I just returned from lunch with my boyfriend (Art) at a wonderful Greek restaurant. He picked me up about noon, and we drove a few minutes, dined at the fantastic buffet, and he dropped me back home. It took about an hour.

This,of course, is not a big deal. People eat lunch every day, right?

Ah, but it’s a big deal to me. At my last job, I spent almost every lunch at my desk. If I forgot to bring it, I’d almost always hit a vending machine instead of going out. I felt so stressed to get everything done every day that I rarely left. No one made me do it, but I just couldn’t imagine that I would be productive if I took that break. I also frequently came in early and stayed late. I tried to work smarter, not harder… but it seemed the smarter I worked, the more work I created.

Now that I own my own business, I think nothing of meeting Art for lunch, or taking a stroll in the afternoon. And it doesn’t bother me at all to work late into the night or to get up early for a phone call with an East Coast client. I just feel so much more at ease. At my other job, I was sure I’d fall behind the other salespeople if I didn’t work twice as hard, and then I felt an obligation to add value above and beyond making sales. But as my own employee, I never doubt my own dedication to getting things done. And that makes life so much easier.

I think I made the right decision.