It’s OK to like your Business, it’s even amazing if you absolutely love your business – but if you start treating your business like a child – you are going to face hell.
Now that I’m a father I can totally see why people say that starting a business is like having a child – the amount of work you put into it, especially in the first year where it cannot practically do anything without you is absurd.
And both experiences can be really fun and meaningful as well.
It could also be very meaningful if you press the like button so that youtube will hopefully show this video to more people and help them as well – but lets get back to the video.
The line of thinking I see SO OFTEN in business owners where after they invested their blood sweat and tears, as well as money and time into their business.
now they will do anything it takes to maintain it and protect it – is in my opinion the main reason so many entrepreneurs are so stressed and even if make a lot of money their lives are poor because all they do is run their business.
I Remember when I first decided to let go of this toxic mentality, I was working 60 or 70 hours a week and it was starting to affect my relationship with my then girlfriend and now wife, and besides that – I was Getting FAT.
I remember the moment when after 6 years as an entrepreneur I first in my life said to my self the sentence that has later became sort of my personal business mantra.
For the first time in my life I said
“If the business can’t take it – It’s not worth it and I’ll do it later in a different way”
All the managers who work in my businesses know a fact that I will put it here without shame – I would rather lose the business than losing my health, personal life, family relationships or my dreams.
But I wasn’t always like that, and it’s not just because now I own several successful businesses and if one will fail nothing drastic will happen.
It was because I felt the price on my own skin and saw really quote on quote “successful” people who had a lot of money but that doesnt have the vitality to enjoy it or the relationships with the people they would deeply want to enjoy it with.
Of course, you should be smart about it.
And if you put a huge challenge in front of a very young business, it will probably fail.
But just like when kids age and grow you want to let them challenge themselves and go on independently – the same goes for your business just that unlike your child, you would want to also let it face deadly challenges.
It will require that you hire great people, and empower them to feel ownership over the company, which in most cases will mean both letting them make decisions even when you disagree and letting them have a nice piece of the pie when it comes to pay.
But then, you have freedom.
Then you own a business instead of letting your business own you.
