes you’re in a slump. You might be feeling tired most of the time, or disinterested in your work. You’ve lost your motivation.

And it could be for a number of reasons, you could be stressed at work or home. It’s a change in the season, and as it gets darker earlier, you could be affected by that. And if you run your own business, it’s important to not stay in that slump too long, or it could affect your business.

In our serviced offices on our sites, we have several small businesses who are run by a very small team, and we know the importance of getting out of those dips to keep your business thriving, so we have a few tips here to help you get out of that business slump!

Get away from the computer

This can be tough, as most of our work is done on a computer, but staring at the screen too long can affect your concentration. So, leave your desk. Walk to the kitchen and make a brew. Weather permitting, go outside and have a walk. At The Craggs we are lucky to be surrounded by the beautiful Calder Valley countryside. Whether you’re up at the main site in Cragg Vale  or at The Chapel in the centre of Mytholmroyd, there’s plenty to see and do in your breaks away from the computer screen.

Mix up your routine

If you come straight into the office and work non-stop, mix up your morning routine, and get a coffee en route to the office. By doing something different, your brain doesn’t fall into your repetitive thought processes.

If you always go for lunch at 12.30 on the dot, go at 12. Or 1.

If you always bring your lunch with you, go out and buy a sandwich. (We have a local farm shop and café on site, so we’re lucky to have fantastic food right on our office doorstep!)

By changing your routine slightly, not to be disruptive, but it will stop you from falling into the same repetitive routines, which will get your brain going, and improve your mood!

If you work from home, mix it up with some co-working or desk sharing

We know that working from home is maybe financially better, you’re not paying for overheads such as rent, electricity etc. However, working form home can be lonely.

But if you can’t afford an office, then there are other options available. You can hire a desk, or a shared office.

That way, you can work from somewhere else, meet new people who might be able to help with you and your business and you will spend time with other people.

At the Craggs, we also offer co-working and shared office facilities. With high speed internet, flexibility in when you use our co-working facilities, and a community of tenants who help and encourage each other in their businesses, you’ll fit right in.

For more information on our co-working facilities, visit the page on the website or call us on 01422 888450 and we can talk about how we can help you!

Remember, it’s normal for us all to have these peaks and troughs when you’re in business, so if you find yourself in a business slump, take our advice, try these steps to change up your routine and your thinking habits will change for the better too!

Decluttering before Christmas!

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With Christmas approaching now’s the time to start decluttering the house before your decorations go up!

Bear with us, we know it’s a bit early for the C word, however, if you start now, then you can do it in small chunks, and tackle a room at a time, as opposed to an overwhelming day when you try and declutter the WHOLE house!

We’ve got some top tips to help with your decluttering!

Separate, separate, separate!

Start off with 5 boxes/bin bags/baskets.

  • Rubbish – something which cannot be reused or recycled
  • Recycling – paper/cardboard/aluminium/paper/some plastics
  • Storage – items you still want to keep, but don’t need out during the Christmas period
  • Sorting – something which is in the wrong room
  • Charity – items you no longer want, but is good enough to donate

Store it away!

There may be items in the house which you want to keep, but won’t need it over the winter period. And let’s face it, during Christmas space in the house is valuable! From the tree, to decorations, to presents, to family and friends, the house becomes full!

With self-storage, you can safely store your belongings for a short period of time. You have access to the facilities, so if you happen to forget something, or need something, you can always pop in and get it! At our self-store Halifax facilities, you have access 7 days a week, from 7am to 9pm.

You can rent a unit from as little as £9.50 a week, you can see availability on our live tracker here

So, move some of your items which you won’t miss to a self-store facility. It could be your bikes and scooters, or usual home decorations, summer wardrobe, anything that you think you won’t use in the short term.

Be Ruthless!

Do you really need all those cables and chargers you’re keeping ‘just in case’? Have you worn those clothes in the past 6 months?

If you decide to keep everything, then you’re not making space! As sorting expert Marie Kondo believes, only keep it, if it sparks joy for you! So when you are going through your clothes, think of these three questions:

  • Have I worn it in the past 2 months?
  • Did I remember I owned this?
  • Does it fit me now?

If the answer is no, then donate away!

Or if it’s your summer wardrobe, then pack it in a suitcase, and put it away, in the attic, or at the self-store!

Take your time

You don’t want to make a rash decision, and throw out something you need.

So, if needs be, put those clothes to one side for 2 weeks. If you haven’t returned to that pile, then you clearly don’t need it, and it can be donated.

Take it one room at a time, if you try and do the whole house, it can be overwhelming, and can become stressy. Play some music, put on your favourite film, and work through your decluttering.

