HOW LONG HAS IT BEEN SINCE YOU HAD A GOOD HEARTY LAUGH??

I was thinking about the importance of this today because often times running your own business can be solitary and also somewhat somber!

On a daily basis, your job is putting out fires, solving problems and trying to avoid potholes and sharp turns. So why is laughter so important when running your group home?

Because laughter is part of the fuel and energy that God gave you to continue going on a daily basis.

The average child laughs 150 times per day, but the average adult laughs only 3 times per day…..I bet you that the average entrepreneur laughs only 3 times per week! And when you learn how to start a group home and you begin actually running your group home, care home or sober home. In fact, you are also going to be surrounded by people and employees who are often in dire circumstances which can often times bring you down. So what can you do about this?

LAUGH!

I remember hearing a story of a lady who went to the doctor’s office with a bad case of back pain. The doctor wound up prescribing her some medication….but only medication to reduce the symptom. He also told her to go out and rent and read every comedy she could find. Also, to watch or read those comedies every night before bed. 3 months later she walked into the doctor’s office and he knew, right away, that something had changed. She was happy! It wasn’t the pain pill that had caused the relief, it was the laughter. Laughter is the best medicine!

Look, when you are operating group homes you MUST find a way to find humor in your job on a daily basis. It is IMPERATIVE. I know a man with a disabled son and I would always admire how upbeat he was. His son had a severe case of tuberous sclerosis. To any outsider looking it, it most likely would be seen as quite sad. But you should have seen the father and the joy and laughter that he would always bring to the family and others around them. He would take his son to restaurants and throughout the community and would laugh when his son would do things. As a matter of fact, he didn’t treat him any differently than his other children. He would laugh with him as well as at his expense over funny little things.

Would some people look down on this? Yes! In fact, I may have been one of those people at first. But when you step back and watch him, you realize that his way of handling stress is without question the best! He wouldn’t let this stress and sadness enter his home with him every night and let it chip away. He would simply laugh about things and have fun with it. Every day! At his own expense, at the expense of others and in general! He was always laughing and cracking jokes.

This man has taught me a lot about life and especially about how to handle the stresses that come with operating care homes, group homes, sober homes, assisted livings and other “transitional” homes. Mark my words: this business comes with plenty of issues (like all businesses do) so you need to find the humor in it on a daily basis! Remember this saying, “Laughing all the way to the bank!”

MAKE SURE YOU ARE TAKING YOUR MEDICINE

I am going to give you a quick and easy prescription that I learned from Napolean Hill. Every day, when you wake up, think of something that makes you laugh and force yourself to smile and LAUGH OUT LOUD! Not inside, you need to actually laugh out loud! After doing this, do it again at lunch time and then before bed! 3 times a day is the champion’s way. It is 110% free, has no side effects and you can take it as often as you like!

I have something that always makes me crack up. It is the image of this guy I know that has a monster real estate portfolio of low-income and affordable housing. He drives a $200,000 Bentley and is always dressed to the nines with his gold Rolex watch that is probably worth another $50,000.

Why does this image make me laugh? Because he likes to drive around the rough areas of town, with trash out in front of the homes and apartments, gang members flashing signs on the street corners, hookers offering up their services at 9 AM in the morning and derelicts wandering aimlessly on the streets. Then I see an image of this guy in his Bentley looking for homes and real estate to purchase! Just the idea of this and the overall contradiction makes me crack-up! Is it right? I’m not here to tell you whether this is right or wrong. It is what it is….but I can tell you one thing – It makes me laugh out loud!

Remember, having a good hearty laugh about your Group Homes, your clients or whatever is great medicine. This laughter reduces blood pressure, relaxes you and makes you more enjoyable to be around. Laughter actually opens up the right side of your mind — the creative side — which will help you make better decisions and actually increase your income. Most importantly, people who laugh regularly are 45% less likely to have heart problems than those who don’t laugh on a daily basis! The more enjoyable you are to be around, the better your business is going to run and the more energy you will have to keep things going.

I know that this may sound contradictory as many of you feel like being empathetic and sad about your clients is how you need to be. Yes, a little of that empathy is fine. After all, you are starting a group home or running group homes in order to help people…..but remember, you will not be able to make a large impact if you are absorbing sadness on a daily basis. You need to have a good cheer and be a fun person to be around, after all, that is really what your clients need.