80 Game Season vs 80 Hour Work Week

| June 25, 2010 | 9 Comments

80 hour weekWith the crowning of the 2010 NBA championship going to the LA Lakers, it is difficult to believe that another basketball season has already come to a close. I can’t believe how fast time flies! Now that the season is over it is time for the players to get some much deserved rest in anticipation for another long season next year. When I was watching the NBA finals the last couple weeks, I couldn’t help but reflect on how tired both teams must have been after an exasperating 80+ game season. The games have gotten brutally physical, players are stronger than ever before, and both of those factors lead to more bumps, bruises, and players with aching bodies. I always admire the guys like Lebron, KG, Rondo, and Bynum for their intensity and ability to bring 110% in every game regardless of how much pain they are feeling or nagging injuries that don’t have time to heal. When I played D1 basketball in college, we typically played 30-40 games in a season and by the time that last game was over, I felt like I could hardly walk. Sprained ankles, jammed fingers, bruises, etc, all add up over the course of the season with very little time to get things healed properly. I couldn’t imagine playing at a grueling NBA pace.

The Business World

Now that my sports career is over and I am now in the business world, I can’t help but notice how similar an NBA season is to being an entrepreneur. Let’s face it, entrepreneurs take a beating day in and day out, with little time to rest. Early mornings at the airport, 80 hour weeks, email that never stops piling up, and never ending pressure to perform. When you own your own business, sometimes you don’t have the luxury of taking a day off because you’re worn out. In most cases, you need to ignore the exhaustion and put one foot in front of the other. Best selling author and successful entrepreneur Chris Brogan did a great job of illustrating the demands of his life through his youtube video clips titled, “Overnight Success.” In one clip, he reflects on getting up at 4:30am before sunlight to catch a flight, while another video shows him on vacation somewhere tropical and instead of sitting by the pool, he remained in his hotel room to finish some work on his computer. It looks glamorous on the surface to have a best selling book and thousands of twitter followers, but in reality all of that success comes down to hard work and sacrifice.

80 Games vs 80 Hours

Whether you’re a professional athlete with a grueling 80+ game season, an entrepreneur, or someone working for that big promotion, the stress and workload is going to be intense. In most cases it is going to feel like you are in the 4th quarter of the NBA finals with 2 minutes left in the game and the score is tied. It is the people who dig deep and keep pushing forward, who end up being successful. Keep in mind however, that NBA athletes don’t take on a daunting 80+game season alone. They have countless resources to tap into in order to help them succeed.  For example, players have access to athletic trainers, nutritionists, strength and conditioning coaches, shooting coaches, assistant coaches, and sports psychologists to help players get focused( just to name a few). I would encourage entrepreneurs to take this same approach in business as there are a lot of resources to tap into as well. For example, entrepreneurs can regularly attend networking events, read helpful books, invest in good seminars, business coaches, mentors, local business clubs, family, friends, etc. When you start brainstorming, it is amazing how many resources are out there to take advantage of. No matter who you are or how smart you are, it is very hard to take on the rigors of being an entrepreneur alone. Find a strong team and utilize all of your resource that are available for your support.  What are some good resources that you like to tap into when your business is pushing you to the max?

John Kreklow is a brand consultant at Shadow Concepts LLC and has found his niche comparing sports and business with his background from the air force and D1 basketball. Follow John on twitter @JohnKreklow

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Category: Expert Advice, Work/Life Balance

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  • http://www.ryanhanley.com/about Ryan Hanley

    Very good article… Good point of reference. I'm an Insurance Salesman. So as much as I work for an Agency I am not an Entrepreneur… But building my book of business, starting from Zero commissions and Zero pay and working my way up to a healthy salary has felt very much like building my Business like an entrepreneur…

    I tell myself everyday, “Sell one more policy today, Meet one more person, Make one more connection, Attend one more event, because that One More could be what breaks the Dam open…”

    The only people that fail are the people that stop trying…

    Thanks,

    Ryan H., http://www.RyanHanley.com

  • http://www.facebook.com/kevin.ring Kevin Ring

    Ryan,

    I tell agents almost every day that they have to think of themselves as entrepreneurs.

