Bruce’s Wealth Blog

I spoke to someone who is under a lot of stress today.  She is a business owner who I have a lot of respect for.  The conversation reminded me that when we think about starting a business we have visions of spending months in Tahiti lying on a beach with a drink in our hand that comes with its own little umbrella to shade it from the hot sun.  We don’t think about the work, time, effort, sweat, and sometimes even blood it takes to get there.  But the truth is that everything has a cost.  And, freedom, even financial freedom, does not come free.  The conversation also reminded me that I had endured similar struggles.

For me, the stress really started pounding me when I started adding other things to my business. It was really difficult to stay focused on one thing because I kept switching hats. One minute I was negotiating a short sale, the next minute I was an educator, the next minute I was a social worker, and then I was a landlord. I was doing the work of about 5 to 7 people. What really made me mad was that none of those 5 to 7 people were doing their job well. As a result, my business was spinning out of control. I was at a point where I didn’t even want to get out of bed.

After you start a business and start achieving some level of success you eventually learn that you have your arms around a beast of a business. It is bigger than you ever thought it would be.   It is starts to take on a life of its own, and you are trying to control it.   It is stressful and it is scary.   What adds to the stress and the fear is the fact that you are afraid others might find out how out of control your business really is.  You become paranoid about changes that occur in your business relationships.  You end up thinking even your close associates are out to get you and that there is no loyalty anymore.

If you haven’t experienced this yet, you will.  I did and most everyone I know who has started a business of any kind has.  So here are some things I have learned that may or may not help you. Please let me know if anything rings true here.

1. You need a “Sabbath.” It does not have to be a religious Sabbath. But the idea is that your life needs to be cyclical and part of that cycle is rest. You sleep part of the day, then you are awake part of the day, then you are asleep, etc. To have one day out of seven where you refuse to involve yourself in any form of business is crucial. It doesn’t even have to be on a Sunday. You can pick any day you want, but when you pick it commit to keeping it the same day and don’t ever let anything intrude under any circumstances. You would be surprised how critical rest is. When I was writing software or involved in solving hardware or software problems, it was often in the middle of the night when I came up with the solution. That was because I let my brain rest.

2. Identify the things you can control and control them. Let go of the stuff you cannot control. We spend too much time and energy on the stuff we have no control over. You can control the content of the stuff you send out. You cannot control the content of the stuff people receive, or how they interpret what you send out. You can control your behavior toward others but you cannot control their behavior toward you.  Often we spend so much time trying to control the things we cannot control that we lose control of the things we can.  It is best just to control the things you have power over.

3. Accountability is good if it is used correctly. Accountability should never be used to affix blame. Blame is never relevant.   Blame takes the focus off solving the real problem.  I have watched companies spend weeks investigating a problem so they could assess blame while the problem went unresolved.  It is better to focus on the solution and stop wasting so much effort on blame and retribution.  Accountability is different.  We think about, “holding someone accountable,” as being synonymous with, “if it breaks it is his fault.”  But again, that is not accountability.  Accountability is a combination of responsibility and communicating results.  Accountability should be used to understand what is going on with your business so you can anticipate the future. Used correctly accountability will allow stakeholders to anticipate and allocate resources on the next phase of the project or to start a new project.   The challenge is to introduce that accountability without taking you precious time away that are needed to complete the project. Business owners have a responsibility to know what is going on.   That should not be confused with micro managing.  A simple reporting mechanism should be enough.   But I have to admit, while I believe accountability is important, I find it difficult to hold myself accountable. I think that is normal with entrepreneurs. I think we all find it difficult to keep ourselves accountable. But our businesses depend on it.

4. Focus is critical. We can only focus on one thing at a time. It is important that we don’t dilute ourselves too much by following the next shiny object. That is where I have made major mistakes in my business and why I have run into the financial difficulties in the past.   As a result of those costly mistakes I retooled my business and adjusted my mission to one that is clearer today.

5. Taking a page from Jim Collins, I have to say it is critical to get the right people on the right bus and in the right seats, and to get the wrong people off the bus. This is tough because we don’t want to fire good people. But good people aren’t any good if they are not in the right seats.  It also means firing a client.  That is right, sometimes the client is in the wrong seat or even on the wrong bus.  When we recognize that we need to fire them.  Even more difficult is when the business owner learns that it is he who is in the wrong seat or on the wrong bus.  Sometimes that means the business owner needs to get off the bus completely and let someone else drive.

6. Change is sometimes good. Change for the sake of change is often not good. But, change is inevitable. If your business is flexible and adaptable to change like the amoeba, then your business will thrive in many different economic environments. If your business is not flexible and adaptable to change it will become extinct like the dinosaur. Be the amoeba.

You may be able to relate to some or all of these things.  If you do, you are not alone.  I would not be writing about them if I had not attended life’s seminars on the subject.  You have a choice.  You can think you are different and that these things will not happen to you.  If that is the case, then chances are that you will be sitting in one of life’s seminars learning that these things will indeed happen to you.  Or you can learn from my experience in the seminar of life.  The only thing I can guarantee is that attending life’s seminar will be more expensive.

Take care and happy investing!

Bruce..