Sleep it off

Recently, I was knee deep into developing what will be one of my biggest web
projects ever. All day long, I was thinking in code, seeing lines and lines of script whenever I blinked for more than a second, and when I did manage to sleep at night, I was practically dreaming of solutions and processes that I needed to put into action the next morning. On the off chance that I was not in front of my computer, I would attempt to watch a movie and find myself staring at the tv screen but instead seeing my pc monitor in front of me while I worked over some design issue in my head. I was completely and totally immersed in my project and that’s literally all I could think about. It was nothing for me to sit down at the computer and pass 6-8 hours straight without stopping to eat or even use the bathroom. This was an even bigger feat considering I’d done it with a family going on with their lives behind my chair.

After one particularly grueling and frustrating day spent at my keyboard, I stood up and immediately buckled to the ground in pain – my knees and legs had locked up from stiffness and cramps shot up my thighs! I had put in a marathon 10 hours of work on the site and had barely taken a break. I remember phones and doorbells ringing, my kids trying to get my attention, but I was so focused on doing a perfect job that I effectively blocked all of that out. I’m always amazed at how I can work nonstop on my own projects but it absolutely destroys me to stay at my job for eight full hours. When you work for yourself, its so much easier to commit yourself to perfection no matter what the cost, you work feverishly and don’t clock-watch, because you are the boss and if the company succeeds you are able to reap the full benefits of that success and not just the little bit that’s parcelled out to you in your paycheck.

Thus, we put ourselves in the position to burn out a lot faster than if we were working for someone else. Many entrepreneurs have a tendency to go into their own businesses with all guns blazing, so to speak, and before you know it, you’re working 16 – 20 hours a day and just dragging yourself to bed in the twilight of the morning. You may think its all okay because its YOURS but remember, one of the reasons you started your own business was to have freedom from long hours and stressful deadlines, and to enjoy more time with your family. If you find that you’ve just recreated your former workplace in your den, then its time to stop and take a breather. It’s okay to take a day off – in fact, its necessary. When you work nonstop on a tedious project, after a while all of the information just bottlenecks in your brain stem somewhere and very little useful data is getting through. How many times have you reluctantly forced yourself to “sleep on” a problem and when you returned to it, you had a renewed sense of energy and vision, and your issue was suddenly quite simple?

Burnout is a real concern for entrepreneurs because, unlike in a traditional job, you’re trying to meet your own extremely high expectations and there’s no holiday from that. Be proud that you have such a high work ethic and have been blessed enough to be able to pursue your passion. But remember to celebrate your freedom by enjoying time off and relaxation. Leave breathing room in your projects for you to take a break and think away from the computer or desk. Take notes, if you will, from the comfort of your bed or in the wicker chair in your backyard. Then put the notes aside and go smell the flowers!! Learn not to feel guilty about leaving work behind for a moment. When you return to your work, you will find fresh ideas and a transformed approach to your work.

Believe that you will do your BEST work when you are healthy, rested and recharged.