MODULE 4:
What does
success look like
for you?

o Examine Entrepreneurship as a
lifestyle choice (or is it?!)
o Investigate success – how you
define, measure and achieve it
o Learn techniques and tips to
help you tackle stressful
situations and promote healthy
mental wellbeing
In this module, you will:

Do you see entrepreneurship as
a job or a lifestyle?
Would you agree ? Entrepreneurs
 wake up as entrepreneurs,
 go to work as entrepreneurs,
 come home as entrepreneurs and
go to bed as entrepreneurs.
There is no nine to five. Very often
there is no spilt between “work life”
and “home life” which often leads to
overworking and sometimes leads to
exhaustion and burnout.
Sound familiar?

 There is continued debate over
whether workaholism is a positive
or negative phenomenon.
 Some have argued that
workaholism is associated with a
high level of eustress (pleasant
stress) and other positive
outcomes such as job and life
satisfaction and high performance,
and that workaholics may serve as
‘role models’ for others
 Others have speculated that while
workaholism may lead to positive
outcomes in the short-term it can
lead to negative outcomes (poor
health, relationship problems) in
the long-term
Source:
http://www.apa.org/science/about/psa/2016/04/workaholism.aspx
Perhaps the title
workoholic applies?

 There are some very robust views on the matter - working long hours
is not a necessity. It's an addiction.
 In the book Chained to the Desk: A Guidebook for Workaholics, Their
Partners and Children, and the Clinicians Who Treat Them,
psychotherapist Bryan E. Robinson explains…
"Work addiction or workaholism is an addiction in the same way that
cocaine and alcoholism are addictions.... [It] can lead to an
unmanageable everyday life, family disintegration, serious health
problems, and even death."
Working long hours can become addictive!

 One UK study suggests that entrepreneurs work 63% more hours than
the average worker
 Whether this is out of fear, passion or something else, overworking can
have a devastating impact on your life.
 Think you might be a workaholic? Take our self assessment quiz and
find out! This is the first step in helping you to re-evaluate your
priorities before restarting in business again.
Insert link
EXERCISE 1 Self Assessment:
Are you a workaholic?

1. They don’t think about work-life balance: Their work comes first. It’s
what they live for. They live to do what they love, and that’s work.
2. They don’t try to be what they’re not: True entrepreneurs don’t think
about themselves. They think about their ideas and how to turn them
into great products and services.
3. They don’t do it for the money: Because they’re passionate about
what they do and focused they don’t complain, they do the work and
hope that the money will eventually come.
4. They don’t have day jobs: Great entrepreneurs jump in. They don’t do
a little of this and a little of that. When they hit on something they
think is really exciting they go all in.
Source: https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/229725
Revaluating your life – Things Entrepreneurs
Don't Do but should!

LEARNING FROM ASHLEIGH SMITH
Founder, Atlantic Equipment Project,
http://www.atlanticequipmentproject.com/
'Being an entrepreneur is
lonely. It's a bit like surfing -
instinctive and solitary'

'Being an entrepreneur is
lonely. It's a bit like surfing -
instinctive and solitary'
“Surfing is a very individual sport and the community around it is very
supportive and fun, but what you’re actually doing is very solitary. You are
alone in the surf and it’s a challenging environment, with everything
changing quite quickly – once there’s a wave it’s all go, go, go.
It’s very instinctive and you’re making decisions really quickly. That’s all
stuff that translates to running a small business: risk management,
mitigating problems and managing what’s in front of you. Like surfing,
when you’re managing a small business you need to be self-reliant and
also rely on your gut quite a lot.”
Source: http://www.thejournal.ie/readme/ashleigh-smith-atlantic-equipment-project-sligo-2-3128141-Dec2016/

While new entrepreneurs generally
find their mission fulfilling, over time
there’s also an unfortunate
opportunity for disillusionment.
The rigors and challenges of
entrepreneurship can wear on you
over time, compromising your
relationships and getting in the way of
your happiness. Thankfully, it doesn’t
have to be that way. More and more
the wellbeing of the entrepreneurs is
being recognised as vital to be part of
the business approach.
Entrepreneurship isn’t a job - it’s a lifestyle.

