5 Unusual Ways to Start Working Smarter, Not Harder

One of the things I love about the culture at Buffer is the emphasis on working smarter, not harder. Our team is all about getting plenty of sleep, exercise and recreation time so that our time spent working is as productive as it can be.

Working harder can be an easy habit to slip into, though. Sometimes it’s hard to switch off at the end of the day, or to take time out on the weekend and stop thinking about work. With a startup of my own to run, I find this even harder to manage lately. Whenever I’m not working on Buffer, I’m working on Exist, and it’s easy to fall into a pattern of “always working,” rather than working smart and fitting in time to look after myself as well.

If this happens to you, too, here are five methods to try that’ll help get you working smarter, not harder.

1. Take more breaks: Respecting our natural attention spans

In one of my favorite books, Stephen Covey tells a story about a woodcutter whose saw gets more blunt as time passes and he continues cutting down trees. If the woodcutter were to stop sawing, sharpen his saw and go back to cutting the tree with a sharp blade, he’d actually save time and effort in the long run.

The analogy is an easy one to remember, but harder to put into practice. Here’s what Covey says about sharpening the saw in our lives:

Sharpen the Saw means preserving and enhancing the greatest asset you have-you. It means having a balanced program for self-renewal in the four areas of your life: physical, social/emotional, mental, and spiritual.

Sharpening the saw is a great habit to get into in all areas of our lives, but I think it can be especially beneficial when it comes to work and helping us to avoid burnout.

On average, our brains are only able to focus for 90 minutes and need at least 20 minutes rest thereafter, if we consider our natural ultradian rhythms:

Just getting away from work and having a rest can be a good start.Taking breaks throughout the day* can help you to refresh your mind and reset your attention span.

Another way to implement breaks--especially when you’re busy--is towork in small bursts. The Pomodoro Technique is perfect for this. Just set a timer for 25 minutes, and when it goes off, take a short break. Stretch your legs, grab a drink, check your email, or just sit back and relax.

Or, if you’re really strapped for time, try switching to a different kind of task to give your mind a rest. If you’ve ever tried the 7-minute workout, you’ll understand how this works. As you exercise your arms, your legs get a break. Then exercising your legs gives your arms a break.

When you have lots to do, you can use small, easy tasks like replying to emails or following up a phone call to give your brain a rest from the hard work that takes up the rest of your day.

2. Take naps: One of the most efficient ways to boost your brain function

Research has shown that naps lead to improvement in cognitive function, creative thinking and memory performance. In particular, napping benefits the learning process, helping us take in and retain information better.

The improved learning process comes from naps actually helping our brain to solidify memories:

Research indicates that when memory is first recorded in the brain--in the hippocampus, to be specific--it’s still “fragile” and easily forgotten, especially if the brain is asked to memorize more things. Napping, it seems, pushes memories to the neocortex, the brain’s “more permanent storage,” preventing them from being “overwritten.”

One study into memory found that participants did remarkably better on a test following a nap than those who didn’t sleep at all:

Not only are naps beneficial for consolidating memories and helping us to remember new information (handy if your job includes a lot of research during the day!), they’re also useful in helping us to avoid burnout:

Burnout is a signal that says you can’t take in more information in this part of your brain until you’ve had a chance to sleep.

So when should you be taking a nap? Well, if you pay attention to your body’s natural circadian rhythm, you’ll probably find that you have a dip in energy levels in the early afternoon. This is because we’re actuallydesigned to have two sleeps per day, according to Loughborough University Professor, Jim Horne.

Our bodies are made to sleep for a long period overnight and a shorter stint during the day, which is why our energy levels drop and we felt sluggish or sleepy in the afternoon. Even if you don’t have a nap, this is a good time to listen to your body and have a rest.

3. Spend time in nature

Daniel Goleman, author of Focus: The Hidden Power of Excellence, suggests spending time in nature to help us reset our attention span and relax our minds.

One experiment he mentions in his book tested how relaxed people were when taking a walk down a city street versus in a quiet park. The study found that the level of attention needed to navigate a busy city street is high enough that the walk doesn’t let the brain relax enough to reset our focus levels:

Unlike natural environments, urban environments are filled with stimulation that captures attention dramatically and additionally requires directed attention (e.g., to avoid beinghit by a car), making them less restorative.

Spending time in nature, however, lets our minds fully relax and unwind, helping us to focus for longer when we return to work. Plus, other research has found that for students, motivation to learn is higher when they do so surrounded by nature instead of being inside a classroom. I think I’d probably feel the same if I were allowed to take high school lessons outside.

4. Move around and work in blocks

I read a blog post by Joel Runyon recently about a method he called “workstation popcorn,” which is pretty much what Buffer’s back-end developer Colin has been doing for quite a while.

