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Laboring long hours as a business owner can seem virtuous, but it can also lead to burnout: why finding ways to make things easier on yourself – and happier for yourself – is vital to long-term success.
Ask most successful people how they managed to achieve a modicum of success and they’ll tell you that it’s simple: hard work. Some will be a bit more honest and tell you it also has a lot to do with luck, but have you ever asked someone who failed in business what really happened?
The answer won’t be they didn’t work hard enough, even though that may be the case. More likely you’ll hear, “Right product, wrong time,” or “We didn’t have enough capital” or the classic, “We just couldn’t compete with the big companies.”
While social media and other corners of the Internet are lined with stories of success. I don’t know about you but; the Facebook ads where the guy is standing in front of the huge house and sports car bragging what he has, I always think the owner will come out of the house at any second and arrest the guy for trespassing!
Why on Earth does he think we are all driven by the same goals? success can mean water for a draught ridden farmer in Ethiopia, a higher grade on an exam for a student. a raise for a happy employee! Success means so many things to so many people!
The real keys to that status can often be better found in stories of failure. The old saying, “What doesn’t kill you can make you stronger” only works if it doesn’t kill you.
Excessive hard work, whether it results in triumph or tragedy, has caused people to sacrifice their health and relationships, and has led to many an addiction and a variety of other personal and professional plights. So how do we overcome this? It’s simple: focus on the things everyone else is leaving out.
Relaxing can be working smart
When Steve Jobs went to India he went to find things out about himself and that sojourn led to his creative side and Apple if nothing are on the creative side of success. taking a break often comes with a masochistic guilt trip, but try to see it as letting your subconscious do some work.
Ask any Crossword fan, that one answer you cannot find; ‘leave them alone till they come home’ (what you thought nursery rhymes were for kids??) leaving the crossword and do something else and bang the answer is found by your subconscious mind!
Recent research suggests playing computer games increases productivity, so many bosses are happy to see some employees using games online or on their phone to break the hectic pace and bring some creativity to play. If it works then get that X box in the office and some bean bags ooh don’t we look like Google now!
Clone yourself
In 1997, the movie Multiplicity was released. Michael Keaton plays the role of Doug Kinney, who tries to balance home and private life with growing his business. To do that, he clones himself to help divide up the workload. As the movie explains, this happens not once but three times, and while it lightens the protaganist’s load, it also creates a whole new set of problems.
By the end of the movie, he sees the failure in this tactic; the main problem, he found, was that there were no systems put into place — he just hoped the clones would just do what needed to be done.
As an entrepreneur, you certainly work hard, and have also doubtless heard the suggestion “work smarter.” As many businesses grow, there is a natural desire to make more money as a return on all the effort. It may pay off better, however, to forgo that raise and instead hire someone who’s an expert in something you or someone on your team is engaged in.
This is also a great time to take an inventory of yourself as a leader, and also of your team.
Ask staff members what they would want taken off their plates in order for them to work more efficiently. And even if you don’t wind up hiring someone on the basis on this input, it will still help you seem more compassionate at the very least.
This is also a time in our economy when a ton of talent is looking to make a move. Many highly skilled professionals have taken the opportunity over the last two years to learn new skills or otherwise get better at their vocation, and this includes both domestic and international talent. Others being called back to the office may have enjoyed working at home, and so are ready for a change, or vice versa. Instead of you working 24/7, you can now outsource to some of this takent pool that can help solve the problems keeping you up at night.
Don’t get married to your project.
Whilst the partner of a great employee with tremendous integrity can see that he is being used sometimes, the same goes if you are the boss, success is rarely a one man show, how many one man bands make it to the music halls of fame? nope they are all groups, who will tell you so many stories of massive rows over creativity and the most successful ones are the ones who compromised and let the creativity flow via the team.
Don’t believe that once you let this go, no one will do it as well as you, and the dream will dissolve, let others in and bounce ideas of other professionals. They say in business we are one step away from real success , well that step may just be sat n the mind of the mail boy!
Get a great accountant and bookkeeper
We simply can’t discuss growing a business without talking about the need for a great accountant, as clean books are nothing less than foundational. Plus, tax codes and guidelines are changing at a rapid pace, and all those small business Covid- business loans are going to start to collect. And while the nice mafioso chap you have been using for a long time may have been doing a decent job, the right accountant will help you save additional time and money needed to expand a team and help an enterprise grow.
Get out and ‘Mingle‘
As the world opens back up, events and retreats are going to be in full swing, so this is a chance to find the ones that can help you and your team grow. If you don’t want to travel, there are plenty of virtual event and workshop options, just don’t make the mistake of trying to work while attending one. Also, to get maximum value, take the day after the event off as well, and use it to plan how to implement what you learned.
In our highly connected world, time alone can be spent in badly needed reflection, fostering both personal and professional growth. and don’t forget to read books from successful people your answer may just be between the lines of a business writer from 50 years ago!
When all said and done what are you working for? is it to retire early, then no good if you die of exhaustion before you reach it is there?? taking the time to focus on you, your team and your structure are important ingredients to success, but keep in mind that rewards can’t always be seen in the bottom line. They often make themselves manifest in a clear mind, and the ROI on that can be enormous.
Dressing for the occasion is never a bad idea, when you feel smart you act smart, just get up and show up that’s half the battle. come and see Mack Tailors in the centre of Bangkok for a cup of tea business chat and get measured for success.