When you first delve into entrepreneurship,
despite all your business planning (ref Module
3) it’s likely you’ll have no idea what you’re
doing. You’ll mess up, you’ll become
disheartened when your plans don’t work
out, and you’ll become tired after pouring all
your effort (and cash) into an idea that may or
may not pay off. However, pushing through
the experience, whether it ends in success or
failure, will change your perspective for the
better and give you experience that you can
use in your next venture.
Entrepreneurship isn’t a job - it’s a lifestyle.

Success - what
does it look like?
We all see success
differently. Our
aspirations are influenced
by our upbringing, our
environment, our image
of ourselves, and the
people we live and work
alongside.
Success is not just about
having more money, it’s
deeper than that…

Success can be complex
but it can also be quite
simple. You can have
success and get the things
you want with more ease,
and enjoyment.
But first you have to have
real insight into what is your
personal and real
motivation for success.
What does success look like to you?

How is success defined?
1.1. the attainment of fame,
wealth, or social status
2.2. the accomplishment of an aim
or purpose
3.3. a person or thing that achieves
desired aims
A combination of the above?
Or something else?

1. MATERIAL SUCCESS – Money, cars, holidays, jewellery
2. EMOTIONAL SUCCESS – Relationships, self-esteem, contentment
3. INTELLECTUAL SUCCESS – Learning, understanding, challenging
4. SPIRITUAL SUCCESS – Sense of purpose, belonging, reason
5. PHYSICAL SUCCESS – Health, fitness, vitality, appearance
6. COMMERCIAL SUCCESS – Enterprise growth, profit, reputation
7. EVANGELICAL SUCCESS – Influencing others, promoting your ideals
8. ENVIRONMENTAL SUCCESS – Home, garden, saving the planet
9. TIME SUCCESS – Longevity, time management
10. COLLECTIVE SUCCESS – The product of effective teamwork
Did you know – there are
10 Types of Success ?

Every experience that we go through presents an opportunity to learn
about ourselves and the world around us. By seeking to find the lessons
learned in a failed business you will be able to articulate better what you
want to achieve in your life moving forward, both personally and
professionally. Stop comparing yourself to others or wondering how your
life “should” look. Realising that the definition of success is different for
every single person out there is important.
Source: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/carissa-lada/what-does-success-look-like_b_5651592.html
Defining Success on Your Own Terms

Lessons on Business
Success - Learning
from Liam Ryan
“Ireland has a weird way of defining
what failure is,” says Liam Ryan, an
entrepreneur who has founded two
companies and is now a sales executive
at Boxever, another start-up.
According to the traditional definition
of failure, he says, if you don’t make
money, you’ve failed.
“But if you’ve built something and
people found it useful, then that’s a
success.” Although his companies are no
longer operating, he considers them
successful because he created products
that people used. Liam contend that
success and failure need to be redefined.
Source: http://www.irishtimes.com/business/technology/entrepreneur-tries-to-
redefine-business-failure-1.2271138
Pic source: https://twitter.com/liamryan

Leah Hewson is an Irish artist. It took her
a few careers and study detours before
she finally accepted her creative career
vocation & now her career is thriving.
What success means to her…
“I used to think you have to have an end
goal and you have to have a huge dream.
What works better for me is that I’m
moving forward, even if it’s just a small
bit. It means that I’m constantly drawing
or making or thinking about it. It might
not happen as quickly as you want it to,
but it’s happening at that moment.”
Source: http://themakersstories.com/2017/01/11/young-
irish-artist-talks-failing-succeeding/
Learning from
Leah Hewson

STEP 1. First Define YOURSELF
on your own terms.
- Who do you want to be?
- Stripped of all expectations,
becoming your true self is
your life’s purpose.
- What is your passion ?
Your real passion if there
were no obstacles ?
Defining Success on
Your Own Terms –
STEP 1

