I've lost that loving feeling...

[Lawn-Scapes]

and I don't know what to do to get it back.

I've sat here for over 5 minutes and can't even explain why I feel the way I do... I'm my own boss and the money is good but I'm losing interest and sometimes dread going out. I think I'm bored..

Any ideas?

[LAWNGODFATHER]

http://lawnsite.com/showthread.php?s=&threadid=31224

Read this thread, I got it back a few weeks ago.

[robert payer]

TSG,
Try to explain the cause for lack of motivation. Would hate to lose a fellow professional here. I think we all need more information in attempt to show some support.

[Doc Pete]

Burnout does happen and it's real. During the Blizzard and 17 storms of 96' in New Jersey, I thought I'd never want to see more snow........ Now, I just hope for 3 feet of it........
Pete

[robert payer]

Switchless,

Could not agree with you more. Blizzards and burn out go hand in hand. Snow plowing is just a necessary evil.

[AL Inc]

I thought I was the only one:) I just try to stay positive. There are a lot of people with far worse problems. Are there any hobbies you can get into to get your mind off things? I think everyone gets into a rut like this from time to time. Good luck, Mike

[ilovethisgame]

The lawn business can at times be one of great monotany (spelling?) Most of us get up go out and service the same jobs day in day out week in... I'm in the process of restructuring my business trying to add services so I'm not doing the same stuff every day. Somtimes a new tool can bring some much needed excitement. This is a tough profession but, hey we're all here in the grind and hustle. Keep your head up sometimes stuff gets worse before it gets better we're all here for you.

-Dave

[Bobby]

Tom
I lost it also about a year and a half ago. Sold my work after twenty years.
Got a CDL and started driving a semi in Florida. My wife warned me but I didn't listen. Besides making about a third of what I used to make, It's my freedom I miss the most.I'm now in the proses of building a new business here in central Fla.
Hope things work out for you.

[robert payer]

Options:
1) Become involved in some sort of activities out side of work.
2) Take some classes.
3) Set some sort goals to be achieved.
A) Investment
B) Certification of some sort.
C) Improved relationships.
D) Plan a future Vacation to be anticipated.
E) Maybe material wants.
1) Dream house
2) Remodel existing house
3) Car upgrade
4) Nicer work truck

Hope these ideas are of help. Will continue to watch this thread. Sounds like just the blahs. They pass.
Will be thinking about you.

Time is tonic.

[leprechaun_50]

Tom
Burnout can be a normal occupational hazzard in any line of work. Don't let it get you down. The other responses to your post have offered some excellent suggestions for you to consider.
Best of luck with wharever you decide.

[robert payer]

Bobby,

Had to look for my Bible. Josha 24:15. Nice passage some what similar. Well my Bible is now more accesible. Thanks for the reminder.

[wolfpacklawn]

Go and get a job working for someone else over the winter and this will help you realize how good you've got it.

One other thing- Do you listen to the radio while our work? I would die without my walkman. Three hours of Rush Limbaugh, a SF Giants baseball game on the radio, and a little music now and then sure make my day go by quickly.

[Vibe Ray]

My suggestions:

1) Go make a bunch of new friends (Maybe a girlfriend if you are single)

2) Splurge on yourself and buy those things you've always wanted. In no way am I refering to job related things, but if that's what you had your eye on, then that IS what I'm talking about.

3) Go work @ McDonald's until you realize how nice you have it! :)

4) GET OVER IT!

[southside]

Buy yourself a new work vehicle.Something you can also use for yourself. Either that or go on a holiday.
Australia is nice this time of year.:D

[ADMowing]

Hi Tom!

My husband is feeling that way and I think its because he does nothing else right now but lawn service. He is the mechanic for the lawn equipment and the accountant. I take care of the house and our dogs. Daughter is grown and have a grandson, so we don't have kid worries. But I worry about him. He sleeps a lot, but never seems rested. It is 7 am and he is out there right now mowing our yard. I'm getting ready to go out there and help him now.

