My MOST Important Tip for Success

Let’s be honest, it doesn’t matter whether you’re an association or chamber exec, this organization management stuff, as rewarding as it can be, can and will take over your life if you let it.

Chances are you could work 24 straight hours, and you’d still never be “caught up” and you’d be right back on the “treadmill” with plenty of work to do the next day.

So that leads me to my most important “reminder” for success: in order to truly be a successful association or chamber professional, you definitely need to excel at business/life balance.

Everyone can experience BEING BUSY TO THE MAX, and if you let yourself get sucked in, it’ll be a habit that will be extremely difficult to break.

You absolutely MUST give yourself permission to have an enjoy your personal life. MANY of life’s most precious moments only happen once and if you miss them, you’ve missed them forever. And for the record, watching a video on your phone, just isn’t the same.

If you must, I suggest that you go back to work after the school play or the football game, or you go in early the next day to get things done, rather than missing those special moments. Trust me…the job will always be there.

I can tell you from personal experience, being present for family moments will always be remembered. You may not find out until your kids are adults, but it’s definitely appreciated.

When our daughter Erin was in high school, she was the captain of the cheerleading squad and excelled at doing some gymnastics-like tumbling stunts during half-time at basketball games. Years later she confessed, “I’ll always remember that you were often the only dad in the stands for our half-time performance. It was great that you were there!”

No doubt that calendar management, time management and maybe most importantly, being able to say NO, all are important skills needed for being successful at business/life balance.

While I’ve seen many people get divorced or become estranged from their children because they always had work to do, I’ve yet to hear of anyone on their deathbed say, “I wish I’d spent more time at the office.” But many have had regrets about the personal moments they’ve missed.

Don’t be one of those people who has regrets and wishes they would have been there. Please give yourself permission to live, so you can truly succeed.

I totally agree with Colin Powell, who said “Take leave. You’ve earned it.”