The idea is that you set up at various cafés, workspaces (or even pubs, in Colin’s case) to get chunks of work done throughout the day. Workstation popcorn starts with a clear, thought-out to-do list. At each venue, you need to know what you’re going to work on before you get set up, so that you can jump into it immediately.

Joel breaks up his to-do list into sections--one per café that he plans to visit--and each section into three clear tasks. Once he gets through the group of tasks he has set, he moves on to the next café on his list.

Of course, you can sort out your task list however suits you best, but the important part to note is having a clear finishing point based on your task list, rather than the time, when you will move on to a new location. And when you move, cycling or walking is a good way to go, according to Joel:

Use this time to practice your zen, take a break from your screen, and get some movement into your day. Keep your phone in your pocket, and move. Take a break away from work for at least 30 minutes.

I know Colin often finds this break time helpful for thinking through what he’s working on or what’s up next. Joel also noted in his post that he’s been more productive, more active during the day and is working fewer hours since he started this process.

Whenever I’ve tried this in the past, I’ve always found that setting milestones in advance is really helpful. If you’re like me, and you usually have just one or two big projects to work through each day, you might find this useful as well.

If I’m working on a blog post, I’ll often break it into small chunks of work, such as brainstorming the outline, researching and then writing each section, and adding an introduction and conclusion. These smaller tasks help me choose a stopping point for each location I work at, before I get up and move.

Even if you’re staying in the one place, breaking your work into chunks and setting milestones as stopping points can be a good way to work lots of breaks into your day.

5. Check your email first thing in the morning

This one is really counterintuitive, especially if you have read anything online about productivity in the past couple of years. Pretty much everyone says not to do this, but I do it every day and find it really useful. Here are some ways it helps me to be more productive during the day.

If you work in a remote team like we do at Buffer, or a international team, you’ll know what it’s like to have half of your team (or more) working while you’re asleep. Especially if you need to work closely with others, it’s important to check in before you start your workday and make sure you’re on the same page as everyone else.

Since I’ve started working at Buffer, I’ve woken up to emails saying I had typos to fix, I had a new blog post published, and even that Bufferhad been hacked. Getting onto those first thing in the morning helps me make quick decisions about whether my day needs to be adjusted to fit in with what everyone else is doing or if I can go ahead with the tasks I already had planned.

Even in my own startup, which is just a two-person operation, checking email first thing in the morning can be useful. My co-founder tends to find his flow late at night when I’m going to bed, so I often wake up to emails about what’s changed in the product overnight, as well as feedback from customers in different time zones to us.

Of course, I could just wait until I get to my desk to check my email. I could even do it while I’m grabbing a coffee before I start my day. I don’t, though. I often check my email before I even get out of bed. Shock horror, I know! But hear me out--I don’t have email notifications on my phone. I don’t have them on my computer, either. And because that means I have to choose when to check my inbox, I don’t like working with my email app open, since I tend to look at it too often.

So when I sit down at my desk to start my day, I’ve not only checked my emails and replied to anything urgent, I sit down at a computer with no inbox open to distract me from whatever work I want to get started on. I can relax, knowing that I haven’t missed anything important and get on with my day, leaving my inbox processing to be done later.

This won’t work for everyone, but I think it’s worth trying if you’re in a similar situation.

What tips do you have for working smarter? Let us know in the comments.

From Entrepreneur

5 Controversial Things Entrepreneurs Can Do To Find Time For Their Brilliant Ideas

“it’s a lie”, “get out of here” and “are you really a full time engineer?”

These are some of the many reactions I get anytime I tell someone that I am not a full time blogger, or speaker, or author and that I actually work a job as a design/project engineer as well as run okadabooks.com and do script writing for WUA (latest addition). The next question that typically follows next is “How?”

To be honest I did not feel that what I was doing was special, but time and time and again people have asked me the same question “how do you find time?” So then I realized that maybe it is special … hmmm

But I honestly don’t know the full answer to that question, because time is not an item that can be found or created … it is fixed. No matter who we are or where we are, we wake up with the same amount of time everyday. But much like money, what makes you a master of time is not the amount of time you are given but rather the amount of time you are able keep to yourself.

At the end of the day we all have great ideas inside of us, ideas that could change the world. It could be as simple as writing a book or as complex as a website system to rate Nigerian Lecturers so that the truly horrible ones are slapped exposed. But these ideas rarely come out, because of that nagging thing calledtime not being available. Conventional wisdom says that if you want to pursue your life changing ideas you should quit your job and focus on them, but the issue is never really the job but rather other things you should quit which I will cover in this article titled 5 Controversial* Things Entrepreneurs Can Do To Find Time For Their Brilliant Ideas.

