Coming off the heels of the IT Pro conference in New Orleans followed by a cruise with Jeff Middleton and 20 other folks from the conference, I am regrouping (for a day) before heading out from my home in New Jersey to San Francisco for a half day event on Tuesday, 5/20. See the events page for more info.
On the topic of work/life balance, there is always some good thought and discussion. Well, in this regard I have been contemplating often as of late and recently discovered something. Something that is too important not to share.
If you don’t know Jeff Middleton, he is, by his own definition “a contrarian.” Therefore, I am fine with the fact that this post is not a conference summary or recap. Rather, it is my attempt to share a recent attitude adjustment I experienced as result of an excellent conversation with Jeff (over a Pina Colada with a splash of Myers Rum). The other reason behind this adjustment was also the fact that I was ready to hear it and to a certain degree, already thinking about it.
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So, like numerous others in the IT community, I work a lot. I work weekends. I work nights. I bring my laptop on vacation and even when I am not working, my attention is never too far away. I have been the sole practitioner juggling the tasks of servicing customers while growing the business and trying not to appear small. I experienced the joy of having people I trusted to run my company so that I could take a “real” vacation (real vacation means no calls/emails to/from the office or customers). I worked from home, from a real office, and have done the traveling bit. I’ve been a W2, a 1099, a Contractor, Consultant, Project Manager, Owner, Salesperson, Office Manager, Trainer, Technician, Author, Coach, and more!
The point is that whenever it came to my professional life, I have always been focused, goal oriented, and driven. I still am very ambitious (no pun intended).
There is always a trade off because one’s business can take every ounce of energy one can put into it. There can never be too much. (think of RAM in a PC/Server as an analogy). Sure we know (just like with RAM), that after a certain point the advantage of the “extra” is marginal if noticeable at all, but most business owners are extremists and do it anyway!
It is easy (or easier) to make a choice between a 16 hour day and getting home so the kids can see you before bedtime than to spending money to do the right thing.
The point is that with all the money we spend (a.k.a. “invest”) in our businesses, how much does each of us invest in family time? Do we have a more difficult time putting our hands in our pockets when the result is ‘family time’ than when the result is ‘a better server’ for the business?
For me, this hit me like a ton of bricks. When it comes to making decisions that would cost actual greenbacks and create family time, they have typically been brushed off as “not good for the business.” Well, what I came to realize this past week is it is OK to spend money on my family too! After all, ‘family time’ is a large part of why I do what I do in the first place.
So the next time you’re faced with a similar dilemma, analyze the costs on both sides. Here’s an example -
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Do you need that office admin that will cost the business another $3,500/month or can you simply work more hours to pick up the slack? Do the latter, and you’re are undoubtedly focused upon the financial health of your business. If you can do it, you’re most likely doing what is in the best interest of your business – then again, is the business growth the ONLY thing you care about?
What if hiring that admin will decrease your average work week from 55-60 hours closer to 45? Compare that to the likelihood that your average week will increase to 65 or 75 without the addition of an Admin. So, given this example, is 20-30 extra hours with your family EACH WEEK worth $3,500/month to you?
If you’ve thought about this before then congratulations, you’re more in tune that I have been. If this hits you like a ton of bricks as it did for me, well then I’ve done my good deed for the day!
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I’ll close this post with an example that illustrates this point for me. I have been traveling so extensively lately that I have only seen my kids in quick ½ day spurts a couple of times of the last 6 weeks. I have been toying with the idea of taking one of my kids (I have 4 in case you didn’t know) on one of my trips as sort of an extreme case of “take your child to work day.” Of course I never had for numerous reasons, but the largest was the added cost b/c there is zero business value ROI on that expenditure.
Given my recent attitude adjustment, I balanced what it would actually cost against the benefits to my family, my relationship with my son, and his growth and development.
So for those of you attending the “Making the Transition to Managed Services” event at the Microsoft San Francisco office this Tuesday 5/20 at 1:00 PM, you’ll not only get some great content to grow and transform your business, but you’ll get a chance to meet my oldest son, Grantham, who at age 7 will be on his first business trip with his dad.
Paraphrased from my favorite Successories print – “In the end it will not matter how much money you had in the bank or the kind of car you drove, but the world may be a better place because you made a difference in the life of a child.”
- Matt Makowicz
recently took my 7 year old on a business trip - a 2 day trip from NJ to San Fransisco. It was fantastic! We got in a morning of sight seeing before my half day seminar during which my son (in full 3 button suit) helped by setting up books, making a sign with the price of the books (in crayon) and took pictures. Later on we had drinks in the “View” a lounge on the 39th floor of the SF Marriott where you have great views of the entire city. Drinks with his dad in the “View” lounge was what he considered the highlight of the trip.