Modest Business Success Habit #2 – Working Too Hard

In a previous post, I introduced you to the first habit in my series, The 7 Habits of Modestly Successful Entrepreneurs.  The goal of this is to help small business owners and solo-preneurs to understand the business practices and even models that may be keeping them in the middle of the pack of entrepreneurs achieving modest levels of business success and exposing them to strategies that will lead to phenomenal success.

Our first habit was selling time for money.  We discussed some of the challenges of that business model and the inherent limitations it poses on the maximum amount of revenue your business could earn.  This post covers the second habit.  Feel free to watch the video for a more thorough explanation of this habit.

Modest Success Habit #2:  Working Too Hard

Who would ever think that working too hard is a problem?  Aren’t entrepreneurs known to be some of the hardest working people on earth?  Doesn’t it take commitment, dedication, and a singular focus to make a business successful?

Yes, is the answer to all of those questions.  Yet hard work is something that must be managed.  There is a saying that when you want something done, give it to a busy person.  That is because most busy people have learned how to manage the work they do effectively.  For an entrepreneur though, when things start to pile up, it is easy to slip into the mode of, I’ll just work harder and end up with the habit of working too hard.

Why working too hard is a problem

Here are some of the perils of indulging this habit:

• Working on the wrong things – More than likely, people who are working too hard are caught spending most of their time putting out fires and ignoring the important, non-urgent items.  This creates a vicious cycle of too much work.
• Inefficient performance – You cannot perform your best when you are constantly over-worked
• Performance that is not sustainable – Burning the candle at both ends is not something that can be kept up forever.  You will pay the price in:
  • Health problems (stress, weight issues, heart disease, etc.)
  • Degrading relationships (including the support system necessary to keep you successful)
  • Loss of passion that can lead to mental drain burnout

Solutions to break this habit

Create a plan that covers both vision and goals

• Holistic plan that includes your personal goals as well as your professional goals since, with entrepreneurs, the connection between the two cannot be ignored
• Have a strategic plan for your business that includes a long-range strategy and short-term operational plans.  Doing this will allow you to feel more in control and have opportunity to spend your time on the things you loved about your business when you started it versus the stress inducing activities  that fire fighting causes(There are more benefits of strategic planning that we don’t have time to cover here, but, as a strategist let me say that good strategic planning and execution can propel your business to success in a more efficient manner than just winging it can)
• Build into your schedule regular “think time.”  While it doesn’t require much movement, thinking is a necessary and productive activity that allows you to pull up from the details periodically to see the big picture and tap into your creative juices.
• Build into your schedule time to engage in the things you love to do and that will re-energize you.  This may include:
• Playing hard (after you work hard)
  • Celebrating your victories
  • Investing in your continuous self development
  • Getting some rest

If you remember that you are running your business for the long-haul, for the marathon versus the sprint, you will understand why consistently working at maximum capacity will reduce the length of time over which you are able to produce results.

Stay tuned for Habit #3.

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Tags: Business success, Cecilia Edwards