Jerrit Gluck / CEO at Voltair Power Inc.
It’s the American dream: running a successful business by day, free time with a close-knit, loving family at night. Many entrepreneurs work hard each day with that goal in mind. But it’s not easy.
Not every entrepreneur would willingly let go of half of the dream to achieve the other half, but I know from experience that if your home life is suffering because work demands too much of your attention, you’ll never be happy – regardless of your success level.
Here is a key question to remember: “Did I accomplish everything that I wanted to?”
One should never wish that they had done more than they did. One shouldn’t die with regrets. And a person should always ask themselves, “What is ‘success’ to me?”
The fact is that being a successful entrepreneur requires a lot of sacrifices. It’s way more than just the excitement of setting your own hours. Family time, having kids, sharing life’s precious moments can all be sacrificed in the name of success. Only you can decide what sacrifices are worth it.
If balancing work and life is an issue, one key component is allowing your team to do some of the work and not feeling like you’re the only one capable of doing the job correctly. Trust your team. Often, this is easier said than done.
That’s one of the key lessons I’ve learned along my way to building a successful business. There are others – about the risks of not truly “living,” about not chasing your dreams, about accumulating too much stuff. There are cautionary tales about envying others, about comparting yourself to others, about letting other people’s negativity hold you back. Lessons about procrastinating, and so many examples of the importance of balancing work time and home time.
I can tell you from personal experience that chasing your dreams and building a successful business is hard work, and always comes with a price. There are many ups and downs and nothing is ever as good or as bad as you think. There will be many days when you want to quit.
The best thing you can do is take it one day at a time, while keeping your long-term plans in mind. Instead of focusing only on the big changes you want to make, focus on waking up and doing what you must do that day.
You’ll look up after a while and realize you’ve reached “success.” Just make sure you know the signs, so you know you’re a success.
Life is too short to spend even a single moment miserable. Chase those dreams, build your business and create an amazing life – but always keep in mind what’s most important. That’s how you arrive at the end of your life with a smile on your face, and few regrets.