'Divide and Conquer' Is the Only Way to Get the Job Done You cannot be a successful entrepreneur all by yourself. You've got to rely on solid teamwork.
By Jim Joseph •
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You'd pretty much have to be living in a vacuum to not notice Ryan Reynolds lately. The "Sexiest Dad Alive" (according to People) and Deadpool mega-star has been on the media rounds lately.
He's been a busy boy… Hollywood hunk, leading man, husband and new father.
When recently asked, "What advice would you give dads post-birth," his answer was just plain awesome: "Do the dirty work. A human being will exit your wife, so she's done enough. Just change the diapers."
Related: An Entrepreneur's Guide to Explaining Your Job to Your Kids
His very funny and very real advice got me reflecting on my 20-plus years as a dad and all the trials and tribulations that came along in life.
How did I balance it all? I had two children less than two years apart, yet I managed an aggressive career in marketing that including opening my own agency and later selling it. I was a single dad for some of that time, and I was dealing with my own personal issues throughout. Like all of us.
How on earth did I do it? What ever made me think that I could do it?
Divide and conquer!
I've always carried a teamwork approach to everything I do, both at work and at home. You simply just can't do it yourself, no matter your situation and no matter your means. You have to rely on others to help you get it all done, especially if you are an entrepreneur or small business owner
It's impossible any other way.
At work, I always strive to carve out specific roles on any given project or initiative. Each person on the team has a unique responsibility and a specific stake in the game, and we all interconnect to mesh it seamlessly together. No one person is any more important to the process than anyone else. Certainly not me, but without each other, it simply wouldn't get done.
Related: 3 Ways Teamwork Doesn't Work and How to Avoid These Pitfalls
It is the same thing at home.
I've been with my (now) husband for a very long time, and through the years, we have had to continually divide and conquer to get through life's stages. While we worked together when we had our agency, after it sold and the stakes got higher we decided to have him stay home and take care of the house and kids. They were in active mode, and someone needed to focus on their growth while someone needed to make sure we had a steady stream of income. He was a rare #SAHD before there was a hashtag.
Divide and conquer.
As a result, we were each able to carve out our roles at home so that together the entire family could thrive. Neither one of us was more important to the process than the other, because in fact neither one of us could have done it alone.
There's just no other way to do it.
I have to be honest and say that entrepreneurs tend to be terrible at "divide and conquer." We tend to think that we have to do it all ourselves, and we tend to think that no one could possibly do it any better.
While it may be a natural inclination, you have to let that feeling go.
Let it go.
