Ryan Hanley is no stranger to the Web.Search.Social Podcast and for good reason: whenever he’s on we walk away inspired and ready to take action.
As the host of the Content Warfare Podcast and author of our new favorite business book by the same name, Ryan makes every conversation a fluff-free zone. He is also notorious for his love of tangents which may be why we started out thinking we were going to talk about content marketing but ended up talking about balancing entrepreneurship and family.
Truth be told, we started on that tangent and forgot to get off it because the conversation was so fascinating.
Do You Work With Your Spouse Or Significant Other?
We’ve been pretty surprised to learn lately about so many people who run a business with their significant other.
So when we heard Ryan talk about how running a crowd funding campaign fund his book, followed by the actual writing of the book, had put a strain on his marriage, we were all ears.
And by the way, if you’re thinking, “That’s not me. I won’t get anything out of this one,” you’d be wrong. There is so much entrepreneurial goodness here that even if the only person you see all day is your cat, you’ll still walk away feeling revived.
Apparently, Success Takes Work.
Ryan is a positive person so to hear him talk about how he struggled to balance work and life during a particularly stressful period in his life gives us hope that even the worst of times can be overcome.
You just have to want to overcome them.
Oh, and you have to show up and do the work. There is a time and place for happy, motivational, aspirational talk and a time to roll up your sleeves and do it. Even if you’re doing it at 3AM on two hours sleep.
Also, Success Is Scary.
When you do great things a scary thing starts to happen. People start to expect great things from you. That’s a lot of pressure!
And if you’re successful enough people start to pick apart what you do and say which can leave you wide open for criticism.
Ryan (or in this case Ryan’s dad) says don’t be afraid. Embrace it and keep on going.
Put Your Family First.
When your life is out of balance it’s a lot harder to get your work done and to focus and be productive. Plus, the most important people in your life suffer.
Make sure you designate time for work and time for play. And when you’re with your family, be with them. Be in the moment and dial in 100%.
Put Your Health Way Up There, Too.
When you’re busy, getting little sleep or traveling a lot you probably aren’t thinking about eating your green veggies or hopping on the treadmill. But Ryan is adamant that you can’t be at your best or create your best unless you feel good about yourself.
If your muscles are starting to feel a little soggy, make time for regular workouts and not only will you feel better but you’ll watch your energy levels soar.
It’s Not About Love.
Well, it’s kind of about love. But even love can’t save a relationship without some other key ingredients. For Ryan these are trust and respect, and we’re on board.
Get Excited About Your Work But Remember That It’s Work.
Being passionate and motivated is great. But success for Ryan is simple math. It’s 90% showing up, 9% doing the work and 1% talent. It’s worth repeating: you have to want to succeed.
Your Marketing Action Item From Ryan
We asked Ryan to share how you can balance your family and business at the same time and his answer was real simple: never put your own priorities ahead of your family’s.
Get Your Content Warfare Book
In case you’re wondering whether it’s worth it, it is. We had to get two copies of the book – one for looking awesome on a bookshelf and one for highlighting the crap out of.
Catch The Content Warfare Podcast
A long time favorite of ours, the Content Warfare podcast is worth listening to again and again.
And if that’s not enough Ryan, you can follow him on Twitter @RyanHanley_com or find him on Google Plus.
Where To Listen
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Some great points in this interview. Having been self-employed for fourteen years now and married for eighteen, I appreciated the candor of this interview. I’ve seen several friends sacrifice their closest relationships to achieve business goals, and they all regret it. One of them recently told me that “it’s a pain that never goes away.”
I’m grateful that I have a very emotionally stable and understanding wife who supports me. That has been the most important factor to my success. Business goals come and go, but if you lose your family you’ve lost something priceless.
“Business goals come and go, but if you lose your family you’ve lost something priceless.” <- Yes!