*WARNING: Some ideas are controversial. You have been warned.

#1 Quit Going To So Many Weddings

Don’t get me wrong, I love weddings. I love the free Jollof rice and Goat meat.

But weddings to me are extremely time consuming especially if you are involved in the wedding. From the planning stage to the sewing of the cloth to the rehearsal to the parties, everything about weddings are time consuming. When you hit 26-34 years of age you will realize that a wedding is happening almost every weekend in your life. If you commit to every wedding you are invited to … guess what, you will not have time to develop your ideas, unless you are working on a wedding planning app, in which case carry on.

But if you, like me, are working on books and other ideas, then listen to me … avoid getting engulfed in weddings. My Saturdays are very sacred, that is the first full day in the weekend I get off from work. I want to use that day to write articles, work on business ideas and add that additional chapter to that book I am always working on. So if I have a wedding I really need to go to, I schedule 3-4 hours for it. I attend the Church wedding and then go to the reception and leave early to get some work done.

Now note that not all weddings are created equal. Some weddings would require a great deal of your attention you can’t escape, but not all weddings should. For those weddings, get in, get out and work on your ideas.

Sometimes when people ask me to be a part of a wedding I politely decline, because I know the work that goes into it. Not saying I won’t come to the wedding but instead that I would be in the background. That helps me add about 10 extra hours to my week.

#2 Don’t Sleep In Church

Before someone accuses me of being Satan, wait and read.

I am not saying do not going to Church, what I am saying is do not sleep in the church. And when I say sleep I am not talking about falling asleep with saliva dripping down the side of your mouth as you snore loudly. No… I am talking about the other type of sleeping. The Nigerian sleep.

In Nigeria we have the tendency to go to Church at 7:00 am in the morning and return at 7:00 pm at Night. Haba…is it Christmas? You cannot sleep in church and expect to find time to work on your business idea… unless you want to become a pastor in which case, carry on.

But if you are like me, I go to church at 11:00 am and finish at 1:00 pm … 2 hours maximum. If they are still doing thanksgiving and prayer request after 1:00 pm that is their business. I move in and move out. Too many people are praying instead of doing, sleeping instead of acting. Here me when I say this … it is not a sin to leave church early, we have been primed into believing that if a church service lasts for over 5 hours and we leave that we are doing something wrong or sinning. Mba for me.

I have found that I am able to get an additional 4-6 hours a week by moving in and out of Church.

All in all Sundays should be used to serve God but they should also be used to work on your life changing ideas.

#3 Don’t Get Married

No wait… don’t leave the blog yet. Hear me out.

My point here is this… try and get as much as you can, done before you get married. Play around with that brilliant idea of yours… try and start it up. Because the moment you get married and the children start popping up and pooping all around, your time reduces… unless you want to become a housewife or house husband in which case carry on.

I am able to get away with a lot of things I do, because I don’t have the pressures of managing a family…yet (inserted for political reasons and to avoid trouble). I understand this advantage I have and I utilize it greatly.

Now this does not mean that if you get married you cannot find time to get things done, all I am saying is that it will be much harder. So get your ideas going before the wedding planning begins.

NOTE: Please I will not be responsible for any divorces that occur from reading this article.

#4 Ignore Family and Friends

You are not obligated to family. I say it again, you are not obligated to family.

Lot’s of people especially in the Nigeria culture don’t believe this, so they get caught up in the small stuff

“o did you hear what aunty this said to this”

and before you know it they are spending hours on end trying to settle petty ish. My principle is this…

You cannot please everybody. You will offend people whether you like it or not. And if you do offend people …. apologize sincerely. If they reject your apology, then apologize again. If they still ignore your apology then STOP APOLOGIZING AND MOVE ON WITH YOUR LIFE.

People are so caught up in trying to solve problems for their entire family or trying to settle all sorts of beef or worried about what this Aunty or Uncle thinks about them…unless you want to become a family counselor, in that case carry on.

As for me, while that is happening … me I am caught up working on my business ideas. I don’t get roped into petty stuff … life is too short and there is really no time for that.

So time and time and again I will ignore phone calls from people that will just pile me with unnecessary issues and nagging. Again these tips are not conventional if you can’t do it don’t abeg … I don’t want people saying ofilispeaks said my Husband should ignore my Mother In-law. Hain I have spoken.

#5 Learn How To Eat Lunch Fast

If there is something I have done every day since I was born… it is to eat. So when the company says you have a one hour lunch and you are spending one hour eating that lunch, something is wrong with you. Leverage your lunch time, eat lunch within 5 minutes and if you don’t have 5 minutes, then skip lunch all together because lunch time is a great time to launch your ideas.