STEP 2. Dare to different. Dare
to define and measure your
successes differently.
Too much conformity leads to
groupthink and failure. To be a
true entrepreneur, you need to
think differently and not feel
the pressure to conform. Don’t
feel the need to define your
successes by other peoples
standards.
Defining Success on
Your Own Terms –
STEP 1

What does success
look like to you?
At her first museum job, art historian
Sarah Lewis noticed something
important about an artist she was
studying: Not every artwork was
a total masterpiece.
She asks us to consider the role of the
almost-failure, the near win, in our
own lives. In our pursuit of success and
mastery, it is actually our near wins
that push us forward

Albert Einstein wrote,
“Everybody is a genius. But if you judge a fish
by its ability to climb a tree, it will live its
whole life believing that it is stupid.” The
question I have for you at this point of our
journey together is, “What is your genius?”
Defining success on your own terms allows
you to ignore the standard one-size-fits all
approach and live from a place of truth and
knowing. It allows you to embrace your
genius instead of hiding from it, thinking that
success can only look a certain way.
Daring to be different is important

While this is best completed as a Group Exercise, it can also be used as an
individual reflection exercise. Materials Needed: a selection of random
images to include people, buildings, objects, cars etc
o Choose 3 images that you feel represent success. Write down the main
points that you think they represent success.
o If this is a group exercise, each group shows their photos in turn and
explains why they think it represents success.
Exercise findings: This exercise may lead you to challenge traditional views
on success. It shows that success has many different meanings to different
people. It will also introduce the idea of their being different types of
success.
EXERCISE 2 Success –
What does it look like?

Achieving new levels
of success.
To achieve success, entrepreneurs must
routinely re-focus their efforts by:
o Developing a clear vision of where
you want to go with realistic and
actionable goals (Our goal setting
exercises which follow will help)
o Prioritising what’s important
o Delegating – this will liberate your
key productive talents – the things
that you do best
o Be willing to learn new skills

Goal setting is an important part of life, business
and mentoring. There are some parameters to goal
setting that everyone should know and follow. The
easiest way to remember them is to think SMART.
o Specific. Goals need to be very clear and as
detailed as possible.
o Measurable. Goals need to be tangible; results
need to be measurable. Ask yourself questions
like: “When?” and “How much?” Action-
oriented Make sure you can identify the steps
you need to take to reach each goal.
Source: http://www.futurpreneur.ca/en/resources/understanding-entrepreneurship/articles/setting-achievable-goals/
Setting realistic and achievable
entrepreneurial SMART goals

o Attaining goals gives a real sense of
satisfaction. Once you get where you were
heading, you can always steer for a more
distant shore.
o Realistic Refrain from setting goals that are
simply out of reach.
o Timely Identify deadlines for both short-
term and long-term goals. By assessing your
progress with shorter-term milestones,
you’ll be better able to keep on track to
accomplishing your long-term objectives.
Source: http://www.futurpreneur.ca/en/resources/understanding-entrepreneurship/articles/setting-achievable-goals/
”Great things are not done by
impulse, but by a series of small
things brought together.”
Vincent van Gogh, artist
Setting realistic and achievable
entrepreneurial SMART goals

A Goal Setting Framework can help you work
through the process of goal setting. Remember
goals need to be reviewed and revised on a
regular basis.
Some tips on the process of goal setting:
Your goals have to come from you so you will be
motivated to reach them. The first step then is
to define your values and priorities. Is it more
important for you to generate earnings or to be
recognised? What amount of time are you
willing to give to reach these goals?
Determining your unique parameters will give
you a solid framework for goal setting.
Insert link
EXERCISE 3 Goal Setting Framework

Goal Setting Isn’t Rocket Science
o Visual goal setter Patti Dobrowolski captivates
and inspires audiences using the business
leadership tool : Drawing Solutions.
o Drawing your future helps you to set your goals,
envision your desired future, create positive
change, enhance culture and accelerate team
performance for a better bottom line.
“Draw your Future”
Visual Approach to Goal Setting -

Click to watch video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zESeeaFDVSw
In this TEDx talk,
Patti draws a visual
representation of
Joe an aspiring
entrepreneurs’
future and desired
reality!
EXERCISE 4 Watch Visual Goal Setting
“Draw your Future”

