It’s the role of a business leader to ensure staff have a path for progression, whereby their professional goals are balanced with their personal goals so they can achieve job satisfaction. But whose job is it to carry out an appraisal of the business leader?

It might feel like there is nobody to fill that role – the difference is you will have to drive it yourself, reaching out to an external partner who is able to do for you what you do for your staff.

Is it worth the effort? That depends on how much you value personal happiness and success.

If you, like we do, believe that business leaders are entitled to a thriving personal life as well as a thriving professional life, you will seek out that partner who will look at everything from your point of view.

Does entrepreneurism guarantee happiness?

It’s often said that business owners are happier than those who are employed by somebody else. But how true is this in reality?

A recent global study from the UN found that the top three categories of jobs that yielded the highest life evaluation and positive affect are manager/executive/official roles, followed by professional workers and then clerical/office workers. Business owners came in at number four for feelings of positivity.

Perhaps it would be more accurate to say, then, that being your own boss can bring plenty of personal happiness and success – but it requires support and a plan.

Your annual check-up

When people talk about having an annual check-up, they think of open-backed robes and cold instruments. The medical professional has lots to answer for. Or you might think about an annual financial report, which brings about similar feelings of dread. However, the concept of having an annual check needn’t be so daunting. In fact, it can be a positive and energising experience.

The notion of having an annual happiness and success check-up might be an alien one as a business leader, but in doing so, you will start to ask yourself some profound questions, including:

· Am I happy?
· Am I growing?
· How do I feel?

You might not have explicitly asked yourself these sorts of personal questions before, preferring instead to focus on the professional side of your life. However, as we’ve said before, the barrier between home and work is artificial and unrealistic – it’s impossible to separate the two. Therefore, to project both the business and the leader forward, it’s necessary to understand the ‘whole person’ behind the business.

That means a bit of investment in yourself; putting yourself front and centre. But what does that mean in practice?

Investing in you

Investing in yourself can be one of the hardest investments you make. It can feel superfluous and something you don’t have time for. However, spending just half a day examining how successful you are at balancing business and leisure can be transformative – not just for yourself, but for your business and its staff. Ultimately, by stopping the clock and tuning into what makes you tick, things will become a little clearer, giving you room to grow.

Components of a ‘whole person’ appraisal:

· Define personal goals
· Personal audit
· Business audit
· Gap analysis
· Personal plan

We can help you find a framework from which to measure your personal and professional growth. That framework will likely differ for each individual – that’s because it’ll be tailored based on the individual’s circumstances and motivations.

We’re not interested in checklists; we’re interested in answers. That way we can come up with a plan that seeks to get YOU to a point of personal and professional satisfaction, wherever that be.

Taking the first steps

The initial steps in the process involve you putting trust in us to come up with a plan that will unlock new energy and propel you on your journey. In return for your honesty, you will get a partner who has a personal and professional interest in the success and happiness of you and your business.

We’ll be able to ‘benchmark’ your success and happiness so that you can keep moving it forward, each and every year.

So, how about getting a date in the diary?