From the course: Entrepreneurship Foundations

Work/life balance

From the course: Entrepreneurship Foundations

Work/life balance

- While I have made many, many mistakes during my years as an entrepreneur, none took a bigger toll on me when I mixed my own self-worth with the worth of my business. It's a slippery slope when you start connecting your own self-worth with the business, so let's dive into three ways that I found to combat it. First, I have people who lift me up, and I always plan on seeing them after a hard day. Last year, I had to report bad news to one of our clients. The worst part, the bad news wasn't even our fault, but a vendors. It totally stunk. Mistakes happen, but understandably, the client was not happy. They screamed, they yelled, and I felt terrible when it was all done. Because I knew I was going to have a bad day, I planned on a dinner with other founder friends. I knew they would understand what I was going through and be able to cheer me up. While it's great to have friends and family that build me up, I also have people who are amazing at helping me realize when I let success go to my head. It's important to have real friends to bring you back down to your true, authentic self. When your company is doing well, you tend to have people telling you how great or smart or innovative you are. You can get lost in the euphoria and in the accolades. A few years ago, I was on a billboard for WeWork in Times Square in New York City. WeWork is a company who provides office space and wanted to use me in their campaign, as I was an early adopter and supporter of their business. I was thrilled and I was everywhere. Their home page, their billboard, in advertisements, you name it. Not only was it cool, I thought I was so cool. Later that week, I was having dinner with my mom and my best friend. I asked if they wanted to go visit my billboard in Times Square. I'll admit it; I was bragging. My best friend, Jenna, looked at me and said, "Eh, I have to be up early tomorrow "so I'm just going to head home." (laughs) I will love her every day for that response. She didn't need to see me on a billboard to know I was worthy. She loves me for me. While she's always there to cheer me on, she's also quick to remind me that I don't need to prove anything to her, billboard or otherwise. To continue to separate myself from my business, when no one else is around, I repeat this mantra to myself: I am awesome, but this idea might not be. It helps me to reflect and remember that other people's reactions to my business are not directed at me, but rather, the business or the idea itself. Self-worth comes from you and your mindset, not from your business. While it continues to be an uphill battle, I know that it comes with a territory of being an entrepreneur.

Contents