This is a activity will help you map your future.
1. Starting on the left write 1-2 word representations of where you're
currently at. After writing each word draw a small picture to visually
represent it. It doesn't have to be an exact visual, it could be a question
mark or exclamation point around an area of tension, confusion, etc.
2. Do the same thing for the other side, drawing what you want your
future to be. In between the two sides are three arrows.
3. After finishing writing down as many words and pictures as possible,
use the arrows to write three "action steps" that can help make that
imagined future a reality.
EXERCISE 5 How to
“Draw your Future”

Source: http://pattidobrowolski.com/product-category/free-downloads/
Draw your Future Template

Example, 'Current Reality‘ could
include financial concerns. In
your envisioned reality, you
could have successfully become
an entrepreneur in your desired
field with money in the bank
EXERCISE 5 How to
“Draw your Future”

While we may set ourselves well
thought through goals, unless we
prioritise, we risk not achieving them.
But there are other priorities in the mix!
PRIORITISE YOUR FAMILY
As an entrepreneur, no matter how
much you want your business to
succeed, for most of us, our families
have to come first. These are the
people who love you unconditionally.
They are the people who were there
for you long before you started this
business, and they’ll be there for you
long after you’re done with it.
PRIORITISING
WHAT’S
IMPORTANT…

CLAIRE PRICE CO-FOUNDER, HOUSE EDIT -
“At one point, we sat down and said if we
don’t start making a little bit more time for
ourselves, our business will suffer. You can’t
pour from an empty cup.
Our New Year’s resolution was to set time
for ourselves, whether that is to go for a
swim or do some yoga. As an entrepreneur,
it is important to take care of yourself
because you can only go for so long until you
run out of fuel.”
Source: https://fora.ie/readme/claire-price-house-edit-3167081-Jan2017/
Prioritise your wellbeing

EXERCISE 6 :- PRIORITISING WHAT’S
IMPORTANT…
Urgent and Important Grid (Eisenhower Principle)
One of the most important tools you can use to help manage your
decision making process is the so-called urgent and important grid.
Former US President Eisenhower used this so-called "Eisenhower
Principle" to organize his tasks. He is quoted as saying, "What is
important is seldom urgent and what is urgent is seldom important."
This helps you allocate time to the most important things that matter
to you over the long term. It also identifies those items that require
sustained effort (eating elephants) over the long term and those tasks
that you need to learn to delegate or turn into a short routine.

EXERCISE 6 :- PRIORITISING WHAT’S
IMPORTANT…
Urgent and Important Grid (Eisenhower Principle)
Urgent but not
important
Delegate or turn
into a short
routine
Not urgent, not
important
“Eat the elepant”
Urgent and
important
Allocate your best
time to this
Not urgent, not
important
Bin
Urgent
Not Urgent
Not Important Important

Focusing on the things that you do
best can yield better results
second time around!
It's difficult for most business
owners not to take a hands-on
approach. Most try to do as much
as possible and tackle as many
tasks as possible in their business.
The ability to multitask, in fact, is a
common trait shared by successful
entrepreneurs.
Delegating

Stand back and look beyond today to determine
what's in the best interest of your business and
yourself over the long run.
Most highly successful entrepreneurs will tell
you that from the time they started out, they
knew what they were good at and what tasks to
delegate to others.
Great entrepreneurs perform the critical tasks
expertly. It is impossible to be great at every
aspect of the business. To succeed, you must
focus your time on the critical activities.
Delegating

Delegating
o Hire people you can count on .
o Make sure you fill your business with
people you can trust to do great
work, and people you genuinely
enjoy being around.
o If your business is filled with
enjoyable, hardworking people, you’ll
be far less stressed about whether
your business has the potential to
make it—and it will be easier for you
to take time out.

