“The art of being wise is the art of knowing what to overlook.” - William James

Reality starts to set in after the first few years of owning a business. You wake up to find that your ticket to freedom has turned into a daily grind and a chore. Your one-time American Dream has turned into a sentence of servitude.

Just because you own a business doesn’t mean you have to give up a fulfilling personal life. You should view your business as a tool to help you create more fulfillment, freedom and wealth.

In order to build a business that functions without you, you need to let go and escape the details. Don’t let your ego, self-worth or self-esteem get tied up in the business. Your value as a human being is separate and apart from the value of your business.

While your business is important, it is not more important than your family and friends, your health and your joy in life. You can always make more money, but you can’t make more time to live your life. You only get one chance to be a dedicated spouse, parent, friend, etc.

You don’t have to be trapped by or have your business dependent on you. There are always options. If you can’t keep out of the details of your business, you can hire a professional business manager to handle the day-to-day operations or sell the business to someone else. When you realize that life is not finite, you make wiser choices.

Want more life? If the answer is yes, you must change your mindset. Set a goal to work less, make more money and live a more enriched life. You may have a vision for your business, but you need aspirations for your personal life, as well. If you don’t have a vision for your personal life, it will always be an afterthought. Work on your life by being proactive rather than reactive.

Giving up day-to-day control of a business is difficult. Delegating can be a challenge and even scary. If you want more fulfillments in your life, you must yield control to gain freedom.

It is impossible for you as the owner to manage every aspect of your business. You must put plans, procedures and policies in place and then trust your people. Your reluctance to rely on others is a weakness, not a strength.

If you need help letting go, get a business coach or other advisor who will help you become a Strategic Business Owner, or SBO. Learn a process to help you work “on” your business rather than “in” it. Think and act like a CEO, not a front-line employee. Put business systems in place to replace you. Lead your team and leverage your opportunities. Set personal and business goals and be accountable for reaching them.

Get your priorities in order before it is too late. Here are five action steps to take now:

Acknowledge your mortality. When you face the reality of death, you can begin to truly live your life. Determine how you want to live your remaining years based upon what’s important to you.

Realize that winning at business while losing at home is not success. Schedule time throughout the week with your family. Give them your undivided time and attention.

Before doing a task, ask whether the task leads directly to increased profits, significantly reduced costs, improved customer satisfaction or building a better business. If it doesn’t, don’t do it!

Admit to yourself that you have habits, comfort zones and limiting beliefs that are holding you back. Set a goal to discover and confront these mental barriers.

Stop trying to manage your time, and start managing your relationships both inside and outside the company. Focus on the relationships you want to spend time with and those that need your attention.

Realize you are not the business and the business is not you.

For more information about the Growth Coach Strategic Mindset program for owners/managers or the Sales Mastery program for sales/service professionals, contact Kay Wakeham at k.wakeham@thegrowthcoach.com or call 361-993-2875.