We mow all day and come home. He does the accounting while I clean up and make dinner. Then he sits in his chair and sleeps. Then he goes to bed and gets up and sharpens and changes blades and does clean up on the mowers while I get our water, lunch and take care of the dogs etc....

LS has helped us though! We have more energy and feel more pride in our work this year because we know there are others out there who feel the same way we do. LS has really helped us with ideas and just the feeling of commradery. When the scrubs come out in droves, we come to LS to get some support from the professionals.

During the winter months, we get 1 week off in between our work week. I think that the comments about getting involved in something unrelated to the business may be the answer.

Thanks for the post -- 'cause we're going through it here too! Know that you are not alone and I'm hoping that I find a solution too 'cause we're only 1/2 the way through the summer season.

Take care and God Bless!

Bobby, thanks for the Bible verse.

A & D (Alex and Debbie)

[SIG]

Hey Tom,
Your neighbor from Taylorsville here, I understand what you are going through, it is one of the reasons I got out of this business the first time I was in it Full-time. I have a pretty good paying job with a lot of responsiblity, but I wish I was in your shoes again. It does not matter what you do, work is work. I like to use this saying to people " If work was meant to be fun, it wouldn't be called work" You are a in a good position, don't go back and work for the "man" if you can avoid it. Have you ever considered a Part-time helper, it can really make your life easier when you have somebody to help you do all the **** work. Of 99 degree heat w/ 80% humidity doesn't help either. Hang in there brother, and you will be fine!!!
Dave

[scott's turf]

Hang in there. I have been in the same boat for the last few weeks. I have a FT engineering job and run my lawn business too. Had a guy working 30+ hrs a week and suddenly just quit. He was getting $15/hr and I thought that was enough to keep him around and have good help. Now one of my wb's dies and my trailer has a bent axle and is eating up tires. Not to mention my Ford problems. I came to a crossroads and decided to reduce my hours at my FT job to 3 days a week and mow lawns myself the other 2 days. I put an ad in the paper a week ago for help and got tons of responses but I just can't handle the stress right now of someone else running things. So I bought a new 16' tandem yesterday and am buying a 61" WS next week. Hopefully this will reduce my stress and make me a bit happier. Variety is key for me. Being stuck inside all week or being out in the heat all week can be too much sometimes. I thought of giving it up but I love running a business. Times can be tough but we can also reap the benefits. Bust your butt=more money. If I design a state of the art device that makes my company millions I might see a 5% raise. You will get through it.

-scott

[TJ]

Im going through the same thing from the other side of the spectrum. I had a small lawn service that put me through school during the mid 90's. I graduated in 98 and have been programming pc's ever since. I live in central Florida and I pass 10 to 15 lawn services every day.

I am so sick of sitting in front of a pc I could puke. I really miss cutting grass.

Its all relative to your current situation.

[awm]

i am of the opinion that folks in this day are addicted to fun an entertaining activities etc. if a person thinks that life is
fun all the time they will spend a lot of high times and low times..life is for living .
what goes into it is what u get out.
but a person i believe needs to know how to just do the ordinary things a person has to do in life. the trick is to realize how great that is.sorry if my thought on the matter were not expressed clearly. i do da bes i kin:D .
ps one thing that may help is to find a way to serve others,without being motivated by anything gained for yourself. there is irony in this that some will see and others wont.. have a great day brother ,it is really great to be alive.huh

[rkbrown]

TSG:

Burnout happens in all professions (except professional bass fishing, maybe :) ). The fine folks on this site have given you some worthwhile ideas to explore. For me, I know, the key to breaking the hum-drum is to learn something new.

I can relate to you, TJ. I didn't have my own biz, but worked for an lco going through college (although in my case it was not in the mid 90's...more like the late 70's :) ). I, too sit in an office and program computers. That is why I decided to start a part-time lawn and landscape maintenance biz this year...to get outside. I am curing the boredom of my meat-and-potatos job by doing something different. I am also learning new things because I am studying for herbicide/insecticide as well as irrigation licensing.