The most important
thing you need to
succeed?
You need to believe
in your business.
"A passionate belief in your
business and personal objectives
can make all the difference
between success and failure. If you
aren't proud of what you're doing,
why should anybody else be?"
Richard Branson

Learn techniques and tips to help you
tackle stressful situations and
promote healthy wellbeing

o Wellness leads to increased productivity
and creativity. High energy, joy and fun
helps to motivate you in your work and
in turn leads to being successful in your
business and increased earnings .
o Decreased wellness leads to stress,
lower confidence in your work, mistakes
and illness – loosing contracts and jobs.
o Recent research suggests that time off
due to stress and depression ‘costs
Europe €94 billion a year
Mindfulness : Wellness for your business
Source: http://www.thejournal.ie/depression-work-place-survey-stress-burn-out-alliance-1436894-Apr2014/

Entrepreneurship can be a minefield of
factors that may have a negative
impact on your mental wellbeing.
Stress, anxiety, insomnia are only some
of the issues that can emerge from
feeling overwhelmed in your business,
this can stem from an unrealistic
workload, financial pressures or
difficulties with customers or staff.
There are some useful tips and
techniques which you can learn to help
you through the stress…
Entrepreneurship can be a minefield

o Bouncing back from disappointment &
difficulty, means using the response
flexibility in our brains to shift our
perspectives, see options that we
couldn’t see before. This allows us to
shift out of our automatic, habitual
reactivity into a more skillful
responsiveness.
o By shifting our response, we become
more resilient; we learn and grow; we
recover our well-being.
o We strengthen our capacity to challenge
life events, even potential crises, by
mindfully, compassionately paying
attention to our reactivity.
o How you respond to the issue…is the
issue. —Frankie Perez
Get Better at Dealing
With Change
1

o Entrepreneurship demands sacrifice and commitment, and even if you
go into it with a sparkling optimistic attitude and a great support
system, the daily rigours and stresses of business ownership will begin
to take their toll on you.
o Burnout is unfortunately common among entrepreneurs. Many second
chance entrepreneurs know this to their cost. After months or years of
constant effort, it’s only natural that you’d start feeling exhausted or
frustrated in your business.
Avoiding Entrepreneurship Burnout2

o But if you want to avoid or mitigate that burnout, and remain
interested in your work, try these long term strategies:
SET REALISTIC EXPECTATIONS (back to our goal setting exercise) |
ESTABLISH BOUNDARIES | CHANGE UP YOUR ROUTINE| REMIND
YOURSELF WHY YOU GOT STARTED | TAKE REAL TIME OFF
Avoiding Entrepreneurship Burnout2

SET REALISTIC EXPECTATIONS. Burnout is a product of fatigue and/or
disappointment. Fatigue tends to happen when working for too long
without satisfactory results, and disappointment tends to happen when
reality falls short of your hopes. Both are products of setting unrealistic
expectations for yourself. For example, if you tell yourself your product
must launch by the end of the month (when three months is more
reasonable), you could burn yourself out rushing to get things done or
disappoint your clientele.
Set more manageable expectations for yourself and your business, in
terms of your goals, your hopes, your daily tasks, and everything in
between.
Think Healthy, Work Healthy3

Think Healthy, Work Healthy3
ESTABLISH BOUNDARIES Being an entrepreneur is a lifestyle choice as
much as it is a professional one. For some entrepreneurs, your
professional responsibilities will fall into your personal life, and your
personal life into office time. This lifestyle is a choice to the entrepreneur
but it is inherent to avoid burnout over the long term that you set real
boundaries for yourself, how about?
o Not taking any work-related calls or answering emails after 7 on
weekdays
o Not taking work calls during family time or holidays
o Only doing work for a set number of hours during the weekend. Make
your boundaries set clear and well communicated .

GROUP DISCUSSION:
Boundaries at work
How do you set boundaries
in your work?
Do you let your clients or
staff know what your
boundaries are? How ?

