Note – this is an email I wrote about 8 months ago. It’s all about how I got burnt out on work. I’m re-sending it cause I think you’ll enjoy it.
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A big realization I’ve had this year is that successful entrepreneurs who operate at the extremes usually burn themselves out…
Case in point…
I saw a post on Facebook the other day from Alex Becker talking about how he decided to destroy his phone and all the TV’s in his house.
Why?
They were hurting his productivity.
So instead of watching less TV, or using his phone less, he simply eliminated them from his life.
After seeing his post, I kind of laughed, because I could totally relate to his way of thinking.
I went a number a years without owning a TV.
And I took pride in the fact that I wasn’t wasting my time watching TV.
I was smarter than that.
“Only idiots watch TV” I thought.
So instead of watching TV, I’d rifle through 2-3 audiobooks each week.
Knocking out all of those books made me feel good about myself.
It was like a badge of honor.
And it showed everyone that I was a “real entrepreneur”.
I thought that’s what I was supposed to do.
But here’s the problem…
Living at the extremes like this can work really well.
You can make a lot of money.
And grow your company quickly.
But it can’t last.
Why?
Because extreme behavior like this is usually driven by some deeper issues going on inside you.
So you eventually hit a wall.
And slowly but surely you start to feel the burn out.
And at that point, it doesn’t matter how much money you’re making.
Cause you realize you can’t keep this up.
This is exactly what happened to me a few years ago.
I was making more money than I ever had, but realizing I was less happy than ever before.
Everything was about work.
Work made me feel like I was productive.
And on the right path.
But I eventually realized that what I was actually doing was using work to medicate.
Work let me avoid all the pain I was feeling at the time.
I felt unfulfilled.
I was lonely.
Work was an easy way to not have to feel like that.
From the outside I probably looked like every other ambitious entrepreneur.
But on the inside, I was a mess.
Always angry…
Always feeling sad…
I was living at the extremes.
And everything was about work.
I hardly ever did things simply because I enjoyed doing them.
But over the last year or so, I’ve made some serious changes in this regard.
I actually own a TV now (a nice big one too).
And I watch TV for about an hour or so every night before I go to bed.
Why?
Because I like watching TV.
Last night I watched a documentary about the Unabomber.
And I loved every minute of it.
During college football season I “waste” 3-4 hours on a Saturday watching Ohio State play.
Why?
Because I simply love college football.
And here’s the thing…
Watching football doesn’t help my business…
Or make me smarter though…
I’m doing it simply because I enjoy doing it.
And that’s been a major change for me over the last year.
Cause I could not have done that before.
I was too focused on work.
And everything was about learning…
Or growing my business.
But I really don’t think that’s sustainable long term.
You need to do things simply because you enjoy doing them.
Anyways…
I know a lot of people struggle with this.
So I wanted to share it with you.
If you feel like you always have to be working…
Or you always have to be learning…
Just know that there’s a better way.
You can do the shit you enjoy, and still be veryy successful.
I promise ya that.
That’s all I got for ya today.
If you know someone who would get a lot out of this email, feel free to forward it on to them.
Take care,
– Justin
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