How many times have you sat on an airplane and tuned out the safety message to put your own oxygen mask on first? This is great advice for business and for life. We have to take care of ourselves in order to take care of others, and rewards help us to do that.
That’s why, as entrepreneurs and business owners, we need to reward ourselves-sometimes daily and sometimes even hourly. Rewards, you see, aren’t purely material goods or services or experiences. They are psychological armor and ammunition to make us stronger. Rewards don’t need to be for major achievements such as the completion of a project or a new client. Rewards can be reinforcement for showing up.
Here are some rewards that my most successful clients and peers enjoy on a regular basis:
- Connecting with family one-on-one. Our kids are amazing individuals and we can see it best when they have our undivided attention and they’re not competing with their sibling. Even ten minutes is powerful.
- Listening to music. It’s truly the international language, has been around for millenia, and only the technology to distribute and listen to it has changed.
- Spending guilt-free time enjoying ourselves with a hobby or passion. It may be reading, golfing, driving or having coffee with friends and family.
- Getting a massage. We are all athletes. Some of us use our brains and some use our bodies and some use both. If our body needs to last our lifetime, it’s best to keep it in good shape.
- Spending time watching or playing with the dog. They are purely in the moment and are not worried about interest rates or gas prices. They just want to play and then enjoy a treat.
- My favorites are taking the kids for ice cream, sitting in the sun, enjoying a cup of tea made from special tea from a place that I visited, reading and learning, sharing a great meal and wine with family and friends, and talking to people about their businesses and their life.
Now I’m going to sit on the deck, have some tea and play with the dog-three rewards in one. What can you do to reward yourself? What’s your oxygen mask?
Copyright Phil Symchych 2011. All Rights Reserved.
