Being in business is hard, there’s no pretending it isn’t but it’s also a lot of fun. Sometimes though, the day-to-day grind, or a specific issue will start to wear on you and you can no longer summon the enjoyment that usually drives you. When that happens, here are 5 ways to make business enjoyable again.
Get rid of the tasks you don’t like
Look at what you do each day, week or month and note the things that you don’t enjoy. Then find a way to get them off your plate. Outsource them, give them to someone else in the business to do, look at whether they’re really necessary or if you can find another way to handle them that isn’t so horrid. If you really hate doing something, it’s probably costing you way more to do yourself than it would to get someone else to do it for you.
Do something fun
We all have some of those pet projects that we’d like to do, but don’t necessarily need to do. But if you need a bit of a business pick-me up, spending some time doing something you’re passionate about is well worth the time it takes. For me it’s something involving tech, whether it’s trying out a new program, making over my website or doing a short course on a piece of software or process. Whatever it is doing something you love can make business feel fun again.
Get inspired
What inspires you? Is it learning about business, talking to your customers, talking to other businesses, reading about industry trends or news, looking at your profit & loss statement? Whatever it is that inspires you, get onto it and inspire yourself to a better place.
Talk it out
Talk to someone who knows what you’re feeling. If you’re in business you probably have already cultivated some business friends. Give one of them a call and offer to buy them a coffee or lunch, or even dinner if you’re feeling really stuck! Make sure it’s someone you can trust, then you can vent, commiserate and complain to your heart’s desire and get it all out of your system.
Get out
The nuclear option… If you’re really not enjoying business and you can’t see a way out of it. Consider whether the best thing for you is to leave the business altogether. Whether that means going back to being an employee, starting a new business, going part time and getting part time employment, or going into partnership with someone. If your business really doesn’t work for you – there’s no shame in giving it up.
Of course, there’s no guarantee that these will work, and sometimes it might take you a while to figure out how to solve the issue. In the meantime though, these ideas may help get you out of a negative funk and get you back on the path to make business enjoyable again.
