As a business owner, you make many decisions every day. You likely make many smart decisions swiftly and efficiently, while taking additional time on more decisions that are more complex. The challenge presents itself when we make decisions on auto-pilot or make a decision without thinking through the impact. This lack of foresight often results in failing to make business decisions for improved well-being.
Failing to make decisions that are healthy for your well-being and for your business can be costly. If you have health challenges, it can be one of the key factors that lead to unmanaged health flare-ups, business stagnation, and ultimately, business failure.
This cycle of setbacks, where you have a period of productivity followed by a period of not feeling well is frustrating!
YOU CAN’T OUTSMART BAD DECISIONS!
Let’s discuss ‘good’ and ‘bad’ decisions in the context of what this article is about. This article is for individuals with health challenges who want to achieve business success while supporting their well-being. And to do so in a way that reduces stress. It’s about living a balanced life from a place of balance.
We can debate whether or not any decision should be considered good or bad. Or even whether decisions teach us what we need to learn. However, my focus here is on the likely outcome of your decisions. Will the decisions you make lead to a positive outcome or will they unintentionally detract from your success and well-being?
If this article was on how to make $100,000 in 90 days (it’s not!), I would suggest very different decisions from those I make here. I’d be recommending very aggressive business tactics without giving a thought to your well-being. In the context of this article, those would be ‘bad’ business decisions because they are unlikely to be sustainable alongside health challenges. They would be one-sided rather than holistic for your overall well-being.
I care about you more than that. A lot more than that! My desire is for you to live a life full of happiness and contentment. To have peace and to be able to contribute your gifts in a meaningful way. I want you to enjoy a successful business that is sustainable in the long run, fueling your heart and mind while giving the space for you to manage your health and well-being.
Why do we make ‘bad’ decisions for our business and well-being?
As business owners, many of us are achievement-oriented, want to make a difference, and perhaps even lean towards the overly optimistic side of life.
The result is that it’s easy to deny the true impact of our health challenges on our business and of the business on our health! We make decisions from a place of “I can do that” rather than from a place of conscious observation as to what has worked for us… and more importantly, what has not. This can spell T-R-O-U-B-L-E!
If you know my story, you know it took me five years to figure out how to successfully manage my health and my business simultaneously. I was quick to achieve business success, but also quick to run my health into the ground!
One of the most important lessons I’ve learned in more than 15 years of managing a small business alongside health challenges is that too much success too soon and without the right foundation and support can lead to unmanaged health challenges and even business failure.
And there lies the need to balance business opportunities with the needs of your physical and emotional health.
To successfully manage a business alongside health challenges, adopt these business strategies for improved well-being.
1. Be honest with yourself about the impact of your health challenges on your life and business.
In our desire to be successful, to not appear sick or weak, and to belong in a fast-moving society, it’s common to dismiss, downplay or deny our true needs. Then we push through situations, trying to do things the way we used to or the way others do. And those ways do not work alongside supporting health challenges and success in a healthy way. Ultimately, we have more flare-ups and unmanaged health symptoms and become more frustrated, stressed, and overwhelmed. It can be a vicious cycle! You can read more about samples of denying your needs here.
Pondering: List three ways your health is negatively impacting your life and business. The next time you are making a significant decision, consider how to best plan around these health challenges in a way that is healthy for you and your business.
2. Adopt new ways of thinking to resist the pull of societal norms and messaging.
Does anything scream “hustle” more than the promise of life-changing quick wins, such as 30 days to $10K months? Such claims have become so common that the FTC has proposed this “Rule on the Use of Consumer Reviews and Testimonials.” Too many consumers and new entrepreneurs have negatively impacted their health, finances, and time and energy by subscribing to quick-win solutions that rarely work.
Building a sustainable and successful business takes time. Doing so alongside health challenges requires enhanced personal self-awareness and business skills. These skills support you in operating from a place of balance in making decisions that serve your well-being and your business.
Operating from a place of balance requires self-compassion. When you are being self-compassionate, you are better able to build a business that honors your lifestyle desires, strengths, goals, and limitations. The result is that you honor your needs over societal and cultural norms. With this mindset in place, you can create a business strategy that incorporates short and long-term goals aligned with your needs and your mission, while leaving space for you to optimize your well-being. If this resonates, you might also enjoy this article Choose Courage, Not Norms!
Pondering: Have you ever been tempted to join a program or use a tool due to its promises for quick outcomes? Or felt pressured because peers were recommending a certain path? When you took such action, what was the result to your health and well-being and/or business? The next time you are making a decision to purchase a product or service, ask yourself what the driving factor is, is it coming from a place of balance or are you being swayed by societal norms?
