I have a problem. I'm a relatively new co-founder and generally a beginner in the startup world. For the last few years that I've been doing startups and starting new businesses, I was in a constant sprint, which pretty much made me abandon my social life and relationships outside work. When I start a new project I don't get off of the computer until I finish with everything related to it. It's like the world stops for a while. Later on, I find that it was running but just without me. It's the following problem I was reflecting on recently. In order to be the best, you have to sacrifice something and avoid things that are in your way of succeeding. On the other hand, being so determined might be emotionally and physically tiring and even damaging. I'd like to hear from successful entrepreneurs, how you managed your work-life balance and what helped you avoid getting into the trap of the no hours workday?
Great question, it shows your aim is on winning the marathon not the sprint. I agree with most of the advice in this thread. For us, it came down to putting a boundary around our work hours, in my last three companies there were never boundaries and we had what we thought were sweet benefits like "take as much vacation as you want" but really it just meant longer hours before and after your time off. We did an experiment called "40 Hours a Week No More No Less" testing to see if we could meet current responsibilities, stay profitable, and beat the competition. That experiment turned into a company policy three years and has been one of the most influential things we have done as a company. There isn't enough room to provide the full background but in short, by setting boundaries around our work hours it actually increased efficiencies and created a hyper focus on prioritizing the right work each week. You can read more about it here: http://neversettle.it/actual-40-hour-weeks-in-a-startup/
Answered 9 years ago
Access 20,000+ Startup Experts, 650+ masterclass videos, 1,000+ in-depth guides, and all the software tools you need to launch and grow quickly.
Already a member? Sign in