Laura Novak
I am a 30 year old ex-workaholic photography studio owner. For five years
I worked about 100 hours a week building my business from a small one-bedroom
apartment to a storefront with five employees, sacrificing my social life and personal
relationships along the way.
About two years ago I made a shift in my goals and focused on creating a more
balanced life for myself by my 30th birthday by training other employees to take
much of my workload, raising my prices to lower volume, hiring others to
photograph in the studio so I wasn't carrying the revenue burden for everyone,
and scheduling personal time for myself including closing the studio on Sundays.
I think those new habits were so ingrained in me by the time this economic
crisis hit, they became non-negotiable. I was talking to my husband (I got
married earlier this year) last night at dinner and was saying that I am so
tempted to go back to where I was by running some specials and negotiating
my boundaries to get our business into a recession-proof position. But I
keep going back to 'what is that worth.' It's hard to put a price on the
feeling you have when you realize you are disconnected to your friends and
family, you're hungry and cranky because of no exercise and eating crappy
and totally out of balance. I keep going back to - what is that worth to
me?
I think another question is how much money does someone really need?
I am in a business of selling my time (like a lawyer, doctor, designer, architect)
so the more I work, the more I make. We could live in a million dollar home if
I worked more but I love my comfortable three bedroom row home. I’d rather
live a good life in a smaller home than a crazed life in a bigger home.
lauranovak.com