The Reality of the Grind
This episode addresses the unspoken struggle of burnout that many entrepreneurs face while “grinding” to build their vision. It explores the suffocating feeling of “drowning” that occurs when you work extreme hours and say yes to every opportunity without a clear strategy. By stopping to ask three core questions, business owners can evaluate whether they are in true alignment with their goals or simply moving toward exhaustion.
Business vs. Expensive Obligation
The core of the discussion centers on a stark truth: if you cannot step away from your work, you don't own a business—you own an “expensive obligation” or a job. The episode introduces the “30-Day Test,” challenging listeners to consider if their operations would fall apart if they couldn't work for a month. This segment emphasizes the shift from dependency to systems, ensuring that the founder is no longer the primary bottleneck in the organization.
Serving the Mission over the Ego
Finally, the episode dives into the psychological aspect of burnout by asking who the work is truly serving—the mission or the owner's ego. Often, the relentless “grind” is an attempt to prove something rather than a move that actually pushes the business forward. By answering these questions honestly, entrepreneurs can create the space necessary to build a sustainable future that their “future self” will eventually thank them for.
Previous Episode: https://iamceo.co/iam2716-the-one-email-that-saves-hundreds-of-hours/
- Blue Star Franchise: bluestarfranchise.com
- Browse the Franchise Inventory: bluestarfranchise.com/franchise
- Is franchising right for you? Check this out to see: bluestarfranchise.com/assessment
- Franchise CEO (A CBNation Site – coming soon) – franchiseceo.co
Check out our CEO Hack Buzz Newsletter–our premium newsletter with hacks and nuggets to level up your organization. Sign up HERE.
I AM CEO Handbook Volume 3 is HERE and it's FREE. Get your copy here: cbnation.co/iamceo3. Get the 100+ things that you can learn from 1600 business podcasts we recorded. Hear Gresh's story, learn the 16 business pillars from the podcast, find out about CBNation Architects and why you might be one and so much more. Did we mention it was FREE? Download it today!
Transcription:
Gresham Harkless 00:00
When you're grinding, grinding, grinding for your business, you're working crazy hours, you're saying yes to everything. And honestly, it can give you the space and feeling that you're ultimately drowning. Now, for me, I always have to kind of ask myself these questions and make sure that I'm in alignment with where I want to be and doing the things that I ultimately want to do. So it helps tremendously to stop ask yourself three questions. These questions can ultimately change everything.
If you're building something meaningful, you're in the right place. This is the I Am CEO Podcast. I'm gresh, and for over a decade I've had the honor and the privilege of learning directly from CEOs, entrepreneurs, and business owners just like you on how to build. After recording more than 1600 episodes, one thing has become clear. Success isn't about following someone else's blueprint. And as I like to say on the show, if you run your own race, you can't lose. Even when we feel the journey should be a straight and linear path, what I've come to find out is success is a lot more like a plate of spaghetti. So in this special segment and episode, I'm starting to curate and share some CEO hacks and CEO nuggets that I've been dying to share. Drawn from thousands of episodes with phenomenal guests that have provided awesome value on the show, but also my 10 years of business experience as well, too. These lessons are designed to strengthen the foundational principles that every business is built on and guided by a simple equation that we always go back to with our content. Visibility plus resources times connections equals success. This is practical wisdom you can apply almost immediately, so be sure to check out the show notes for more resources and next steps on how to level up. And of course, enjoy this special episode of the I Am CEO Podcast.
Gresham Harkless 01:50
Let's be real. Many of us experience something that we don't want to always say, and I feel like I've even touched on, which is this idea of burnout. When you're grinding, grinding, grinding for your business, you're working crazy hours, you're saying yes to everything. And honestly, it can give you this space and feeling that you're ultimately drowning. Now, for me, I always have to kind of ask myself these questions and make sure that I'm in alignment with where I want to be and doing the things that I ultimately want to do. So it helps tremendously to stop ask yourself three questions. These questions can ultimately change everything. Number one, am I building a business or am I building a job? For myself. Here's the stark truth. If I can't step away, I don't actually own a business. I own a really, really really expensive obligation or a job at that. Number two, what would happen if I couldn't work for 30 days? Everything fall apart. If the answer is yes, I don't have systems, I ultimately have dependency. Number three is a really powerful one. Who am I really serving? Me or potentially my ego sometimes? Stick with me on this. We're grinding just to prove something, not because it actually moves us forward. What does this all do? These three questions Forcing to build systems, not to build dependency. It forces you to create a system and a business that doesn't work with you being the bottleneck. So create some space, create some time. Ask yourself these three questions and ultimately be honest with the answers. Future self will thank you for it.