Small Business Means Big Workloads: Studies Find Entrepreneurs Working More Than the Rest

There are only 24 hours in a day, but try telling that to an entrepreneur. For small business owners, time is one of the most crucial resources at their disposal. In contrast to large corporations that have both more money and more staff, time is in fact one of the few ways for entrepreneurs to seemingly get ahead. Whereas their counterparts might only work from 9-5, small business owners have at their advantage a willingness to put in as many hours as it takes to succeed.

That is certainly the result of a recent poll by Staples, which surveyed 300 small business owners throughout the U.S. and found that most had little concept of the 40-hour work week; indeed, 21% were working more than double that number of hours per week. Even if they are not physically in their offices, these entrepreneurs never strayed too far from their work. Whether it’s checking work-related email in their bathrooms (18% were the culprits of this) or working while eating dinner at least four to five times per week (21% admitted to doing this), those polled seemed to live and breathe – and eat – their work.

Entrepreneurship expert Evan Carmichael suggests that the results of this poll are unsurprising. “Entrepreneurs are a rare breed,” he says. “They are driven – often to the point of obsession – to start and grow their own business.” And, while is not necessarily a bad thing, warns Carmichael, it can have dangerous consequences. “The stress of running your own business can have a negative impact on other aspects of your life, especially in the early startup phase,” he says. “Once entrepreneurs start canceling vacations and missing out on family time, they begin to walk a dangerous line.”

According to Staples, the pressure entrepreneurs feel stems from their desire to grow their business, to keep up with their competitors, and from the added responsibilities they have versus their counterparts. Indeed, a recent Zurich poll found that entrepreneurs wear many different hats in more cases than not. Of 1,028 small business owners surveyed, 70% claimed to be doing everything from customer services and sales to HR and marketing all on their own.

“As much as we may like to believe it, entrepreneurs need to remember that they are not superheroes,” says Carmichael. “They need to know that they cannot do everything themselves and all at once and that their businesses will not crash, for instance, if they leave work at 5pm occasionally.”

A recent report released by Vistage International and Growing Business magazine found that 64% of entrepreneurs surveyed felt that heavy workloads and stress had caused their home life to suffer. Eight in ten went on to say that a more improved balance in life would make them happier.

“You actually need to give yourself more time outside of work in order to function at your best in all areas,” says Carmichael. “By learning how to work smarter and not necessarily harder, entrepreneurs can achieve a better balance in both their work and personal lives.”

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Evan Carmichael is available for an interview. Please contact him at evan@evancarmichael.com.

Evan is an entrepreneur and international speaker. At the age of 19, he became an owner and Chief Operating Officer in Redasoft, a biotechnology software company. The company quickly grew to over 300 organizations as clients, including NASA and Johnson & Johnson, in 30 countries. He started Evan Carmichael & Associates with the goal to give entrepreneurs the Inspiration to follow their passion and the strategies they need to succeed. Evan has delivered over 100 keynote presentations to entrepreneurs in North America, Europe, and Asia. He has been interviewed by newspapers, radio stations, and television stations including The Globe and Mail, CHUM FM, CityTV, Global TV, OMNI TV, Enterprise, and the Toronto Sun. Evan's website, http://www.evancarmichael.com/ is the world's #1 website for small business motivation and strategies.

Evan Carmichael Communications Group
http:www.evancarmichael.com

This release was published on openPR.