Your personal health is as important to you as it is to the health of your business. So what are you doing to maintain the stamina required for long-term business continuity planning?

I know that starts to sound a little ‘soft’ to many people.

We get it. Life is hard.

So is building a business.

Both oftentimes mean that we must prioritize what is right in front of us. That results in us thinking about payroll, HR, business development, employees, and vacations… really anything other than our own wellness.

America is starting to wake up to ‘functional medicine’.

Unlike the traditional model, functional medicine is a patient-centered approach that aims to address the root causes of disease rather than simply treating symptoms. It integrates traditional Western medical practices with holistic approaches to create personalized treatment plans based on an individual’s unique health history, lifestyle, and genetics.

Yet the current mindset for many founders is that we can stay on track by going to the doctor’s office annually. We get the bloodwork, are reminded to eat better, and try to reduce stress when we can. We then forget about all that and go straight back to work.

Every now and then we have something come up (illness, expiring medication, or a broken bone) that forces us back there. But we are mostly at the doctor’s office to check the box… and to feel good that we are doing ‘what we can’.

However, by ignoring key person risk in the form of your own health, you are creating a liability for your company.

So much research has come out over the last decade about the ROI of taking care of ourselves. The reality is that it goes back to the basics we all know:

• As Americans, our diet is horrible.
• We don’t exercise nearly enough.
• We take too many medications rather than taking the time to address root causes.
• We sleep too little.

We are very driven as we work to build and grow our businesses. As a result, we don’t value stress-relieving habits, hobbies, or downtime… only amplifying our stress.

Stress is a huge negative in the medical community. It creates all sorts of damage to the heart, mind, and soul. And as business owners, we often ignore it or simply accept it as something we must endure to get to the next stage in life where we can “finally” unwind.

In our Charting Opportunities series, we sat down with Dr. Carlos Jorge to address this exact opportunity: how to boost your health to take your business to the next level.

We explored the small habit-forming opportunities that yield the highest return on energy.

What do you have to lose? A 1.5-hour session to move you closer to a healthier self (and a more resilient business).