Entrepreneurs ask entrepreneurs

Entrepreneurship requires grit and tenacity. At times, only a fellow entrepreneur understands what it’s really like. So the Kansas City Business Journal asked several entrepreneurs what they’d want to ask if they could interview other entrepreneurs. KCBJ reporter Leslie Collins then posed the questions to some of the area’s notable entrepreneurs.

QUESTION:

How do you take time to digress while building your business? It seems difficult to focus on anything other than the business. How do you find work/life balance?

JY’JUAN MAZE, co-founder and president of logistics company Maze Freight Solutions

ANSWER:

Jill Minton, co-founder and CEO of health café t.Loft

“I feel like it’s always a work in progress, and I’ve gotten better with it throughout the years,” Jill Minton said.

During the early days of t.Loft, the health cafe felt like a 24/7 obligation, with Minton glued to her phone and laptop. She skimped on quality time with her children and often told them to “go find something to do.” But now things are better. Her children have become a part of the business, helping with aspects such as scheduling, tagging products and rolling protein balls. And Minton makes it a point to schedule several hours of family time every day, when she sets aside work both mentally and physically. Planned vacations are another avenue to unplug.

Building processes into the business and hiring the right team has contributed most to finding balance, she said. Every shift has a detailed schedule of what needs to be checked off and how it should be done, she said. It eliminates ambiguity and ensures that employees understand what’s expected. Those repeatable processes also give Minton the freedom to delegate responsibilities. Lean on your team, she said.

“That took me a long time to figure out: You know what? I’ve hired somebody to do that role, and I’ve got to let them do it. I’ve got to let them fail and learn. I’ve got to let it go because you can’t hold on to every piece of it. It takes a village, and if you can’t lean on your village, you’re never going to have balance.”

So build a team of people you feel comfortable working with and ease them into new responsibilities. Let them master the new tasks before trying to add more, she said.

“Also, try to think about the worst-case scenario. What’s the worst thing that can happen? Nobody’s going to die if we’re not holding up every piece and part, so that gives me some peace.”

By Leslie Collins – Staff Writer, Kansas City Business Journal