So here’s the truth: Building a business is hard as f*ck.

And last week, I hit the wall. 

Well… I’d actually been running head first into the wall for a few weeks. 

But I was so far up my own ass I didn't even realize. 

And inevitably... it finally knocked my ass down. 

After finishing another workshop, I looked up at the clock and realized I had been working for like 12 hours straight. 

7am-7pm 

The worst part? I still had MORE to do.

I felt like this:

See, when you build a business almost everything falls on you: Revenue

Growth
Cash flow
Subscribers
Invoices
Complaints
Support
Emails

All this work piles up higher and higher.

And to cope, maybe you open up Twitter for (what feels like) a harmless distraction.

(bad idea)

Then you see hundreds of people boasting about their success.

And then you start comparing yourself to them.

How’d they make $10K in one day?
Do they really only work 4 hours per day??
What the hell am I doing wrong???

I found myself in a downward spiral.

So I did something I haven’t done in a long time.

I took a week off. I went silent. I went off the grid. 

I turned off all email, all chats, all social media.  

And I hit the road.  

First, I drove 2 hours to this random spring in Florida. 

I ended up having a nice chat with that old guy you see right there:
 

Then I flew to NYC and met up with old friends and played some tennis. 

While I was playing tennis, I ran into my buddy Zach (@zachpogrob, the obsession guy) 

He threw off my game, but I forgive him 🤣

After smashing some balls, my buddy and I went and smashed cheeseburgers at this new burger spot in NYC called Hamburger America. 

(epic burger btw)

And then I found myself at a wedding. 

I had been dreading this wedding because I was feeling SOOOO busy. 

But then I went and it was so much fun!

Not gonna lie – taking a week off was hard.

It was very uncomfortable to step away from the business for a week. 

I think I have this deep fear of stopping. 

I’m scared that if I stop, the entire business will die. 

But as I paused for the week…I realized something:

I started this business to change my life. I didn't start this business to BECOME my life.  

I had become too obsessed with numbers and metrics.

I had become too obsessed with optimizing every minute of every day. 

And I lost sight of WHY I built my own business in the first place:

• To sleep in when I wanted
• To play tennis at 11am on a Thursday
• To create things for fun and creativity
• To be present with friends and family

Most importantly, I started a business so I could have a life that was more fulfilling. 

The goal is to stay in the game for the next 20 years.  

And you can’t keep playing if you’re burnt out. 

Maybe you can’t take a week off. But I bet you can find one hour, one afternoon, or one day.  

You’ll thank yourself later.