Working Less to Create More
An outline of the principles that can underpin a fresh approach to doing business and redefine work-life balance.
A collection of principles that can serve as signposts for establishing a new way of viewing your work and your business in the wider concept of a purposefully designed lifestyle.
We have agency over our self
As free agents we can choose when we work, how we work and who we work with. We are ultimately accountable to our self for our own actions because no one else cares about us quite as much as we do. We can define our own standards and be our toughest competition. This differs from the norm because our scoreboards become internal, rather than external, as we set our own objectives.
Business & life synchronised
Time is finite but the ways we can spend it are infinite. The concept of time at work and time away from work can become rigid in our minds and stunt creativity. With proper consideration we can build businesses to create the resources that make a desired lifestyle possible, and then our lifestyle can be properly designed to propel that business forward, spiraling us upwards.
Wealth is not solely financial
Money is a means to an end, not necessarily an end-unto-itself. So maybe our ultimate objectives shouldn't be financial. Money is a resource created by a business to help us realise our ambitions in life, it's not ambition itself. True wealth comes in many shapes and sizes, it's individual, personal and it's contextual.
Serve clients first, self second
Through a business we serve our clients. When service is the focus we get to keep our clients. We keep their business, their trust and their referrals. The alternative is to serve ourselves first and our clients second, but this is a short-term strategy. Clients see it and reputations get damaged.
Redefining business growth
Making acquisitions, doubling turnover, growing staff levels. These metrics sound great, but don't always serve us as an indicator of growth. Growth is improvement. Improvement within our business, our self and stakeholders. Growth can be exploring ideas, trying something new, learning. These too are measures of business growth.
Adding value vs. profiteering
Profiteering is a value detractor. It's an exchange of learning, improvement and relationships for temporary financial gain. Creating and providing value is long-term. It compounds over time, strengthening relationships and working to the benefit of all parties involved.
