RUNNING A BUSINESS sure seems like a lot of work. I don’t want to disregard that.

But if that’s ALL it is, why bother? Go out and get a real job that’s less stress!

Let’s be honest: We do this because we find joy in the mission, the problem-solving, the control. There’s a lot of things which are a pain in the ***, but on the whole there’s a balance toward making the business work.

Let’s recognize and reward that. It SHOULD feel good to be making a larger contribution.

It seems to me that our culture has lost the sense that hard work is valuable and rewarding. We’ve concentrated so much on making life easy that we’re running away from anything that’s work.

This tends to suck the life out of your employees as well. You’re asking them to do hard things – for what? A paycheck, sure, but if that’s all it is then let’s go find something that’s easier and pays a few cents more.

As a leader, part of your role is to help your folks to find purpose and joy in the work.

That goes for yourself, by the way!