Don’t believe me? This entire article was written during my lunch break and took me only 40 minutes!

Which brings me to the most important point of all, which is something I have talked about over and over again. Do what you do consistently regardless of what people say and soon you will wake up being able to write an article that ordinarily takes your 2 hours in 40 minutes or less and do activities in shorter times. And when you are able to do activities faster, and have the time to actually do them, then you get into the multiplier effect mode. Where to the outside world it seems like you are doing a lot of shit, when in actuality you are simply executing stuff faster while others are chopping wedding cake.

From 360nobs

These Are The Real Reasons You Hate Your Job

Look around as you board the subway tomorrow morning and you'll notice that very few people look excited for the workday ahead. If you strike up a conversation with a fellow commuter you'll likely hear them complain about how much they hate their job; their boss; and their long hours. 

Why are so many people dissatisfied with their professional lives?

Quora users offered explanations in a recent thread, "Why do so many people hate their jobs?" 

We pulled 17 of the most interesting responses:

You picked a conservative career when you were young and never switched jobs. As a recent college graduate, you probably had no idea what you wanted to do with your life. You probably also had a narrow view of the career options available to you, a strong desire to make money, and an attraction to credentials and pre-defined milestones. As a result, it was easy for you to get stuck in a climb-the-ladder type of career.

After several years of working, you'll probably feel locked in, or that your job options are limited. Especially if you feel like you are doing well financially, you'll also perceive high risk in switching careers, and it is likely you can end up doing the same thing for the rest of your life. — Marc Bodnick

You are influenced by extrinsic motivation. Psychological research shows that the fact you are getting paid makes you more likely to dislike your job. It's called cognitive dissonance: people will evaluate the pleasure they receive from an activity as lower when they are rewarded with material goods like money because it makes the activity seem unpleasant. In other words, the presence of a salary creates a negative motivation, which makes people like the work less than if they were to do it for free. — Bob Hooker

You feel like you are working for the wrong reasons. One of the most common reasons is following money. For example, you might force yourself to go against your nature and attend law school if you really want to be a sculptor. However, the idea is similar to living with someone you dislike: it may be tolerable for a few months, but not for your whole life. — Sergiy Mi

You are not living up to your potential. You feel like you settled for mediocrity and that you are failing yourself, because you know you could do a lot better if you worked in a different profession or pursued your dream job. You also might feel like you are not improving or learning as much as you could from your job. —Hannah Yang

You feel like your job lacks meaning. It goes against our basic human nature to do something for eight hours just to get money. You feel like what you're doing doesn't matter to you, your coworkers, or to your company. Instead, your efforts feel like busy work just to fill time. You don't have real motivation to do much, and find yourself quickly losing interest in your job. It is difficult to throw an immense amount of time into a pursuit you don't care about.  — Rod Graham

You feel obligated to work. People hate anything you're forced to do day after day, month after month, year after year. If someone forced you to do even your most loved hobby for a consistent period of time, you would probably grow to hate it, too. Most people don't hate their jobs, but rather the fact that they are forced to work — the obligation takes the fun away. — Mihika Kulkarni and Edouard Leurent.

You don't feel in control.  Job satisfaction comes from a sense of autonomy. If you feel disempowered, it probably sucks the energy out of you, even if you are well-paid and educated. Also, when you feel like your work is being judged by how closely it meets someone's expectations and that you are constantly taking orders, you'll feel subordinate and grow increasingly frustrated.— Kamal Subhani

You work too much. This type of lifestyle is especially apparent in bankers, lawyers, doctors, and other rigorous professions. The problem isn't always the work or the clients — rather, it's overwhelming to be on call 24/7 and to work 6-7 days a week. Everything ends up feeling like high drama. It's too much for people who want more out of life than just money. — Jason M. Lemkin

You procrastinate on the important things. When you have a big task hanging over your head, you will be uncomfortable until it gets done. If you don't tackle the worst tasks first, it will be difficult to move on to the more enjoyable aspects of your job. — Lisa Martin

Your job lacks stability. Instead of knowing for sure that years of excellent work will automatically give you a promotion, you have no idea what the future holds. Since your job brings you a constant state of uncertainty, you begin to associate it with negative feelings. It's very hard for you to work well with the fear of dismissal hanging over your head and without any rules to follow to stop it from happening. — Marcus Geduld

You place a heavy emphasis on work. If work is the only thing your life revolves around, then everything related to work will impact you deeply, whether it's conflict with your colleagues or lack of a decent salary. Make sure you distinguish between working to live and living to work. — Kiran Farooque