 

If you are interested in self store Halifax, then check out the live availability tracker we have on our website here where you can also reserve your unit. But act fast, to get it before Christmas!

Helping With Your Home Move

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Moving home is difficult, there’s no way to sugar coat it, but you can make it a lot easier if you plan correctly! Planning is key to a successful move.

In this article we’re going to be giving you some of the best ways to help ensure that your home move is as successful as possible!

Use self storage

If you have to move out of your home by a certain date, things can arise that means you won’t be able to move everything out in time. This is when self storage units come into their own. Self storage Halifax will help reduce your stress when moving out for a reasonable price. These really aren’t that expensive!

You’ll usually have a number of options on the size of the square storage unit, then you have to decide which is best for you. For example, at Craggs, if you want self storage in Halifax, you can get 50 sq ft storage from as little as £19 a week.

You can check our availability on our website here

Removal company

Using a removal company can be expensive, but if money isn’t an issue and you want your move to be as seamless as possible, then this is a great route to go. These people do this for a living have all the right equipment needed to make moving home as easy as possible.

If you want to find a removal company, then look in your local area and look at the reviews people have left. Or even better, you could ask friends and family if they have anyone they’d recommend.

This takes out all of the hassle of moving boxes and all the heavy appliances to your new home as the removal company will do it for you!

Organise!

We mentioned how planning is absolutely key at the beginning, but we really can’t emphasise enough how important it is.

When you’re moving there’s so many things on your mind at once and you’re bound to forget something.

All we’re recommending is writing a to do list which will help you avoid missing out on anything. Keep a notebook handy so you’re able to capture those chores that you might forget. There’s a lot to remember and writing them down can really help control your stress.

Stagger Your Move

Just because have to move out on a certain date doesn’t mean that you have to do it all in one day. Stagger your move! You could try and ensure that you move into your new home a week or so before you have to move out of your old home.

If this isn’t possible, we’ve mentioned in this article that self storage is a great way to move your appliances to a particular location and then move them at a later date. If you require any self storage Halifax, Mytholmroyd or Hebden Bridge, then Craggs have a number of storage units available perfect for people moving home.

These four areas will help you understand what you can do to help your move be as smooth and simple as possible!

If you are in need of some self store units in the Calderdale and Halifax area, call us today on 01422 888450

Business Relocation Check List

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So you’re relocating your business, how exciting! There’s already a lot going on with owning your own business, and throwing your relocation into the mix seems like a silly idea, but you’ve got to keep expanding and growing your business!

There’s a number of ways that you can make this much easier for your business and in this article, we’re going to be going through some of these ways.

Self Storage

Self storage can make a huge difference when you’re relocating your business because it allows you to place anything unwanted at the moment in a storage unit. Our self storage Halifax experts are on hand to help, and an explain just how affordable storage can be and how it is definitely something that businesses may want to consider! (Considering how much cheaper it is to do than buying a larger office space for storage!)

Even if by some unfortunate chance, your move is delayed by a few days, you’ll be able to put everything in storage to ensure that it stays safe until you’re able to move in.

If you require any help with self storage Halifax, self storage Mytholmroyd or self storage Hebden Bridge, then our fantastic storage units are perfect for businesses and the general public, offering some fantastic rates!

Self storage is only required in certain scenarios so we thought we’d give it a mention just in case this scenario pops up for you. What we’ve created is a bullet point checklist to help you understand what is required for your business relocation.

  • Select a move committee. This is made up of representatives from IT, HR, Operations and other interested and qualified people.
  • Establish your business relocation budget.
  • Determine whether or not it requires a third party to help with the move.
  • Coordinate your business relocation with the moving of servers and IT provider/support.
  • Contact your telecommunication provider to get new numbers or move your existing numbers
  • Determine if any of your equipment requires specialised or approved vendors to move it.
  • Check the existing lease for restoration requirements/conditions for returning current space to landlord.
  • Order keys from the building.
  • Contact the building to confirm locations of signage.
  • Hire signage vendor to plan, get approval and install new signage.
  • Obtain a qualified mover for your business relocation.
  • Order new letterheads, business cards, forms and any other printed marketing materials.
  • Update your website, emails signatures.
  • Notify your current clients of change of address.
  • Contact the post office for change of address.
  • Contact you bank for change of address.
  • Notify any vendors of change of address.

These are the main areas you will need to cover with your business relocation!

If you are looking for a new office space in halifax, we have several available units in both Cragg Vale and Mytholmroyd, from desk space up to large offices. The facilities of the city, but the scenery of the countryside.

You can see our available offices here