Have you ever had one of those moments in your business when you feel like you’re jumping from one responsibility to the next, barely taking a breath and having to shift focus on a dime?

I call that Business Schizophrenia.  And your ability to manage it well is what will determine your success.

Let’s be straight: I’m not what you would call a “bright shiny object” entrepreneur.  I don’t pump out great idea after great idea (that would be my husband). As a matter of fact, I get way too overwhelmed if there are more than 2 or 3 major GOALS to work towards. Because I am an implementer. I take those ideas and build them out and make them a reality. There are 2000 steps behind every one great idea. So 2000 x 3 is about all I can handle at any given time.

Business Schizophrenia is not about an abundance of ideas. It’s about those moments when you have such a diverse group of responsibilities on your plate that you literally have to extract your thoughts and energy from project X and delve immediately into project Y with a completely fresh set of eyes.

It occurs during two different stages of a business: the very beginning when everything is brand new and you’re trying to piece everything together.  And when your company is going through a major growth evolution. Both of these statuses attract Business Schizophrenia because NEW information is being added to the pot that needs major attention and more than likely, it’s requiring more time from you in order to figure out the eventual systemization.

It’s like drinking through two fire hoses, one right after the other.

It’s very easy to mistake Business Schizophrenia with an overwhelming anxiety about the to-do lists that keep on growing. But this isn’t just about feeling overwhelmed or that there are too many things to do.

This is about a few different ideas demanding your time and competing for brain space and attention!

My reason for identifying Business Schizophrenia is to acknowledge it’s existence and to offer solutions on managing it successfully:

1.  Understand it’s temporary: One day, one month or one year…business schizophrenia is temporal. The better you become at managing the instantaneous transitions, the faster it will disappear.

2. It’s a GOOD thing! It means you’re going through a major evolution and the challenge will ensure you’ll come out on the other side so much wiser about your company!

3. Take a breath. I literally have to stop and breath in order to emotionally extract myself from one conversation to a completely different one. To go in clear minded to the next thing, just breathe deep.

4. Delegate Effectively. My personal belief is that going through Business Schizophrenia is the state we need to experience before we can successfully delegate. And the better we delegate, the more this starts to feel like just “checking in” on these diverse projects!

The best part about experiencing Business Schizophrenia is that the rate at which you master managing it is exponentially proportional to the rate of growth of your company! Think about it…when diverse projects can be handled efficiently (by being delegated and implemented effectively), then more and more projects can be on your plate that can positively impact your company!

How crazy is that? 🙂