You live too far or too close to your job. If your daily commute is longer than an hour, you'll spend roughly ⅙ or ⅛ of your day traveling to and from your job. It's almost as if your commute is a mini job of its own. If you live too close to your job, then it feels like you never leave. — Jon Mixon

You don't like your boss. A great boss can make you feel great about doing anything, because he/she has your back, looks out for you, and makes the work all worthwhile. But a bad boss easily ruins it. They can make you feel worthless, regardless of your salary, title, and office size. It seems that the US business system is great at creating managers who can look at challenges and come up with solutions. However, it is terrible at creating leaders, or people with strong social skills who can inspire others to do outstanding work. — Drew Henderson

You don't use your non-work hours effectively. If you don't have balance in cultivating your personal interests or spending time with family outside of work, you might start to feel extremely unhappy. You should not let your employment define you or what you love, so you should pursue interests outside of the office to remember there is so much more to life.  — Lisa Martin

You have higher standards. These days, the way we evaluate jobs has significantly shifted. People hate their jobs because now, more than ever, there's the possibility to love their jobs — and you don't. When you expect your work to be fulfilling or as a source of happiness, then it's much easier for it to be unsatisfactory. Even the media portrays people loving their jobs everywhere around you, and it makes it seem like people who don't enjoy their jobs are failures. — John Jeffrey Mardlin

You have the wrong mindset. According to Cal Newport, you should try to adopt the craftsman mindset, which asks you to leave behind selfish  concerns about whether your job is ideal for you, and instead work at getting really good at one thing. No one owes you a great career — you need to earn it, and the process won't be easy. If you want to love what you do, abandon the question of, "what can the world offer you?" and instead think, "what can you offer the world?" — RJ Yates

You don't have perspective. In third world countries, people work extremely hard in physically taxing labor to make minimal wages. Having a relatively easy and cushy job for a middle class income isn't so hard in comparison. A demanding boss or small office space is nothing compared to the systemic oppression others experience. Perhaps you don't yet know the value of what you have. — Lisa Martin

From Business Insider

12 Surprising Downsides Of Getting Rich

Luxury items, mansions, and cool cars are glorified in the media, but there's a darker side to wealth.

In a recent Quora thread, “Is getting rich worth it?,” users shared the surprising downsides of being rich.

We picked out some of the most compelling ideas for why getting rich may not be nearly as great as you might imagine, and share them below:

1. You sacrificed a lot. During your years of hard work to earn money, you might have given up key relationships, cut off future opportunities, missed out on life experiences, or sold out on your true passions and dreams. If wealth simply compensates for the things you can’t do, then the benefits are a trade-off that might not be worth it. —Ben Towne and Stan Hayward

2. You could be perceived as greedy, ruthless, or a workaholic. If you buy nice things, people may perceive you as materialistic or as a show-off. Furthermore, "Your success is someone else's loss, and the cause of their resentment." —Alex Coppen

3. Being wealthy can cut you off from larger society. Either out of fear or the belief that you are somehow better than others, you start to find it harder to relate to most other people. Few people can empathize with you, so you might feel a certain sense of isolation. —Paul Buchheit

4. Friends and family may treat you differently. They might be more likely to ask you for a loan or have unrealistic standards for the Christmas or birthday presents you bring home, and if you don’t pick up the bill during a meal, you may seem stingy. Since many people think that being rich is the secret to all happiness, they may have lower tolerance if you vent about your frustrations. It can be difficult to meet the high expectations people hold you to. —Alex Coppen

5. The money might cause you to lose perspective. Ask yourself: “Do you own your money, or does it own you?” It can be easy for money to gain control over your life, whether as the subject of frequent family arguments or the constant worry of losing your wealth. —Christopher Lochhead

6. Your money becomes a means to attract attention. You can become addicted to buying status symbols, such as nice cars or homes, just to show people you are wealthy. But if you try to attract people through trappings such as amazing parties, you’ll quickly find yourself with low self esteem. —Christopher Angus

7. Your children might not learn the value of money. They might feel like they don’t have to work for or worry about money, because they grew up in such a comfortable environment. Although they will have the ambition to know they “should be” working hard, they might not develop the qualities needed to succeed like you did. —Michael O. Church

8. People want something out of you. It can be harder to figure out whether someone is being nice to you because they like you or your money. Especially if you aren’t married, it is difficult to figure out whether your significant other is into you or your wealth. —Alex Coppen

9. The things you want to buy become less appealing. Most of the things you imagine buying are only worthwhile to you because you can’t afford them, or because you have to work hard to acquire them. Once you can easily afford a high-end item, it doesn’t mean as much to you anymore. —Christopher Angus