3. CHANGE UP YOUR ROUTINE
Breaking out of your daily routine
can be a powerful way to unlock
great new ideas, both personally
and professionally.
For example, if you are used to
working alone, starting to work
with others can be a great way of
not only overcoming the
loneliness of being an
entrepreneur, it can also open up
new opportunities.
Think Healthy,
Work Healthy
3

Collaborate: Rather than go it alone, take on a collaborator or partner.
This is someone who is invested in your success. And it gives you the
opportunity to get someone with complementary skills.
Cowork: An excellent way to meet people who might be able to help you
work out problems, or network with like-minded start ups to find
funding or business opportunities.
Convert it: Reflect on why your routine might not be working.
Recalibrate regularly.
Get Help: If you have lost perspective, and need to talk about where your
life or business is heading, hire a mentor. Someone external without bias
will help you to critically assess the situation and take a few corrective
steps to get your life and your business back on track!
Source: https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/254641
Some ways of changing up your routine:

Breaking routines and
habits – Walking
Meetings example
o Want to get physically healthier
but your job not allowing you
time to exercise? Why not follow
in the footsteps of Steve Jobs,
Aristotle, Charles Dickens, Harry
S. Truman and Sigmund Freud and
start taking walking meetings?
o Not only will you be getting work
done but walking can even
increase your creativity and
productivity. Walking gets you
moving and everybody knows
how important this is given that
people spend an average of 9.3
hours of your day sitting.
o And you get healthier in the
process!

o While it's always nice to be the
hero and adhere to everyone's
wants and desires, doing this can
take up an unreasonable amount
of time. This is one of the key
learnings shared by second
chance entrepreneurs.
o Entrepreneurs must be willing to
say no to actions/plans that do
not add as much value to their
business as other actions/plans.
o When a client demands a near-
impossible deadline, you may
feel obliged to say yes in order to
keep their all-too-important
revenue. Think carefully about
each situation, and
o Don’t be afraid to say no if it
doesn’t make sense to say yes.
Don’t be afraid
to say no
4

Most people choose to be entrepreneurs at
least in part because they seek more fulfilling
work.
They might be unhappy with the traditional
daily grind of office work and desperate for
more control over their own daily tasks, or
driven to create something with meaning.
Whatever the case, entrepreneurs generally
go into business with the expectation that
entrepreneurship is going to make them
happier and improve their lives.
Remind yourself why you got started5

Research shows you get more
done quicker when you step
back and recharge the brain
and body.
Studies show that performance
increases after breaks of all
durations: from extended
holidays down to microbreaks
of 30 seconds.
Take Real Time Off6

The Importance
of Breaks
DID YOU KNOW? Albert Einstein is
thought to have conceived the theory
of relativity while riding his bicycle.
 As an entrepreneur, you’re in
charge of how much or how little
you work. You may have forgotten
this! It sounds appealing, but
there’s a drawback: most
entrepreneurs are so driven to see
their ideas come to fruition that
they find it hard to take a break.

The Importance
of Breaks
 This is to the determent of their
physical and mental health, it's
important to take a break from the
job, the routine, and the demands
of life in order to keep stress levels
in check. When we take a break,
we're not shirking responsibility;
we're taking care of ourselves so
we'll have the stamina to be our
best.
 All work and no play makes you
burn out very fast.

As an entrepreneur you might think of
rest as a negative space defined by
absence of work but it’s really much more
than that.
Restorative rest is actually active -
Exercise ,walks or engaging hobbies do
more for you than sitting on the couch
binge-watching television. This active rest
delivers great benefits & provides
occasion for creative reflection.
Restorative Rest

Alex Soojung-Kim Pang is the founder of The Restful Company. His
book Rest: Why You Get More Done When You Work Less argues in
favour of more limited working hours and greater understanding of the
benefits of active rest as a means of raising creativity and productivity.
Alex argues that we need to change the way we look at rest and
measure productivity. Generally, we think of rest as a negative space
defined by absence of work but it’s really much more than that.
Working long hours, Alex says is something that can be sustained for
periods of a few weeks but after that you start creating more problems
than you solve. Rest provides occasion for creative reflection and is
advocated by the world’s most famous entrepreneurs
The Importance of REST!

