Get a life! I mean a life beyond the endless hours you devote to
your growing business. Business owners, like the legendary Knights
of the Round Table, are notorious for always seeking, but never
finding, the entrepreneurial Holy Grail: balance. A common
entrepreneurial myth is that the "all work, no play"
philosophy goes out the door once you're beyond start-up. While
that may be true for some, it is hardly reality for millions of
you.
I've talked to so many people (not entrepreneurs themselves)
who think all the hard work of business ownership comes at the
beginning. After the first few years, they believe entrepreneurs go
into coast mode and spend their time living the good life-playing
golf, lying on the beach or sailing their yachts. (Are you laughing
yet?)
As I've said before, the pressure grows as your business
does. There's more to do, more to manage and more at risk. In
tough times like these, you tend to dig in, trust less and try to
do more with less. Now, I'm not saying that's necessarily
bad-tough times do call for tough measures. And I'm certainly
not saying you should leave work every day at 5 and not think about
business until 8 the next morning. You'll never succeed that
way. But I do believe that most of you need to take a timeout, at
least occasionally, and give your brain a rest.
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Easy to say, but not quite so simple to do. Believe me, I know.
While not a business owner, I work entrepreneurial hours, spending
about 11 hours a day at the office. I'm writing this at home at
10 at night. The last time I went to the doctor (for a blood
pressure check) he said that while he doesn't expect me to
overhaul my work habits, I need to take a break every so often. So
a few times a month, I've been trying to leave the office at 3
or 4 instead of 6. And I spend a mindless hour or two in front of
the TV watching home and garden shows. Has this actually lowered my
blood pressure? Too soon to say, but it can't hurt.
I certainly can't tell you how to relieve the stress and
pressure most entrepreneurs face. As oxymoronic as it sounds,
Entrepreneur's owner used to race cars to relax. A
business owner friend of mine goes to the beach and just stares at
the ocean. Another heads for the gym. I recently met a man who
swears by a mini-vacation (Thursday to Sunday) every eight weeks.
Another entrepreneurial friend can be found at the movies every
Friday afternoon, accompanied only by a tub of popcorn. For you,
the release might be music, golf, reading, cooking or spending time
with your kids.
Tuning out for two hours per day (or even per month) is
certainly not going to bring you balance. But I'm not sure
balance is possible to achieve for business owners (or maybe
anyone). Still, you have to make the effort. And while you're
at it, if your employees are putting in long hours, cut them some
slack, too. You (and they) will be more effective and productive.
As 17th century French playwright Molière wrote, "Our
minds need relaxations and give way unless we mix work and
play."