10. You become more conscious of those who are richer than you. There’s always someone richer, and you never seem to have enough. When you earn $20M, you might meet a guy worth $3BN. Once you are at such a high level, it’s easier for you to compare yourself with others. —Alex Coppen

11. You don’t know what to do next. Most people use money as their motivation to work hard. Once they reach that goal, they are at a loss for what else to do. —Christopher Angus

12. You learn that money doesn’t change your internal mindset. Money can buy comfort, but comfort doesn’t always lead to satisfaction. "Happy people are often still happy when they become millionaires. Unhappy people are often still unhappy when they become millionaires."  —Cameron Purdy 

From Business Insider

The Top 3 Lies Every Entrepreneur Tells Herself

Most entrepreneurs have a very, very optimistic view of the world. I once took a personality assessment that concluded I was 10,000 times more optimistic than the average human being. Well-harnessed, optimism can be powerful fuel for growth. But left unchecked, over-optimism can cause huge blindspots that can lead to disaster. With that in mind, consider my list of the top three “self-talk” lies that every optimistic entrepreneur tells herself (at one point or another).

Lie #1:  “This will get easier as we grow”

Just like raising children, the challenges (and joys!) in growing a company shift over time, but they never seem to actually shrink in mental weight. On one hand, it was such a thrill in the early days to move so rapidly to ship both physical and digital product at Julep, taking an “all for one, one for all” approach to everything from guerilla marketing to back-end order generation via Excel. As we’ve grown, we’ve brought on specialized experts in everything from photography to data architecture, and almost everyone has had to give up a piece of “doing it all” in order to “do more better”. This emotional shift is one of the more difficult aspects of growth. I really can’t say what was harder—raising money from angels in hamburger tab increments or raising money from VCs, most of whom aren’t interested in women-focused categories like beauty (possibly too big and too high margin?).

Lie #2:  “I have enough money in the bank”

When I left my corporate job at Starbucks to start my own company, Julep, I went to go talk with Howard Schultz to ask for his advice.  He wished me luck, and warned me that growing Julep would cost three times more than I thought it would. Well, he was totally wrong. It actually took ten times more than I thought it would. Of course, we’re building a much bigger, more dynamic company than the bricks and mortar nail polish services business we started out with. But the truth about building a new type of company that hasn’t existed before, like the full-stack beauty company we’re growing at Julep, is that there are no preset measures of progress. There are hypotheses, hard work, and iteration of hypotheses—all of which is very expensive. So, if you can, take Howard’s wise advice and build a bigger war chest for growth than you think you could possibly ever need. I’ve never yet met an entrepreneur who has regretted taking too much money.

Lie #3:  “I have all the right people in all the right roles”

Building a company is a team sport, and one of the biggest joys of growing Julep is the tremendous privilege of working with the amazing people who are on our team. In the rush of gratitude to those who took the leap with you when you didn’t have the basics in place (in our case, an office with working plumbing), it’s easy to fall into the trap of feeling like your team is complete. All you need is a little more time, a little more brand awareness, and a little more money in the bank (see Lie #1 above).

However, all people managers need to stop frequently to ask the question, “If I were building the team today, what would it look like?” And, even more importantly, “What’s the team I’ll need two years from now, and how do I get there from here?” Often, the answer involves investing in current team members who will rise to the challenge— one of the most rewarding ways to grow a company.

But asking these questions will also identify gaps in skill set that may inform the next hire you make. For example, one of our core values at Julep is, “Be scrappy.” Often, this advocates for giving junior people more opportunity and not hiring seasoned, expensive executives too far ahead of the curve. However, if your organization is growing so rapidly that it needs another senior leader to help you scale, or you’re embarking upon a major strategic initiative, like expanding internationally, it may be wise to fill your current gap differently. And overall, if you’re growing quickly, chances are your team will need additional support throughout the org that you don’t have in place today.

The trick to seeing through these common lies of entrepreneurialism is to surround yourself with people who will tell you the hard truth, especially when you least want to hear it. I’ve been so lucky to have an incredible Co-Founder, Kate MacDonald, who shares in my ambition for Julep while being a thoughtful partner who will always set me straight from her perspective. I’m hopeful that the collaborative and honest environment we’ve created together will invite everyone who works at Julep to help me harness the power of my optimism for good, not self-delusion.

From Forbes

The Definition of Success, According to 5 Entrepreneur Superstars

Although the definition of success is subjective, there seem to be some common themes among the ultra-successful about what success really means. Very rarely does it have to do with money alone. In fact, none of these five inspiring entrepreneurs mention money at all. No, success is something much more personal and universal -- it’s all in the meaning behind the action.

