Are You a Business Owner on a Tread Mill?

Running to catch up, but never quite getting there.

As small business owners, we all know what it is like to lie in bed at night or get up early in the morning to add to our list of all the projects that we want or feel we need to accomplish that day. If you are an optimist you will often think, “Today is the day I get a lot of things done on my list, then I can take a day to relax”. But by the end of the day, you feel like you are further behind then when you started.

It is a common issue with small businesses owners and even CEOs of large corporations. The sad fact is, if you are running a business there will always be more than enough to do. There really is only one way to get a handle on this problem that can lead to burn out and even depression. Learn to decide every day what the one thing is you want to accomplish before the day is over. What is the one thing that will move your business just a little closer to your goal? It is a mental game that you must learn to play by yourself every morning and ask yourself the following question. “If I could only accomplish one thing today, what would it be?” (read more about focus)

Yes, it is important to keep that priority list and naturally you will continue to add to that list. But, if you only have one thing to complete, anything else that gets done is simply icing on the cake.

Learning to deal with the stress that comes with owning and operating a business is an on going battle. Learning to accept our situation and deal with it is at the core of doing what we do. Who in their right mind would volunteer to put themselves in such an uncertain way of life? Entrepreneurs, that’s who. The modern day pioneers. Some of my favorite types of people to call friends.

There are a lot of other issues that we must deal with as business owners and I thought I would share some of my discoveries with you.

1) Problems and Ambitions are the fuel of life. God placed them here to motivate us to move, to experience life. If every day was easy, all of our needs came simply, we would become lazy. When the money runs out or the roof caves in, we have an incentive to get out and do something, meet people and live life. Periodic rest is important, but so is periodic turmoil.
2) Relationships are the most important thing in life.
3) Material things, information and trivial matters are distractions from life. They help to hide the fact that life is much simpler than we think. Humans have a tendency to over complicate everything.
4) Always remember this when dealing with friends, family and customers no matter how difficult they may be at times. Everyone wants to be respected, loved and thought important.
5) Business success comes from forgetting about business success and focusing on helping others.