Did I grab your attention with that title? Let me tell you about my morning, and the lesson I learned as a child.

I never set an alarm clock as my body is so used to getting up around the same time everyday, that I simply don’t need one.  As usual it was about 4:30 this A.M. when I rolled over and realized the sun wasn’t up yet, but that I needed to be.   As I flipped my legs over the side of the bed and stretched, the word just slipped out…  It’s…. FRIDAY!  Wahoo!  Today is Friday!  Friday is my favorite F-word!  Saying it was just enough to energize me towards the shower and then into the kitchen for a cup of coffee.  I started my day feeling extremely good about things!

Unfortunately, for far too many new entrepreneurs, the word doesn’t hold the same special “Friday-feeling” it once did.  When you work for yourself, with your own hours, and in your own home, sometimes merging work activities with family duties - Fridays can become no different than any other busy day of the week.  I grew up with entrepreneur parents who ran a full-time business from the home.  There were six of us kids.  I don’t remember my parents having the Friday attitude.  What a shame!

Now as an adult I see this over and over again and have been guilty of it myself once in a great while.  Entrepreneurs with young businesses, rarely if ever remember to take time to relax and step out of the work week long enough to experience a Friday.   This is especially true of those still working a full-time job employed for someone else, while juggling the activities that go along with owning their own business too.

A Friday Attitude is Actually Good for Us 

Stop and think about the importance of that Friday feeling.  When you were in school and the end of the week came and school was out for a few days - you got pretty excited about things.  Didn’t you?  Friday represented freedom, fun, fantastic feelings!  This attitude is good for us to experience.  Just like when you were a kid the anticipation of a Friday, knowing that there was going to be some downtime at the other side of Friday — is sometimes what kept you going.  Even when the going was getting pretty tough, these feelings reminded you there is a light at the end of the tunnel as soon as the bell rang and signafied the end of the week.

Renew Your Strength

Running your business shouldn’t be a never-ending marathon with no finish line to cross over.  No matter how challenging your duties are as a business owner, make sure you are building into your work week the F-word… Friday.  You need those Friday moments to trigger emotions that are healthy for you and your business.

If you work a muscle over and over again without giving it a rest you will indeed overwork it and make it even more difficult to use again in the future.  We all need a bit of downtime and recovery from stressful work days (and nights), mainly to rejuvenate and recover.  Without the Friday times, you get weaker instead of stronger, sometimes on an emotional level, sometimes on a physical level.  But it does happen.

For every 14-hour workday filled with adrenaline and the promise of financial success, there must be rest and recovery if you want to be at your best.  All work and no play isn’t good for anyone.  If you are struggling with balancing work and family and expectations hitting you from every direction, doing this everyday without a break - you’ll never get to experience recovery (and it’s resulting growth) because there’s no finish line - no end in sight.  The race or pace just never lets up.

As a business owner you’re the boss.  Part of the job of a boss is seeing to it that your employees get the downtime necessary to recover.  That list of employees needs to include your name.  If you never give your employees and yourself a Friday, there’s going to be burnout or breakdowns.  Relief brings its own reward.  Make sure you are rewarding yourself with Fridays!

While growing up in a house where the business day never ended, I learned many things from my parents about business and being an entrepreneur.  My siblings and I grew up with great teaching from them.  I also learned a few lessons from the likes of Fred Flintstone and Barney Rebel.  While my parents taught me ways to make money, working for myself and not to say the “bad F-word” - my two favorite Bedrock dwelling cartoon charactors taught me that at the end of the week it’s time to let loose and have a Yabba-Dabba-Do time! 

So now, following in my parents footsteps as an Entrepreneur, I think of the business lessons they taught me, and I also remember to give myself the Fridays they forgot to give themselves.  I encourage you to give yourself Fridays too.  Like they did when I was a kid, Fridays still bring with them Freedom, Fun, and Fantastic feelings.  A few more great F-words in my book.

Make Friday the F-word you are comfortable saying!

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