So here are five quotes about success from five mega-successful entrepreneurs.

“My definition of success? The more you’re actively and practically engaged, the more successful you will feel.” -- Richard Branson

Sir Richard Branson is the UK billionaire behind the Virgin Empire of brands that include mobile carriers, a record label and a series of international airline routes. Yet to Branson, what’s most important for success is that interactivity with the work itself.

What gets you fired up? What are you passionate about? The more you’re actively engaged in the work you love, the more successful you’ll feel and most likely from the feeling, become. Love what you do for maximum success.

“My definition of failure became not trying, not the outcome.” -- Sara Blakely

While Sara Blakely’s quote is technically the definition of failure, it’s the crux of what success is: to try and try and not be afraid of failure. Success comes to those who are willing to try and risk and fail and stand up to do it all over again.

Like Blakely says, failing isn’t the outcome, it’s not trying at all. Success can only come from being willing to fail. Considering that Blakely is the world’s youngest female self-made billionaire she seems innately qualified to talk about success and the need for your willingness to fail as part of the journey.

“I’m convinced that about half of what separates the successful entrepreneurs from the non-successful entrepreneurs is perseverance.” -- Steve Jobs

If the key to success thus far is that you must be willing to fail and be actively engaged in your work, the next step toward success must certainly be to persevere. Success can come slowly and as the result of many, many trials and years of effort. It’s those who quit, like those who never try, that won’t make it through to success.

Jobs reminds you that much of success in life is continuing to come back and keep going. It may seem easy to look at other entrepreneurs and assume their success came overnight, yet rarely is that the case. By the time these “overnight successes” come to your attention, they’ve usually put in years or even decades of long, hard work. Don’t quit.

“Remember: If the most unique ideas were obvious to everyone, there wouldn’t be entrepreneurs. The one thing that every entrepreneurial journey has in common is that there are many, many steps on the road to success.” -- Tori Burch

Tori Burch is the successful entrepreneur behind the Tori Burch fashion line brand. Burch talks a lot to other entrepreneurs about the importance of hard work and the belief in yourself to be and do your own unique thing.

Entering the fashion industry is certainly not a simple task, and it would be easy for an entrepreneur to think that in a crowded industry there was little room for success. Yet Burch has created a multi-billion dollar brand just by keeping true to the fashion and vision she loves and her belief that other women would want the same style.

Don’t get intimidated by others in your industry who are headed for success. Your journey will have lots of steps but ultimately being yourself and believing in what you have to offer will carry you through. 

“I like to be involved in things that change the world.” -- Elon Musk

From Paypal, Tesla, Solar City, to SpaceX, Musk has certainly been a man involved in things that are changing the world. Ultimately, that seems to be where his success comes from, and it gets back to Branson’s original point: Do the things you’re passionate about.

Musk wanted to change the market and the perception of the electric vehicle. He’s achieved that mission with Tesla. Put your power and your work behind the things you’re truly passionate about and you just might change the world. Musk certainly has.

From Entrepreneur

HOW 7 SUCCESSFUL ENTREPRENEURS FIND FOCUS

WHETHER YOU'RE MANAGING A COMPANY OR JUST YOUR DAILY LIFE, THESE SUCCESSFUL ENTREPRENEURS HAVE GREAT ADVICE FOR CUTTING THROUGH THE CHAOS.

It happens every day. Wherever you go, anything you look at, every noise you hear is another piece of information fighting for your attention. How do you block out the noises that don’t matter in order to focus on the ones that do?

This is no easy task, especially when every ping is another temptation to pull your mind away. Entrepreneurs who want to think outside the box are constantly exploring different creative avenues in hopes of finding a strategy that will get them closer to their next “aha” moment.

We ask the several successful entrepreneurs to reveal their secrets to blocking out the noise and pushing their minds to think even more creatively than they normally do.

REIMAGINE THE SCENE

Julia Hartz, co-founder of Eventbrite

“When I'm trying to block out the noise and create space for creative ideas, I'll often go in a room on my own or pull a few Britelings [Eventbrite employees] into a room and do a spontaneous blank canvas exercise where we reimagine whatever it is we're trying to create in a way that has never been done before,” Hartz tells Fast Company.

“It takes the right type of thinker and mindset to get into that mode quickly but when it works, it's pretty incredible what you can quickly conjure up. A lot of times we're reimagining how to create a unique way of doing something at the company that doesn't stifle the organic nature of what we've built at Eventbrite.”

REMOVE YOURSELF FROM YOUR USUAL WORK ENVIRONMENT

Mark Bakacs, co-founder of Ideapod

“My most creative time is when I’m completely removed from my usual work environment. It’s the ability to connect with something bigger than your immediate situation,” says Bakacs. “It’s not thinking. It’s actually the opposite of thinking. I find that when I let go of thoughts, especially the habitual thoughts that you’re used to thinking every day, that’s when new ideas can come.”

