“If you’re interested in ‘balancing’ work and pleasure, stop trying to balance them. Instead make your work more pleasurable.” — Donald Trump
I agree with Donald here. When I was younger, I wanted to enjoy life. I had very little money because I had a very little work ethic. As I grew older, I learned that success was not possible with spurts of hard work. Hard work needed to be all the time — and I needed to get used to that fact. As an older person who has been slogging away for decades, I am used to the idea of hard work. The key is how to get enough refreshment in your life to keep going, and how to enjoy work. You might as well enjoy work, because as a successful person — that’s what you’re going to be doing.
My friend once told me that your career is more important than your marriage. I asked why. He explained that you spend far more time at work than you spend with your spouse. If something happens with your relationship, you can always split up. But, what is something goes wrong with your career? I began to see his point. He was generally very smart about all of life’s bigger issues.
So, the question is, how can you make work enjoyable?
Take a workcation
Many entrepreneurs these days take workcations. I thought I had coined this phrase a few years ago, but many others have been using the term long before I “invented” it. You can take your work and do it in Bali or Berlin and get a change of scenery. Hear a different language and experience a different culture while you do your work. Personally, I love trying new foods. Being stuck in Los Angeles there are many eclectic neighborhoods to explore. But, nothing beats being in a completely different country where everything is brand new. Even their McDonalds will have a completely different menu.
Hire fun people
Do you work in an office? Many bosses hire beautiful secretaries to their wife’s dismay. Others hire interesting people who are fun to work with. I hire very interesting people who are a pleasure to work with and a source of inspiration. Additionally, I purchase outsourced services from companies that are fun to work with and go out wine tasting with the boss of one of those companies and went ice cream tasting in India with another. Your work can take on an entirely new meaning if you work with engaging and meaningful people
Do meaningful projects
Instead of only looking at how much money you anticipate making from a particular project, why not throw a fun project into the mix. Sometimes success comes to those who are passionate about what they do. Your fun project might turn into something bigger because you put your entire heart into it. And even if it didn’t, it might make you feel more enthusiastic or awaken some dormant brain cells that will help you with your other not so fun projects.
Create unusual routines
I sometimes take my work to the desert. I’ll do my phone calls from the beach, desert or somewhere else. Yes, it is a micro-workcation, and it can be very pleasant. The beach is a soothing place and is ideal for stressful phone calls. The peace of the beach cancels out most of the stress of the calls. I also change my routine around from time to time putting new social media tasks in the beginning of my day which spice things up a lot sometimes. I also innovate and change the way I do various tasks just to make it more interesting and efficient.
Try a different lunch everyday
Do you eat the same thing every day? No wonder your life is a drag. Make a list of all of the different lunch places you are going to try. Spicing up your lunch routine is yet another way to make work fun.
What about real pleasure?
Yes, have fun in moderation. Go for a walk, see a movie, travel, and visit with friends and family. However, to be successful, you need to put your focus on work regardless of how many hours you actually work. Even if you mastered the principles of the four hour workweek, you still need to be paying acute attention otherwise the people you hired might start slacking off and you’ll be sorry. So, learn to enjoy work, and come up with your own techniques above and beyond my words of wisdom.