Love What You Do — But Don't Let It Sink Your Business. Here's How to Stay Passionate and Profitable. Passion may fuel your startup, but profit keeps it alive.

By Nicholas Leighton Edited by Chelsea Brown

Key Takeaways

  • Many founders focus all of their time, attention and energy toward parts of the business they're most passionate about. But if your business isn't as profitable as you think it should be, you may be falling into a passion trap.
  • Change your financial mindset. Instead of mindlessly pursuing money, reframe your business's financial goals in terms of supporting your desired lifestyle.
  • Outsource or delegate non-passion tasks to others. It ensures the business operates smoothly and frees up the founder's time to do more of what they love to do.
  • Schedule blocks of time dedicated to CEO activities and others for more creative outlets.

Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

We've all heard the saying "Love what you do and you'll never work a day in your life." There is a lot of truth packed into this statement. Passion typically lies at the foundation of every successful business. For many business owners, choosing entrepreneurship meant escaping the dull, soulless corporate jobs that simply didn't make them happy. Instead, they wanted to get up every morning and engage in work that was exciting, challenging and meaningful.

Building a business from the ground up requires a ton of blood, sweat and tears. The entrepreneurial journey isn't for the faint of heart. Despite the headwinds of starting a new business, passion can be a powerful driving force that propels early growth. There are countless stories of entrepreneurs who created world-class brands by simply chasing what they love.

While passion is a critical ingredient in any successful business, it can present challenges when it's the founder's sole focus. At the end of the day, a business must be profitable to survive. This doesn't mean that passion should be cast to the wayside. Instead, entrepreneurs need to be aware that too much passion can create blind spots that hold the business back from achieving strategic growth and maximizing their personal well-being.

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Nicholas Leighton

Entrepreneur Leadership Network® Contributor

Best-selling author, speaker & business owner executive coach

Nick Leighton believes that business owners should make more money and have more free time. He does this through his best-selling book "Exactly Where You Want to Be – A Business Owner’s Guide to Passion, Profit and Happiness," speaking and coaching. #ChampagneMoment.

Want to be an Entrepreneur Leadership Network contributor? Apply now to join.

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