3. Listen to your mind, heart, and body.
Your body is constantly giving you signals about your health. Learning to slow down, listen, and acknowledge those signals can help you make healthier decisions for your well-being. Developing this skill can potentially help you avoid or reduce health setbacks from your work. I refer to this as Thriving through Self-Awareness and it can greatly increase your efficiency, productivity and overall business success.
Pondering: Think of a time when you pushed your body through a work project, only to have an increase of symptoms, fatigue, or stress as a result. Looking back, had you been paying more attention to your body’s signals, how might you have mitigated the impact?
4. Build a solid foundation for your business.
A tall silo built quickly on uneven ground will tumble, as it lacks the foundation and structure to secure its sustainability. The same is true for your business. Your business foundation is key to building a sustainable business model that is flexible around the uncertainties of health challenges. Besides having your systems and processes in order, it is also important that you select a business model that is aligned with your abilities and supports your well-being.
This BalanceUP Lifestyle & Business Assessment will help you measure the strength of your business foundation across several areas. You’ll also learn how aspects of your health and well-being currently interplay with your business and life.
Pondering: When making decisions related to your business growth, do you first review the foundations of your business to ensure your business can adequately handle the desired growth? How might your business and well-being differ if you did this regularly?
5. Say no to opportunities that present themselves at inopportune times.
This can be challenging! It takes courage to pass on an opportunity that seems like the absolute BEST thing ever! However, if your health is at stake, it’s time to reframe how you view opportunities.
There will be other new opportunities. I promise! I’ve had wonderful opportunities with big-name organizations that seemed perfect for credibility, revenue, and prestige. In my early entrepreneurial days, I said YES to these opportunities without pause. This resulted in three business shutdowns between 2008 and 2012. If I could “do-over” a few of these opportunities, I would now say “No thank you, not at this time.”
Since 2012, I have learned to look at business opportunities from a more holistic perspective, in a way that honors my health, my relationships, and my long-term goals. This shift can be significant in managing both your stress and the success of your business!
If your health is not stable or if your business foundation is weak, you will likely pay the price of these ‘opportunities’ with your health, and ultimately with your business. Choose to strengthen your business foundation and work on your health and well-being BEFORE accepting these opportunities. A good opportunity is one that aligns with the right timing for you!
Pondering: What is a business decision you made in the past that resulted in a flare-up of a health issue or symptoms OR resulted in a negative consequence for your business? What decisions could you have made differently for the betterment of your health, well-being and business?
6. Build a lifestyle and business model that support your well-being.
Stop trying to ‘fit’ your well-being into the rest of your life! There will never be enough time. If you want to live with optimal well-being and provide a nurturing environment for your body (and heart) to heal to the extent of its capability, YOU have to create that environment. Nobody else is going to do it for you. It takes work, courage, and resilience. It requires patience and self-compassion. And you can do it!
Your well-being is the sum of many small and large choices you have made over many years, along with a variety of other factors for which you have less control. You must be intentional to create a lifestyle that aligns with your needs, desires, and goals and to build a business that allows you to do so.
When reexaming your business and life, remember that your work is only ONE area over your overall well-being. The other areas are your physical, emotional, social, spiritual, personal growth, and environment. By living intentionally across all areas, you become an advocate for yourself in creating a life and business that honors your entire well-being.
Pondering: Think about a recent day that resulted in increased stress or symptoms. What events unfolded leading up to that day? How did you approach these events? Looking back, how could you have engaged with the day in a more calm and mindful manner? How might that have impacted your well-being and the outcome of the day? Was there a challenge that could have been mitigated with a more aligned business model? The next time you make decisions related to the structure of your business or your lifestyle, think about the impact those decisions will have on your well-being and success.
7. Celebrate living authentically by being true to yourself. Then share your gifts through your work, actions, and kind words.
A life that is not lived authentically CANNOT be a life lived fully. To live authentically, you must honor your needs, dreams, values, AND limitations. Living an authentic life requires deep self-awareness and self-compassion. Living authentically, true to who you are, supports your well-being. When you celebrate your life by living authentically, you create the environment to live more fully and wtih greater well-being. This in turns allow you to share your best self with others and contributes to the success of your work.
Pondering: Living authentically requires that you have an awareness of your strengths, values and beliefs and that you honor those with healthy boundaries. It also requires that you accept any limitations, challenges and struggles in your life. How in-touch do you feel with all the above? Are there any limitations or challenges you are denying or diminishing? The next time you sit down to make a business decision, ask yourself if you are being authentic to who you are and to your needs. If the decision is not aligned, ask yourself what needs to change to bring it into alignment.
Achieving a more balanced lifestyle and living each day with less stress and greater well-being begins with you. By applying these strategies for building a lifestyle and business that support your optimal well-bieng, you are taking active steps to changing the trajectory of your life. Ultimately, living a balanced life is not about how many hours you work. It’s about nurturing your inner geography and finding peace within. And on this path, I wish you well.
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