Starting and leading a successful company requires a lot of energy, dedication, and know-how. As an entrepreneur you are at the center of the spokes, and everything seemingly depends on you. In response, there seem to be a lot of articles popping up about finding a “work-life balance” lately. While shared with good intentions, these messages are missing the mark. Balance is not the important element here; instead it’s about integration.
Here are five key lessons I’ve learned about finding happiness in business and in life while building my own company:
Figure out what you’re good at – and what you’re not.
Years ago I embarked on a personal growth exploration in order to better understand who I was and what I was passionate about. Along the way, I discovered there were things that energized me and things that drained me. As it turns out, I was most energized by things I was good at. The energy draining things were tasks I tended to dread doing or put off, because they just weren’t my things.
Part of being authentic requires being honest about your strengths and weaknesses. Even though you may be able to technically perform a certain task, doesn’t mean it’s a good use of your energy, time, and brainpower. Take an honest assessment of the things you always look forward to and feel excited about, then take a look at the things you find yourself regularly putting off. It’s impossible for one person to do everything, but by understanding what you’re best at and most passionate about, you can free yourself up to spend more time working in your “zone of genius.” Just because a certain task isn’t your forte doesn’t mean it’s not someone else’s. Which leads me to…
Hire the right people.
When you’re building a business, you’ll be spending a lot of time with those people. I only hire people I would be friends with outside of work. By doing so, I’ve assembled a team that aligns with who I am as an individual and a business leader. When you hire people who get you – and complement you – you ultimately build a team that enables you to be yourself without having to do it all on your own.
Hiring the right people means more than hiring those who have the skillset to complete a list of job duties. It means filling the gaps with people whose knowledge and passions complement your own. Of course, understanding what you’re good at (and not good at) requires a certain sense of self-awareness and humility. When I started my first company, I was scared to be vulnerable and admit I didn’t know what I was doing when it came to certain things. But the reality is nobody can be the accountant and the marketer and the programmer and the CEO, because one person cannot be naturally good at all those things all the time. As the leader of a company, it’s your job to hire people who are smarter than you in these key areas, whether it be employees or advisors. It’s important to know what you don’t know – then hire the right people who do.
Make fun a priority.
I got my start working with Silicon Valley-based startups where working 24-7 was the norm. That kind of lifestyle is a creativity and productivity killer. I’m a firm believer in the notion that play and fun unleash creativity. There’s a reason some of the best ideas happen when people are out living life, rather than sitting in the confines of an office. When you take breaks and prioritize things outside of your working life, you free your mind up to think differently.
The work you’re putting out into the world reflects the state of your mind. If it’s not as good as it could be, it’s likely that your team is producing without engaging in the right way. There will always be deadlines to meet and mundane tasks to be completed, but don’t force yourself to do things that don’t feel good. Make fun a priority in your workplace. Your work – and team – will thank you for it.
Make yourself a priority.
The health of your business is dependent on the health of you. I was making great money with my first business, but I was miserable. When I stepped backed and assessed my strengths and weaknesses, I realized 75 percent of what I was doing on a daily basis was work I wasn’t passionate about or very good at. The second I started to shift my role within the company based on that revelation, my business started making leaps and bounds. More importantly, I started to feel happier and more fulfilled than I had been in a long time.
Forget about the rampant misperception that focusing on you is somewhat selfish. What’s best for you is what’s best for everyone. If you are in a bad place personally, that bleeds into your business. It impacts the work you’re doing and every person on your team. The second you begin to prioritize on yourself, you’ll be able to empower those around you to prioritize themselves, too. By doing so, you’re not just creating a company of people, you’re creating a company of great people who feel like their best selves. That is how compelling, creative work gets done.
Strive for integration, not balance.
Like I said before, I don’t believe in balance, I believe in integration. It’s no more possible to separate your personal life from your business life than it is to divide yourself into two separate versions of you. Your personal relationships, health, finances, and mindset are all part of the work you do and how you do it. If you’re off kilter in personal areas of your life, that impacts your work and your ability to lead, which ultimately trickles down to your team.
At Hello Fearless, we hear so many women say they are holding themselves back from pursuing a dream because they fear that starting a business will impact their ability to be good mothers and wives. That’s simply not true. You’re not doing yourself any favors by selling yourself short in any aspect of your life, but when you get clear on what you really want in all areas of your life – everything becomes possible.
Far too many entrepreneurs end up sacrificing their personal happiness for their business, but that’s no way to live or lead a successful company. The limiting belief that you can’t “have it all” impairs your ability to be successful as an entrepreneur. There is a paradigm shift that is slowly happening in the entrepreneurial world. People are finally realizing that leading a great company isn’t about becoming a great business leader – it’s about becoming the best version of you.