Check out this interview with
Alex Soojung-Kim Pan
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hEfrHRgm5Eo
EXERCISE 7: WATCH The Importance
of REST Video

o If you care about the mental
development or your body you
need sleep.
o When we sleep the brain takes
time to clear out plaques and
toxins that have built up during
the hours we are awake.
o Even though we’re not aware of
it, sleep also helps us push
forward on questions and
problems we’re working on
during our waking hours.
Sleep

It is wise to distance yourself (if you can)
from negative individuals. They drain your
energy, and do little to motivate you.
On the other hand, positive and optimistic
people will uplift your spirits and help you
through challenging times.
Associate with positive people

o Bill Gates, Mark Zuckerberg, and Steve Jobs, three of the world’s most
famous most entrepreneurs, have in common, the adoption of egular
"think weeks“.
o Think Weeks are all about taking time off to relax, clear your head and
re-invigorate their thinking.
o Thinking time and learning time are both critical to creativity and
innovation. The old adage: stop to smell the roses is true for both
your current work and your career. Take time to plant and harvest the
ideas that fuel your progress and success.
o Schedule think weeks, think days, or think hours for yourself or your
work group.
Source: https://www.thebalance.com/promote-creative-thinking-1918766
Take a Think Week, Think Day or Think Hours!

Achieving a
good work life
balance…
7 Create your ideal
environment
The spaces we occupy shape who we
are and how we behave. This has
serious consequences for our
psychological well-being and creative
performance. Given that many of us
spend years working in the same
room, or even at the same desk, it
makes sense to organize and optimize
that space in the most beneficial ways
possible.
Creating your ideal environment
means looking honestly at what's
working and what isn't in your
working environments.
…other
things to
consider

Achieving a
good work life
balance…
7 Create your ideal
environment
When you go to work, are you greeted
by a desk covered with projects and
things to do? If so, how does that feel?
Is this an environment that welcomes
and energises you or is this an
environment that drains and depletes
you?
…other
things to
consider

o Go through your workspace, take note of how you feel when you
enter it.
o Does your environment welcome you?
o Is it comfortable? Is it workable?
o Is it organized and clutter-free?
o Is your office disorganised and filled with clutter?
EXERCISE 8: Ideal Workplace Audit

When your audit it complete. Think and consider as many different
environments and atmospheres until you find one that really works.
Constructing this environment will help make you happier in your work.
You might find that having an open office with no walls or cubicles is
what you need to feel happy at work. You might find that working from
home three days a week is what you need to be happy.
EXERCISE 8: Ideal Workplace Audit

This is a simple but effective exercise that asks just one question – What
my Average Perfect Day look like?
Write down your daily schedule as detailed as possible, following your
average perfect day step by step.
Another key here is to focus on the word “average”. It shouldn’t be a day
where you do something special.
If you dig deeper, you’ll take away quite a few insights from this exercise.
EXERCISE 9: Average Perfect Day
(Make everyday a success!)

Focus on:
o What time do you wake up?
o What do you do once you are awake?
o When you go to work, what happens and what is achieved during the
day?
o Then what do you do?
EXERCISE 9: Average Perfect Day
(Make everyday a success!)

You will see little habits that you can start instilling today to get yourself
closer to your vision of Average Perfect day. It could be your interactions
with those close to you or what you ate for breakfast or exercise.
How can you repeat this formula as many days as possible ? By writing
down your perfect day, your subconscious mind will start working to get
you there.
EXERCISE 9: Average Perfect Day
What you’ll find

Designing
your Business,
Designing
your Life

In this book, Bill Burnett and Dave Evans show us
how design thinking can help us create a life that is
both meaningful and fulfilling, regardless of who or
where we are, what we do or have done for a
living, or how young or old we are. The same
design thinking responsible for amazing
technology, products, and spaces can be used to
design and build your business and your life, a life
of fulfilment and joy, constantly creative and
productive, one that is economically and
emotionally rewarding.
http://designingyour.life/the-book/
Designing your Life

Use these Designing
your Life worksheets to
help you to reframe
your work/life balance:
EXERCISE 10: Reframe your work/life
balance
http://designingyour.life/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/DYL-Energy-
Engagement-Worksheet-v21.pdf