The 7 Habits of a Healthy and Happy Entrepreneur

You’re probably busy all the time. In fact, you might be tempted to skim this post because you have a pile of work to go through (resist the temptation).

With a busy schedule and people pulling you in all directions, when exactly do you take care of yourself? I’m guessing the answer is never!

What many entrepreneurs forget is that physical and mental health is crucial. If your health is neglected, the effects will be reflected in your business.

I’m sure you don’t want this.

Thankfully, making a few lifestyle changes can ensure that you are living a healthy and happy life. Not only will you begin to look good and feel good, your performance at work will be optimized.

This means that you can put 110% in establishing your business and growing it successfully. Sounds like a win to me.

But where exactly should you start? Well, here’s the low down on maintaining a healthy lifestyle amidst trying to be a BOSS!

 

1. 30 Minute Sessions, 4 Times a Week

There is no shortage of exercises that you can perform; running, swimming, cycling, weight lifting, boxing, tennis, chasing your neighbor’s dogs off your compound e.t.c.

Whatever your exercise preference is, you need to include it in your daily routine.

I would recommend that you exercise first thing in the morning, as this clears the exercise requirement from your calendar. If you’ve spent the day chasing clients, berating employees, and writing angry letters to your suppliers, you’ll probably want to head straight home rather than hit the gym.

Exercising on a regular basis definitely requires self-discipline, but the benefits include increased energy, stress relief, weight loss, increased self-esteem, enhanced sleep quality, and improved moods. Sounds pretty great to me.

 

2. Shut the World Out

The life of an entrepreneur is exhausting. In fact, it might seem like everything is moving at 100 miles an hour. When the world is moving fast you feel less in control.

Soon enough you’ll get stressed, your BP will rise, and your business partner will seem like the perfect punching bag.

To avoid a jail sentence, I’d advise you to take a step back and shut the world out…even if it’s just for 10 minutes.

If you can’t leave work, you can simply shut the door to your office (or the broom closet), and spend some time in solitude. Take a few deep breaths and clear your mind of the issues weighing you down.

Once you’ve gotten your feet planted firmly on the ground, you can go and deal with James the bumbling IT guy.

Away from work, you can also choose to de-stress through yoga, meditation, prayer, massages, and even a visit to a sauna. Taking this time for yourself is essential for your mental health, and it ensures that you never feel too overwhelmed.

 

3. Your Body is a Temple…

..so respect it! When you’re constantly on the move, you pay little attention to what goes in your mouth. This is how you develop a nutritional regimen that consists of stale food and fatty fries…very classy!

But I don’t blame you; if I’m hungry and all that’s available is a cheesy chicken pizza, I’ll have to make the tough decision to eat it (we all make sacrifices).

On a more serious note, the unhealthy food that’s easily available is bad for us. It doesn’t provide the necessary fuel that we need to crush it, and it ensures that we will drop dead at 50.

Don’t we want to be hustling at 95? That’s the dream!

To prevent the adverse health effects resulting from an unhealthy diet, you need to carry a healthy snack or meal with you.

You should also come up with an easy to follow meal plan, so that you don’t waste time each day figuring out what you’re going to eat. You can also practice batch cooking so that you have all your food prepared a week in advance.

If you don’t want to carry lunch, you can research healthy restaurants in your area and take the numbers of delivery programs; because that’s what lazy busy people do.

When you are following a healthy and balanced diet, you will find that you are more alert during the day, and there’s less chance of you snoozing through an afternoon meeting and getting fired by a client.

 

4. There’s a World beyond These 4 Walls

If you spend a lot of time in front of a computer (like I do), there’s a tendency to forget that there’s a world outside.

But shock and horror…there is! And it’s beautiful! There is green grass waiting for you to lie on it, sun waiting for you to bask in it, and bees looking to sting you and send you into anaphylactic shock.

Unless you live in Beijing, going outside and breathing in the fresh air can do you a lot of good. It helps you relax, and you absorb the necessary vitamins that your body needs.

If you feel like you’re too busy to spend time outdoors, take some of your daily tasks and do them outside. Have walking meetings with your clients, take your laptop and write while sitting on an outdoor bench, brainstorm under an apple tree, the list is endless.

 

5. A Pint of Beer is Not Equal to a Glass of Water

Drinking water offers numerous benefits; your muscles are energized, your skin becomes clear, your cravings are curbed, your kidney function is excellent, and normal bowel function is maintained.

Even with all these benefits, most of us will opt for sodas, sugary drinks, and alcohol…because they taste better! However, it’s essential to keep hydrated throughout the day, especially if you are running up and down getting things done.

Fruits and veggies also contain a high amount of water, so eat meals that include good portions of watermelon and spinach.

For those who mainline coffee, you should make the switch to tea. Rumor has it that the random muscle jerks stop once you make the switch!

 

6. Get your Lazy On

A few years ago, Arianna Huffington was admitted to the hospital for exhaustion. I know this because she spoke openly about it, and not because we have personal chats over Skype.

Using her own experience as an example, she showed other hard working individuals what the importance of rest is.

I know that this is not what you want to hear. You want your business to succeed, and you need to use every single minute in the day to achieve this.

The problem is that our productivity steadily decreases and then falls to zero as the day progresses. This means that you often work yourself to the bone performing tasks below your optimal potential.

How about you sleep the required 7-8 hours a day, and optimize your performance in a shorter time period?

Sleep allows us to recharge, refresh, and revitalize, and it should never be sacrificed.

You’ll wake up in the morning with a clear mind, a rush of motivation, and a nasty case of bed hair!

 

7. Bob is Fun, Be More like Bob

When your sole focus is building your business, personal relationships will fall by the wayside. You’ll stop spending time with your friends, you won’t call your parents, you’ll neglect your spouse, and your child will forget what you look like.

That’s why you need to schedule time for fun!

Take time each Sunday to sit down with the people you tolerate love, and connect with them. Disconnect from your business for a few hours, and catch up on what your friends are doing.

As your business becomes more established, take a few days off for a vacation. Walk with the bears, swim with the sharks, roll in the sand with desert cobras. Live a little dammit!

 

Final Verdict

Work is important. Building enterprises is important. But taking care of you is most important.

It is tough to reverse the effects of a neglected body, and that is why you need to get in front of it and start taking care of your physical and mental wellbeing. Using the expert advice above, you can create a routine that revolves around maintaining a healthy lifestyle.

And if you doubt my expertise, just know that I once watched 30 minutes of The Doctor. All kidding aside, I hope you take the steps towards cultivating a healthy lifestyle.

If you found this even mildly helpful, I urge you to share it with your friends and family. Also drop me a comment and let me know how your healthy lifestyle journey is going. And if you want instant updates on some more tongue in cheek posts, sign up for the weekly newsletter.

I hope you have a healthy week, and I’ll see you back here next Monday!