Do Business Owners Really Want Balance?
They say they do, of course, but sometimes their actions suggest otherwise.
Good morning!
Here are today’s highlights:
The NFIB reports a rise in small business confidence.
The evidence indicates that older founders outperform younger founders.
Amazon has been listing products for sale without getting permission.
President Trump is threatening additional tariffs on Iran’s trading partners, which include China.
THE 21 HATS PODCAST
Most business owners say they want balance. They tell themselves they just need to get through this one crisis, this one launch, this one quarter — and then life will settle down. But what if that’s not actually the goal? This week, Mel Gravely, Lena McGuire, and Ted Wolf talk candidly about what it really takes to build a business — and about whether balance is something owners are truly striving for or simply something they feel they’re supposed to want. “I gotta tell you,” says Mel, “I just don’t know if people were really honest that they’d say that they’d be one to spend their time at their kid’s parent-teacher conference.”
Lena stresses that it’s not about right or wrong. It’s about owners making the choice that’s right for them. “You have to make yourself happy first,” she says. “It’s kind of—we always use that, ‘Put your oxygen mask on yourself first, and then you can help others.’”
The owners agree that there’s a seasonality to entrepreneurship. There are periods when the business demands more, and owners have few real options. That pressure can intensify when a company is struggling — but, intriguingly, it can be just as intense when the business is growing fast. Of course, all businesses endure periods of crisis. But what if the crises never end?
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