When I need am down in the dumps and need motivation, I am a blessed man. Usually one or both of my 9 year old twin daughters will come and sit in my lap, kiss me on the cheek, tell me they love me and ask me to read them a story or go outside and hit a baseball. This truly puts things in perspective for me.

God Bless you TSG. You have brought to light a problem that plagues us all and the wonderful people of this site, in response, have given me new tools to combat it.

[Runner]

Tom,
I would just like to tell you that you're not alone in this, and that it comes and goes in ANY occupation and profession. It can esPECially affect those of us who are solo, or work alone much of the time. This is the purpose for vacations, and this is the purpose for taking an occasional day off just for yourself. No, NOT to stop in at Home Depot for some of those supplies you've been meaning to pick up, and NOT to fiddle with the machinery out in the shop. This is NOT what is meant by a day off! It's time, for yourself, to do anything, and I mean ANYthing that is not related to work. Now, there is another edge to this sword, so be careful. I'm sure everyone can relate to this one, also. What it is, is that in the profession that we are in, esPECially being the owners of the operation, there are so often of times that we will be out for our "day off", and like me, I can't even go out to the LAKE for an afternoon without thinking to myself "I COULD be doing this, or I COULD be getting THAT done." The thing is, is to just tell yourself that you WILL be geting those things done, and that this time off is going to help refresh you to aid in you working even BETTER. In other words, don't feel guilty, and don't let anxiety get the best of you. In the meantime, take two steps back, look at the whole big picture, and count your (our) blessings. Keep pushin' on! Good luck, and take care of yourself. YOU'll get back into the swing of things!
I would also just like to quickly chime in here to give a welcome and express appreciation to all of those newer members such as all you people who have spoke up on this thread. It's great to see the new faces (so to speak) and to know that there are people like yourselves joining us. Take care.:)

[65hoss]

Expand!! If your tired of the way it is start looking at expanding. What a way to supercharge yourself! You'll get excited all over again. Not to mention, the sooner you grow larger the sooner you get out of always cutting.

[A1 Lawn@Landscapes]

I was feeling the same way, all burnt out. I was thinking of going back into accounting or sales. Then I did something that really put everything in perspective. I grabbed the family, threw them in the car packed up some stuff, and went to the beach. Hampton Beach in NH to be exact. It was a 1.5 hr ride each way and we spent about 5 hours there then came home. I spent some real enjoyable quality time with the family. It was just what I needed to recharge the batteries. Find something to do that you really enjoy that you have not done in a while. And lastly make the time to do it !

[yardboyltd]

Perhaps heat is a major factor, even if you don't realize it. I love working in the business in the 60-70 degree weather, especially in the fall chopping leaves.. but right now, it's so hard for me to energize myself to get out there... it makes me slower, and the work seems less important and me staying comfortable more...

[LAWNS AND MOWER]

I'm with A1 Lawn. I was feeling burned out myself, so I took my 2 sons camping this past weekend. Talk about being recharged. Working 70-80 hours/week can grind on you. Got talked into playing in a golf tournament this weekend. They really had to twist my arm. Just another way to get rejuvenated. Already planning my next camping trip.

LAWNS AND MOWER

[proline32]

I know how you feel tom, I've been feeling that way lately and the heat hasen't help me to get motivated, I cut back some accounts that I felt wern't worth it and instead am taking more time off just to relax some, this all started after I got back from a 3 day weekend on the oregon coast ( all I did was fly kites ) and I keep a couple of kites in the truck just in case I feel itchy and want to take a break during the day, nothing like taking your mind off mowing.

[Lawn-Scapes]

If I take everyone's advice.. I'd go broke :D

I did order a pair of Peltor Worktunes tonite.

"Monotony" is an understatement.. isn't it? Burn out.. could be but I don't think so. The heat is no big deal... worked in S. Florida for 6 years so I know how to deal with it pretty well.

