Why Smart Founders Are Ditching “Balance” and Chasing Presence Instead
Lessons from entrepreneurs who cut hours, grew profits, and finally got their life back
Somewhere between your first big client and your last sleepless night, you probably realized that “work-life balance” isn’t a finish line. It’s a moving target. One week you’re in the zone, closing deals and still making it home for dinner. The next, you’re answering emails at midnight while the cold food sits untouched in the kitchen.
I’ve lived long enough in this world to know: balance isn’t about hours, it’s about energy. And protecting that energy is as much a business strategy as your marketing plan.
Start By Letting Go Of What’s Not Yours To Carry
Every founder starts out wearing every hat. Sales, bookkeeping, customer service you name it. But if you’re still doing all of it three years in, you’re not running a company. You’re just working for one very demanding boss: yourself.
VensureHR calls it “firefighting.” You wake up, jump into a dozen mini-crises, and somehow it’s 8 p.m. without a single big decision made. The cure is learning to say no to the wrong things and delegating the right ones. One founder told Business Insider he shaved 20-plus hours off his week by giving his managers real ownership. The business didn’t fall apart. It got better. And so did his marriage.
Boundaries Are Boring Until They Save You
I used to think boundaries were a soft skill something you figure out once you’ve “made it.” Turns out, they’re the scaffolding that keeps the whole structure from collapsing.
The smart play is to set your hours like you would a store sign. If you say you’re closed after 6 p.m., you’re closed. Chase’s small business team swears by putting personal time in the calendar as if it were a meeting with your top investor. Family dinners. Morning runs. Even that Tuesday night book club. If it’s not scheduled, it’s vulnerable.
Tech Is A Servant, Not A Master
I’ve seen too many founders get a shiny new app, then spend more time managing the tool than the business. Automation is magic when it works quietly in the background like a good operations manager who doesn’t need constant check-ins. Scheduling software, auto-responders, and project dashboards can shave hours off your week, but only if they’re set up once and then left to do their job.
As Chase notes, every repetitive process you streamline buys you another hour of life back. Use those hours wisely.
Treat Self-Care Like A Revenue Stream
Ignore the Instagram wellness crowd for a moment and think about self-care in founder terms: it’s an investment with compounding returns. Nevada State Bank advises blocking off workouts, hobbies, and downtime like non-negotiable client meetings. Business Insider profiled leaders who swear by micro-breaks a short walk, a real lunch, five minutes with the phone off. Small things, big impact.
The truth? Skipping these doesn’t just drain your health. It makes you worse at the job.
Time Management Is Just Another Word For Self-Respect
I’ve used every productivity system under the sun. Most are just dressed-up common sense. The Pomodoro Technique works because it forces breaks before your brain crashes. TIME calls it one of the simplest, most effective systems out there: 25 minutes of focus, 5 minutes of rest. Repeat.
And yes, to-do lists still work. Calendars still work. Blocking out hours for specific work and then actually protecting them still works. The magic isn’t in the tool. It’s in whether you respect your own schedule as much as you respect everyone else’s.
Forget “Balance.” Chase Presence.
I used to beat myself up for not having a perfect split between work and life. Now I know it’s about being all-in where you are. When you’re with your kids, be with them. When you’re at the table negotiating a deal, be fully there too.
Some founders set up accountability partners a spouse, a mentor, even a colleague to call them out when the lines start blurring. The big names are split: Mark Cuban doesn’t even believe in balance. Jeff Bezos talks about harmony, where the two sides fuel each other.
Both are right in their own way.
The Real Cost Of Ignoring It All
One founder told Business Insider he cut his hours from 70 to 45, and his business grew anyway. The difference? He wasn’t running on fumes. He had enough left in the tank to think clearly, lead better, and still show up for the people who mattered.
The myth is that more hours mean more progress. In reality, overwork makes you sloppy. You miss opportunities because you’re too tired to see them. The founders who last? They’re the ones who know when to close the laptop, walk out the door, and live the rest of their life.
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Freya is a digital nomad and writer from Sweden, curating business travel hacks and remote-work inspiration from her global adventures.