    There is an epidemic in the sales profession of commissioned salespeople thinking of themselves as “employees”.

    Who determines how much you make each year? You do, more than anyone else.

    There is no other profession where someone else signs the checks and yet you have almost complete control over your own destiny.

    At any rate, I'd challenge you to always think of yourself as an entrepreneur. Invest in yourself with your money, don't expect anyone else to pick up the tab to make you better.

    Of the thousands of agents that I have talked with, the most successful are always the ones that know that they are the masters of their own destiny.

    Conversely, the ones that act like employees get treated that way and almost always get paid like an employee, not a highly successful entrepreneur.

  • http://www.ryanhanley.com/about Ryan Hanley

    Kevin,

    Thank you. Truly, I do think of myself as an Entrepreneur. One of the reasons I regularly visit this website and one of the Reasons I created my own Insurance Website.

    You are right on about the Salespeople that view themselves as employees… I go to Industry events and Agents will say things like, “I haven't been getting any good leads from my Agency recently…”

    My response, “YOU GET LEADS FROM YOUR AGENCY!”

    Sales is one of the few ways that you can directly measure a person's worth… So why not work hard and Kill it…

    Again great article John…

  • http://www.linkedin.com/pub/john-kreklow/19/35a/16a John Kreklow

    Thanks Ryan!

    I like your entrepreneurial approach to the Insurance business. Doesn't it feel great when you zero in on a goal and go after it with everything you've got? As you mentioned earlier, I have also seen successful insurance agents take an entrepreneurial approach and do just like you said…they realize that they are in control of their destiny, they set goals, and then do what it takes to achieve them. Do you have any good mentors or resources that you turn to on a daily or weekly basis to work with you on setting goals? Thanks for your insights and I'm glad you enjoyed the article! Keep up the good work!

  • http://www.linkedin.com/pub/john-kreklow/19/35a/16a John Kreklow

    Thanks for the great insights Kevin! Isn't the entrepreneurial approach to business incredibly empowering? I love entrepreneurship because it allows you to own your destiny and be free to make your own choices and live with the consequences. It is always tough in the beginning when you don't have a good network of clients or when you are in the early stages of launching a new business, but with some hard work, it usually gets a lot better. I asked this same question to Ryan, but what resources do you utilize for support when you are working hard to achieve goals? Thanks again for the comment and have a great afternoon!

  • http://itarsenal.com/ Rob

    Great correlation here! I just wrote a little something comparing entrepreneurship and building business to Chess. It really helps to create a mental picture.

    As for a relevant tool, I've recently dug into a few forums at youngentrepreneur.com to find help on how to target fellow entrepreneurs who need tech support, advice, and best productivity tool suggestions. The niche I'm currently trying to laser in on. I wasn't keen on the forums, feeling they were so “90's” but I think I'm getting some great feedback there. I've also taken advantage of some coaching sessions and I'm going to follow up with one of them.

    Keep yourself in the game somehow, moonlighting makes me feel like I never have time but reaching out through twitter, forums, e-mail to fellow entrepreneurs continues to push me along. The more I struggle along, the more I realize it's about executing, taking in what didn't work, and moving on.

  • Rbpenneau

    Good Stuff Ryan. Can't go it alone. And i completely agree. I think for many young entrepreneurs, especially fresh on their toes, think to go it alone…but when that storm fights back…because there is always resistance; the ability to fall back on others is crucial!

  • http://under30ceo.com/about-under30ceo/team/ John Kreklow

    Great Comment!

    I have seen this happen a lot where people have great ideas and become determined to develop them on their own, only to see them fall apart because they did not have a good team around them for support. One of my mentors told me to focus on what you are best at and surround yourself with others who can compliment your strength. Realistically it is impossible for 1 person to be good at every aspect of business, so it makes a lot of sense to form a team to help you out. Thank you for contributing to the discussion!

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