Avoid Distractions and Remain Focused(bretthard.in)
bretthard.in
Avoid Distractions and Remain Focused
http://bretthard.in/2012/03/avoid-distractions-and-remain-focused/
3 comments
Amen. The issue is this: If you eat well, sleep right, exercise, go on dates, and your company goes kaput in 2 years, those two years aren't wasted.
If you burn every waking hour on your company, and it goes kaput in two years, what do you have to show for that time?
For me, adding exercise and learning a musical instrument to my routine have been major wins. I can have a day where everything possible goes wrong at work, and still look back and say "I got something done." It's a pattern of life that, even when things go awry, I can say that I'm closer to where I want to be now than I was yesterday.
If you burn every waking hour on your company, and it goes kaput in two years, what do you have to show for that time?
For me, adding exercise and learning a musical instrument to my routine have been major wins. I can have a day where everything possible goes wrong at work, and still look back and say "I got something done." It's a pattern of life that, even when things go awry, I can say that I'm closer to where I want to be now than I was yesterday.
I agree that you will be happier and more productive if you do these things. But, these things don't help you deliver value to your customers.
How much value can a miserable and unproductive person deliver?
I don't want to buy a beta product from a company, only to find out that it went out of business five minutes after the founder hung himself with his belt.
I don't want to buy a beta product from a company, only to find out that it went out of business five minutes after the founder hung himself with his belt.
Yes, they do...
You can't "deliver value" if you're a burnt-out 200lb unmotivated antisocial overworking mess...
(been there, done that... NOT good)
(been there, done that... NOT good)
my personal piece of advice is exactly the opposite of "Working out doesn’t matter. Dating doesn’t matter. Eating nice meals doesn’t matter. Sleeping doesn’t matter. Being 'seen' doesn’t matter."
if you follow this advice, you'll probably be outpaced by someone that is seen more than you (and thus grabs the spotlight), that has more energy due to a healthier lifestyle (and thus outlasts you in the long run) and the most important of all - keeps his sanity and morale by, you know, dating and having friends (thus avoiding burn-out).
success is much more frequently achieved by ones who are simply more visible, have a bigger network of supporters and/or can work steady in the long run. As they say it's a bloody marathon, not a sprint...
if you follow this advice, you'll probably be outpaced by someone that is seen more than you (and thus grabs the spotlight), that has more energy due to a healthier lifestyle (and thus outlasts you in the long run) and the most important of all - keeps his sanity and morale by, you know, dating and having friends (thus avoiding burn-out).
success is much more frequently achieved by ones who are simply more visible, have a bigger network of supporters and/or can work steady in the long run. As they say it's a bloody marathon, not a sprint...
Is writing a blOg post a distraction? :)
I guess it is a little ironic. Writing is a my personal burnout avoider. :)
That goes against your advice of getting away from technology to avoid burnout.
Here's my advice, as someone who's been self-employed for 5 years and recently sold a startup:
Eat well, sleep right, exercise daily, go on dates. You'll be happier and more productive.