IT’S NOT THINKING. IT’S ACTUALLY THE OPPOSITE OF THINKING.

“We’re surrounded by noise … people feel like they need to know so much. It’s like you’re not doing your job unless you know everything about your industry, unless you’re up-to-date with the latest,” he says. “But when you’re creating the latest, you just have to be up-to-date with yourself.”

Every once in awhile, Bakacs will travel to be closer with nature in order to rejuvenate his mind and think more clearly. During his most recent trip to the rainforest in Brazil, Bakacs spent some time with a shaman he met several years ago.

“Where I felt he was useful is that he gave me--through his work--an experience of myself,” says Bakacs. “I think that you hear so much about how inspiration comes from within. I think that’s really true. If you’re not connected to a part of yourself from within, then what you’re going to get is not inspiration. It’s going to be some form of imitation.”

GET SOME ALONE TIME AND STAY ON THE GO

Katie Rae, managing director of TechStarsBoston and founder of Project 11

Named one of our Most Creative People in 2013, Rae reveals that she stays on the go whenever she needs to think outside the box.

“My big way to tune out everything else is that I need to move,” she tells Fast Company. “I need things to move very fast so that I can think. So I ride my bike, go on a run, go in a car by myself and drive for hours.”

“I use a tape recorder to tape my thoughts. Some people are naturally writers. I’m naturally a talker. In these moments, I just let things flow. I’ve got to get alone and moving.”

During more desperate times, if Rae needs a desperate measure, she will force herself to do a public talk on whatever topic she’s thinking about.

“If I really have to come to a decision on my thoughts or a synthesis, there’s nothing like being overly embarrassed in front of others,” she says. “I will literally say ‘yes’ to any speaking engagement.”

I USE A TAPE RECORDER TO TAPE MY THOUGHTS. I JUST LET THINGS FLOW. 

Rae explains that she uses the experience as sort of a workshop where she can share what she’s thinking and see how people react. She then uses the audience responses to make a decision.

GET ON A PLANE AND FAR AWAY FROM ANY DISTRACTIONS

Amber Valletta, model, actress, and founder of Master & Muse

“I get really creative on airplanes. I find that being away from my phone and being up in the clouds gives me great time and distance to feel inspired again.”

If she needs to get her team inspired at Master & Muse, Valletta says the group will participate in word games or have creative writing sessions based on single words to get the mind flowing freely.

START EARLY FOR CONCENTRATION AND USE THE “CAFE EFFECT” WHEN YOU NEED BACKGROUND NOISE

Scott Adams, creator of [i]Dilbert comic strip[/i]

When he needs to block out distractions for nose-down concentration, Adams says he starts at 5 a.m. before the day overwhelms him.

“In the afternoons I take advantage of the ‘cafe effect’ which involves the recent discovery that people concentrate better when there is human background noise, so long as they can't make out specific conversations.”

To do this, Adams goes to his local coffee shop.

“When I owned a restaurant, I wrote one entire book during lunches while sitting in a booth with my laptop. The noise really helped. That was before studies confirmed that it helps.”

GET OUT OF YOUR OWN HEADSPACE

Catie Lazarus, creator of "Employee of the Month" podcast

“My dad always told me that when you’re handed a test, put your pencil down and don’t write a thing,” says Lazarus.

Her dad’s wisdom reminds her to take a moment to think, pause, and reflect every time she needs to make an important business decision.

“I’m someone who happily blurts things out, but when I need to think creatively, I shut down and get off the grid,” which usually includes meditating, sitting still, and not taking phone calls.

To mentally tune people out when she can’t physically distance herself, Lazarus tellsFast Company that she puts on headphones even when she’s not listening to anything.

“That way, people don’t bother you. I definitely do that in the office.”

SHOWER, RUN, WALK … AND MAYBE A PLANE OR TRAIN RIDE

Rachel Sklar, co-founder of Change the Ratio and The Li.st

“When my brain can whirl without distraction, I can get some great stuff done. Shower, run, walk are my top places of inspiration,” she says. In fact, the “best thing” Sklar came up with in 2014 came to her during a walk around her downtown Manhattan neighborhood.

During these thinking sessions, she keeps her phone nearby to prevent any ideas from being lost in the flow.

Sklar says time and place constraints can also be really helpful when trying to get creative. “I love working on planes and trains for this reason. For me, the ideal creative bubble is the Amtrak ride between N.Y. and D.C. Love that trip.”

From Fast Company