If you are lucky enough to visit my office (LOL) you will find two things: 1) It is clean and organized, a little OCD maybe and 2) I have two large Whiteboards in my office that I think summarize my life perfectly.  I believe every entrepreneur should have these whiteboards in their office. Let me explain and I think you will follow my logic.

The first Whiteboard is what you THINK you should find in my office.  It is a board that summarizes my pending projects and what I am working on right now.  To give you an example, and this is an exact count, I have 11 categories up there and 38 projects.  Of those 38 projects I have 17 projects marked as begun.  That means I have 21 projects that I know I need to get to, and for reasons 1 thru 1000 I have not begun yet.  Not a slacker by any means, just real busy.  Pending projects are great and awful at the same time, they signify ideas and potential business as well as lack of resources or time.  The perfect combination in the messed up life of a broke entrepreneur.

The second Whiteboard is what you SHOULD find in my office.  It is a board full of drawings of my youngest daughter.  She took over this board about a year ago, and I am not allowed to erase anything. She has drawn her stuffed animals and some of the phrases that make our playtime such a joy.  I have some pink hippos, a couple of dogs (one who is a ninja), some dolphins, a reindeer, a hedgehog and a cat that likes red Gatorade, oh and a weird little one that we call Martian Hippo – pink of course.  This is my constant reminder that I have to get home. This is my home family in my office. This is the balance that I wanted when I stopped being a W-2 and became a 1099.

Nothing but happiness can be expected of having your loved ones with you.  The fact that my Whiteboard is non-negotiable and that I have to limit myself to draw around it is the greatest thing in the world.  I am always reminded why I am sitting down here and why I am working as I am.  My family is my balance.  More entrepreneurs need to understand this, as their projects involve their loved ones in many unnoticeable aspects.

I am glad I have a Whiteboard full of stuffed animals in my life, and sure hope I can erase some more of these projects on the non-important board.

Stay Calm and Keep Humble…