You ever feel like you’re just going and going, non-stop? It’s kind of like the catch phrase or motto of the Energizer batteries, it keeps going and going and going and going. Sometimes that’s how it feels for us, as a business owner, as an entrepreneur.
If you listen to some people, you just continue down a path of burnout, because you feel you have to. It’s what we’re taught, we have to bust our asses without a break in order to be efficient and effective in our business.
The Myth Behind “Just Keep Going”
Since I initially started my business, I’ve been working 14-18 hour days, doing everything from design, SEO, project management, sales, accounting, marketing, developing processes and all the other “little things” that come with running a business that nobody ever tells you about!
People try to tell you to replace yourself and you don’t need to work as many hours or do as many things but if you’re like me, it doesn’t really allow you to stop working as hard. It only lets you find other areas of your business to invest your time. You think hiring people is something that allows you to save some time? It doesn’t, unless you’re in a very mature business.
The truth is, I’ve been burned out many times over the years and just kept going. I had very unproductive weeks, and even months where productivity was severely lacking because I just “kept going”.
You keep going when you’re burned out, it’s like driving a car when the fuel gauge is on empty. You’re able to drive for a little while until you run out of gas. If you just “keep going” then you’re no longer driving a car, you’re behind the car, pushing it at a rate of maybe 1 mile an hour. Try pushing the car uphill, and you’re not going to get anywhere, you’re putting in time, energy, effort into making it uphill but you’re not even taking a step forward.
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Sometimes You Need A Break
I don’t say this lightly and I don’t want this to be taken the wrong way. If you’re JUST starting out in business, you don’t have the luxury of a break, especially if you’re not financially stable. You have to bust your ass in order to get into a better spot. You have to think of it as a do or die situation.
For others, you get to a point where you’re trying to push forward but you have no strength left, and a break will allow you to become more productive than if you just kept going, getting nothing of real value accomplished.
A mentor of mine once said, “Sometimes you need to take a step back in order to move forward”. I’ve found that statement to be very true. A lot of times I will get ahead of myself and then I hit a wall. If I just stay there, I can’t get through it, if I take a step back, I can maneuver around it and move forward.
Motivation Comes In Many Ways
Maybe it’s not necessarily motivation, but perhaps inspiration, ideas that you can put into action, problems that you solve when not intentionally trying to solve them.
Not too long ago, I decided to take a couple days off. I came back recharged, refreshed and accomplished more in a few days than the previous few weeks!
Sometimes it’s necessary.
Summary
Don’t take yourself too seriously… you’re going to die no matter what. 🙂
Enjoy life, enjoy growing your business but don’t burn yourself out before you achieve a certain level of success. Remember, this is a marathon, not a sprint.
It’s often the little things that make a difference in business success.
I am a little disappointed that the picture of the person jumping wasn’t a hot blonde in a Bikini.
I read a book, The Power of Full Engagement a couple years ago. It talked about how stress is a good thing in small doses, kind of like working out. It is the low levels of stress over long time periods that can mess someone up. I honestly can’t remember much from the book but it said it is good to work really hard and take breaks, even if for a few minuets.
Thanks for the comment Evan, and I figured I can’t make every picture a hot blonde in a bikini, but there will be plenty of opportunities in the future LOL.
Spot on though. I thrive with a little bit of stress, it helps me focus but that’s an excellent point about long periods of low level stress.