Flush the Toilet: Young Entrepreneurs

You’re at your computer typing away and working on your business as usual; just a typical day living the life as a young entrepreneur. You glare into the computer screen and see yourself. You think about how young you are and how well things are going for you. Maybe it’s been a year or two since you started your business. Maybe you took a break from college to focus your time on your company. You’ve been having a blast working on you company and everything seems to be looking good.

But as you sit back and see yourself in the large flat-panel Dell screen, you can’t help but think about all of the sacrifices you’ve had to make to get you where you are today. You can’t help but think that you’re life as an entrepreneur is sucking everything out of you.

You haven’t hung out with you friends in weeks, you catch yourself only talking about business when someone tries to spark a conversation with you, and you are beginning to feel so trapped with all of the work and clients that you have to provide for. The pressure is building up and no matter how successful that you’re becoming, you still feel that you’re at a crossroads between happiness in your life and success with your business.

Over the past few months you’ve made more money than most of your friends’ parents have made in a year. You’re on top of the world when it comes to your business and your baby is only growing and bringing in more and more clients than ever before.

Holy shit! You’re 21 years-old and you’re really doing it! You’re really making things happen with your business; it’s finally all coming together. You’re blowing up. But hold on… just hold on one minute…I’m not fully happy with my life. Something is really missing here.

You think back to the days when everything seemed so simple. The days when your friends would call you on your celly to hang out and go party somewhere and you’d gladly join them in a second; The days when you woke up in the morning not thinking about all of the work that you have to do for the day; The days when everything was so damn carefree and when things were unpredictable and spontaneous.

But since you’ve become a successful entrepreneur things have changed. You wake up and the first thing you think of is what work needs to get done for what client; you think about all of the emails and calls that you have to make and meetings that you have to attend; you think of those bills that you have to pay and those accounts that you have to open. Your days are so predictable and all of your creativity is poured into your business.

When your friends call you to come hang out you reply by saying: “sorry guys, I can’t make it tonight, too much work – maybe next time” When your family and friends ask you what’s wrong when they see you slumped over the keyboard with a distraught look on your face you respond with: “oh nothing, just thinking.”

But you can’t fool them, they can feel the stress floating off of you into the air. You ask yourself “how did this happen? How did my life get to this point? ” “This doesn’t make sense… my business is blowing up and I’m sitting here unhappy.”

Ok readers… It’s time for me to jump in and help this person out. So listen up if you feel like you’re that young entrepreneur that I just described above, or if you feel like you’re turning into that person. If you feel like your business is taking over your life and things are getting twisted, then something needs to be done right away before it’s too late and you decide to give up on your business because it’s just become too overwhelming for you to handle.

We all want to become successful with our businesses. We are all willing to put everything on the line if we feel that it can help our business. As entrepreneurs we are so focused and passionate about what we have to do in order to succeed and live the lives as successful businessmen in a world where so many people are unhappy with their jobs.

We are driven and even considered workaholics. Sometimes we get so caught up in our work that we forget about giving ourselves a break. Since we are our own bosses we tend to be strict on ourselves and push our strengths to the limit.

But here’s the thing, things can get very dangerous once we start forgetting to have fun and relax sometimes. Things can become very complicated when our business is doing well but we’re constantly at home working on the next big thing when our friends and families are enjoying themselves as we watch in the background. There needs to be a balance.

Yes, the time that we sacrifice now can eventually lead to a life filled with success, millions of dollars, power, fame, and great respect, but we have to remember that this isn’t a one man journey; without the companionship and support from the ones that we love and respect, there will always be a missing piece to the puzzle of success.

We must take into account that we can only reach certain levels of success with our businesses; without the company of others, we’re destined to live lives that will always be half-complete. We have to – no matter what – make time for those people that we care about and the people that care about us.

There comes a time in our lives as entrepreneurs when we have to decide what really, really makes us happy in life. You can have all the clients, members, and subscribers in the world and all the money that comes with them, but you can still be that person sitting at home staring at your reflection in the computer thinking about how unhappy you are.

You have to get it straight now before it’s too late. You have to stop working so hard that you’re inadvertently pushing away the people that you care the most about in the world. You have to consciously think of these people as a part of your business and as vital members of your organization.

For once just forget about the money! Forget about your clients! Forget about becoming successful! Forget about the work that’s sitting on your desk waiting to get done! Forget about your goals! Forget about ALL of that!

Now close your eyes and just think about the things that really matter to you the most. Remember all of the people that have supported you when you were just starting out. Remember your family and how much they love and care about you. Remember all of the fun times that you had hanging out laughing with your friends. Remember the days when you woke up excited about something other than your business. Remember the time you met that guy or girl and when he or she changed your life forever.

It’s time for you to remember the most important clients that any entrepreneur can ever possess in a lifetime: your family and friends. These are the people who are at the foundation of your business because they’ve been there from the beginning before anything or any one else – before the success.

It’s time to wakeup and start fresh. Stop looking at your business as a separate entity from your family and friends – they’re one in the same, silly! It’s time to work hard not only on your business, but also on your relationships with others on a level that isn’t about making money or getting clients.

I know… I know… it’s hard and you’ve thought about just forgetting about your business so you can go back to the way things used to be, but that’s not the answer. The solution lies within you, you just have to let it out and realize that you’re on the cusp of success and a time like this will never present itself again in your life.

You can be happy with still running your business and making time for your friends and family. You can do it! You just have to recognize what you’ve become and make a real effort to get out of that office, garage, dorm room, wherever it is that you conduct your business, and just allow yourself to relax and take a breath.

You’re young, do NOT allow your business to consume these years of your life; years that will be long gone and never to return. Take advantage of your youth and live life to its fullest extent. Cherish every moment you are here on Earth with your business AND your friends – you need BOTH in order to have true happiness.

So it’s a new day: the sun is high in the sky and the birds are singing. You’ve just taken a seat in your business chair and the calls and emails have begun. Hours have gone by and you’re deep into your work. You’ve just finished programming your client’s site or updating your e-commerce clothing store with new shirts and jeans. You’re pretty much done for the day, but being the passionate entrepreneur as you are, you continue to work and work.

Ring…Ring… Ring…. It’s the phone! It’s your friends wanting you to come out with them and have a good time. You’re mind automatically splits in half: on one side you think about continuing to work and get more things done and on the other hand you think about allowing yourself to relax and have fun — for once — with your friends.

Hmmmm… what should I do…?

If you’ve learned anything from this article you should already be out with your friends RIGHT NOW. Go have some fun — your business will be there in the morning.