Is Passion For Your Business Decreasing Your Productivity?

It's common for entrepreneurs, home based & small business owners to be so passionate...can they say OBSESSED...about what they do that 16 - 18 hour days are thought about process. & while it may be common sense that they must take care of ourselves, they regularly cut corners & push ourselves to the extremes because of our passion & drive to succeed. In the face of these tendencies, the query they must ask ourselves is are they putting ourselves in danger of "burning out" our effectiveness & decreasing our productivity?

It is likely no surprise that a University of Indiana (Irvine) study found increases in blood pressure, stress & coronary disease related to overwork, & that the Japanese have a word, karoshi, which means death by overwork. The harsh reality is, no matter how much they love what they do, no matter how driven to success they are, our bodies were not made to function 24/7. Despite our thinking to the contrary, creativity, productivity & innovation flow from a properly rested & energized brain, actually allowing us to get more done. (& no, not the kind of "energy" that comes in brightly colored bottles)

Don't misunderstand here. We are not speaking about working for an hour or & whining, "I'm worn out to ______", we are speaking about putting in a full day & pushing ourselves to do even more in the name of getting more accomplished. When they do, they not only feel the effects the next day, but the day after & the day after that...significantly decreasing our creativity, productivity & effectiveness for several days.

As Joe Robinson points out in the April, 2011 issue of Entrepreneur Journal, MRI scans of brains showed that there was no difference between individuals who were "fatigued" & those who were sound asleep! Yet they tend to think (& are sometimes even taught) to "power through" fatigue.

Set reasonable boundaries for work & STICK TO THEM.

So what can they do? How can they continue to pursue our passion & stay as effective as feasible?

Take time for relaxation, recreation & appreciation.

Get the proper amount of sleep for YOU (it varies a bit from individual to individual)

Returning to the tasks at hand with a rested & refreshed body, mind & spirit, can make even difficult tasks go more quickly & smoothly, increasing both productivity & effectiveness allowing for better control of our business. & as an added bonus, because they don't feel so fatigued, we'll be better able to enjoy other aspects of our lives more.