Entrepreneurial Self Care: Don’t Sacrifice Health for the Wealth

I think in the entrepreneur/business world, hustle is often promoted even at the expense of taking good care of health. As if you’re going to be more on your game when sleep deprived, eating fried greasy food, and out of shape? I don’t buy into this myth and I think if we’re honest with ourselves, we know we can’t be as productive when we neglect health.

In the case of someone like myself who has a lot of restless, creative energy, but is given to distraction, exercise and eating healthy isn’t a luxury I can worry about once I’ve “made it.” It directly correlates with my mood and my performance at work.

My mind and my ability to problem solve is infinitely better when I’m physically active. This is one reason that I recently built myself a standing desk. And I work increasingly more on my phone.

The old days of making excuses for sitting around because I work in digital are obsolete.

I sit here typing this post on the locker room bench in the gym inspired and fueled by endorphins after a workout which followed a busy morning of prospecting on LinkedIn DM, follow up calls, and closing a new client.

No doubt in mind, this will power me through the rest of the day. This is the BEST way to start the morning and the week! 💪

Riding the Rollercoaster of Entrepreneurship

Expect the unexpected. That old phrase rings especially true for entrepreneurs. 🛎

One day things are cruising. 🚢 The next, you may be in crisis mode. And then the next moment you may experience unprecedented levels of growth! 📈

Yesterday morning: Closed a new deal and followed up with two leads.

This afternoon: One client still deciding if they are staying or going. Signed a renewal with a current client.📝

This morning: Lost an account and gained a new one in the span of an hour.

Some leads take months of negotiation and nothing happens. At other times, I’ll receive a message or phone call out of the blue and we start right away. 📱 Sure, some will insist on the importance of process and develop a system to minimize the unpredictability. And I’m certainly a fan of having a process. But, at the end of the day, business is business and in the real world 🌎 , not everything can be reduced to a neat little academic formulaic system.

This line of work is certainly not for the faint of heart ❤️ who enjoy stability and predictability. For those who don’t mind or even enjoy the rollercoaster of entrepreneurship, it’s the ride of a lifetime. 🎢 😀 #entrepreneurship

Are You Really Providing Value or Are You All Talk?

There is a lot of talk about “providing value.” You need to give value to your audience, your prospects, your customers. Prospects have to be made to understand the value of what you offer.

At times, it sounds tired and cliché.

How many of us are really searching for additional ways to provide more value to others — not only to our customers but even to people in our personal lives?

Are you honestly being creative and thoughtful about how much value you can deliver or are you more concerned about what you get in return?

Something to think about over the weekend!

Is There a Fine Line Between Follow-Up and Being a Pain in the Ass?

You’re in a meeting or on the phone. You’ve made your pitch and the other party sounds interested. Then, they say: “We’ll be in touch.” They’ll call you (or email or text or DM).

Now, what?

Do you push and not leave the room or hang up the phone until they have signed on the dotted line or paid you the money? I certainly don’t believe in waiting for people to get back to you if you really want the account. But how much time should one give the prospect to decide? In my experience, most people who contact you aren’t actually ‘ready to buy’ just yet.

Is there a fine line between follow-up and being a nuisance?

I find it interesting that I often get so many contradictory responses to this question. Some will say that you’re not doing your job of following up until you’re told how annoying you are. At the other extreme, some are timid and caution against coming off as “desperate.”

I believe in being relentless, but I also believe it can be done tactfully without turning someone off. Do you agree? Disagree?

What are your thoughts?

Why I Love Being an Entrepreneur

There are a lot of things I love about being an entrepreneur launching a burgeoning business. Are there drawbacks? Sure. Every job has those. But on the whole, very happy and feel super blessed to be able to do what I’m doing and have the freedom even when things can be uncertain.

One thing I enjoy is the rush of closing a new deal. Sitting on the crowded NY subway this morning, I’m filled with excitement. Excitement at the possibility I may leave this meaning with some money in my hand. A lot? No, not so much. But, while money is necessary and important, I’m thrilled more by the chase. The pursuit. The idea of getting my foot in the door and being able to show a new client what we’re made of.

The fad of entrepreneurship with its focus on big exits and raising capital is so not my scene. I love those entrepreneurs with that hungry hustler spirit who think practically and bide their time, working tirelessly but taking pride in the little accomplishments and small steps along the way to success.

Plan for the Unplanned – Entrepreneurship is an Endless Series of Moving Parts

You can plan all you want.

But remain open to the possibility that your plans may have to change.

I don’t believe in getting too married to one plan, one process, or one tactic.

I view building my business as a puzzle with moving pieces. It’s important to be flexible and adjust to new realities, feedback, changes, and other variables.

The beauty and advantage of a start-up or small business over a larger enterprise is its ability to nimbly adapt without too many constraints.

I’m very focused on my goals and on delivering my services, but I’m still attuned to other possibilities, and I try to recognize other opportunities when they present themselves even while still being all in on my business.

Branding is Telling Your Story

A storyteller.

That’s what I am.

That’s what I’ll always be.

I didn’t choose that role. It’s something I was born into.

Long before the word, “storyteller,” became a buzzword and way before the whole “marketers are storytellers” thing became a cliche, I was telling stories. Whether it was making up games and writing short stories and manuscripts as a kid or creating content for brands and communicating their message, it’s all from that same place.

While writing is my primary passion, and it may be yours as well, there are many ways to tell a story — Film, pictures, audio etc. We’re living in a time where content creation and distribution is democratized and cheaper and easier than ever before. That also means there’s more competition. But if you’re talented and you’re persistent, and you pay attention to the needs of your audience, you’ll break out of the noise.

So, start that podcast or that blog or that vlog or whatever suits your communication style and start communicating your story — your truth. When you tell a story that has people’s attention, countless opportunities will open up for you in life and in business.

Building a brand is ultimately what will help you differentiate and stand out in a crowded market.

Be the Bigger Person

Being the bigger person doesn’t mean you’re letting others walk all over you.

Quite the contrary.

Being the bigger person, not getting even, settling the score, or playing tit for tat gives you the leverage.

You win when you don’t dwell and instead focus on the positive. You don’t gain by being petty even when others let you down or mistreat you.

Business and entrepreneurship is a rough game that has forced me to grow in so many different ways and push past my perceived limitations daily. It’s not always easy, but I’m grateful for the process and the opportunity.

Every day is a small step forward.

Being the Best Isn’t Good Enough

It’s no longer enough to be the best at your craft. If you’re not doing the extra work to communicate to the world, provide value, and build some long-term relationships even if there is no short-term gain or immediate payoff, then I don’t see how you can possibly expect to grow.

To get people to care or appear on the radar of your target market, you need to do a lot of little things besides your regular work, which many of you don’t want to do — Examples: Putting out free content, mentoring, doing free work for influencers, making time to help others and do favors without expectation of getting anything in return.

Be great at your craft. Find as many paying clients or customers as you can. But you also have to do a lot of work that has no immediate payoff. I have been doing much of this work and it’s led to many opportunities, such as referrals, clients and people reaching out because they heard of me or saw my content.

If you’re not willing to do this extra work or view it as beneath your dignity, please understand that a competitor willing to do the work will be more than happy to take your spot. You can rant about it on LinkedIn and in networking groups or among colleagues over a few drinks. But no one is listening and no one cares. Think long-term.