Last week, I was talking to an entrepreneur, and we got to the topic of ways to relieve stress during especially difficult periods. He shared some of his past experiences, and I shared one of mine that I remember vividly.
Back in mid 2012, we were going through the process of selling our company. As part of that experience, there were a couple of months of negotiations, which had a little bit of stress. Then, as we got deeper into the negotiations, the stress ramped up. In the final two weeks, the stress got unbearably high for me personally. Then we signed the letter of intent to sell the business, and we had this 45-day due diligence period, driving stress up even further.
If everything went according to plan, our company would have a new owner, and my life personally would change dramatically. Not knowing how to handle this anxiety, stress, and looming deadline, I looked around and tried to find something to occupy my mind, especially when I was caught up on everything related to the acquisition and the day-to-day running of the business. For me, I arrived at something pretty simple: staring out the window while working on my laptop. I would look at the backyard and see a bunch of grass with weeds in it. So, as soon as I finished what I needed to do at the office, I would go home and hop on a little gardening cart and pull weeds to clear my mind. One by one, little weeds, medium-size weeds, I’d fill up the garden cart, take it to the back bushes, dump it, and then start over. No phone, no laptop, no podcasts, no distractions, just me, a garden cart, and a backyard of turf.
So for that 45-day period, and even a bit before we got to the due diligence, my go-to activity when I cleared my most immediate tasks at home was to pull weeds. This experience and this process of having a stress release valve made a huge difference. We got through the transaction, sold the business, and announced the sale to the world. It was off to the next chapter in my professional career.
My recommendation for entrepreneurs is to find a relief valve during stressful periods. For some, it’s going on a jog; others, it’s playing video games. Some love to cook or read fiction. In the end, it’s important to have something that works for you so that when the stressful times occur, and they always will, you have a relief valve ready to go.
Entrepreneur
via https://www.aiupnow.com
David Cummings, Khareem Sudlow