I'm still not sure what it is... I just know that when I'm at each job.. I don't want to be there and every little thing aggrevates me!

There is a new house (our first) in the works. (((fingers crossed)))
This should give me plenty of things to do to keep myself occupied after work and on weekends. Especially for my hobbie.. home theater :)

Had to cancel our little get away plans to Va. Beach/Bush Gardens because of the house.. oh well. There's always next year!

Runner.. I will have to try the "occassional day to myself". I just hope I can keep it to occassional.. ;) BTW.. Happy B-day in a couple!

65hoss.. I think you may be right. Time to expand.

I'm in this for the long haul (seems like forever already) and hope this passes sooner than later.

Thanks again everyone...

[Nelson]

TSG,

Just be thankful for your health.....To even be able 2 do
this kind of work......

Today after the day was finished..I was saying Wow
was it hot today. Mumbling 2 myself about this & That
Need 2 get a office job again..etc..etc.........

Then All of a sudden @ a redlight. I saw a man with No legs trying 2 get across the street in time before the
light changed in his wheelchair..Man was he trying so hard
just 2 make the light......

That 2 me was a HUMBLING situation.......

The Lord works in mysterious ways...In order 2 deal with u
when we think we have it bad........

Hope this helps.......:angel:

[1MajorTom]

AWM: That's the best post you ever wrote. That is so true.
Not sure if it applies to TSG, but I had to call my husband in to read it because it sure does apply to him!!

Matt is so grouchy to work with. He gets irritated at the tiniest things. He's always complaining how he doesn't have any "toys".
A boat, snow mobiles, a motorcycle, etc.. You name it, he wants it.

Thanks for a good post AWM. Matt read it and agreed with it. He knows he has to work on trying to relax more and enjoy the simple things.

[Brickman]

I too am burnt out. One reason why I am seriously considering selling out and doing some thing else. Dunno yet what.
Part of the problem is that I tried to work solo this year, and that didn't work. I had already took on too much work before I realized that I couldn't do it all. And by the time I was able to hire a guy had pissed off a ton of people. That is not some thing that I am used to, normally I can keep almost every body happy with my work.
Probably the biggest part of the burn out for me is that in my personal life I was emtionally screwed in a big way and am still not emotionally replenished from that. And the stress of dealing with people is just about to get to me.

I am going to try to hit things very hard mon, tues, and wed of next week (July 4) and then take the rest of the week off. I am sure that is a pipe dream but I know the time off would realign things a little.

[ADMowing]

Runner -- I think that is exactly what my husband's problem is.... he can't take time off and not think about what he SHOULD be doing! I'll have to talk to him about it and find ways to get us away from it all.

Personally, on Monday when I get on the mower and grab a weedeater or hoist the backpack on my back, I'm happy as a clam. I love being out there! I take a big breath and realize how blessed we are to be outside and working for ourselves.

What gets me depressed are seeing the loads of scrubs out there. Seems like in the past week 40 new scrubs have decided to do lawn service. It makes me wonder sometimes why we bother! But our customers are happy and they love the work we do, so we keep things in perspective.

Yes, Nelson! When we see what others have to deal with, I think that it does humble us. Two of our customer are battling cancer and others have their own set of troubles.

Awm -- doing for others DOES have that healing effect. I help elderly all the time and it always comes back to give me lots of joy! Thanks for the reminder!!!

TSG -- We all support you, man! Hope things look up for you soon!

[HOMER]

Sometimes we can't see the light at the end of the tunnel, this tends to bring about thoughts that there is something better out there------somewhere. Been there done that.

When this happens I feel like it keeps us from seeing the forrest because of the trees.

Am I making any sense?

I got a part time kid working with me now........does 2 things. One it takes the weedeater out of my hands 100 % of the time and puts it into his......he now does all the edging as well. Jobs are not yet getting done very much quicker because of him but time will help there.

Secondly, and I think more importantly, it gives me a feeling of progress or something. I can't explain that one very well but I'll try.

Even though I pull around a 24' trailer with 3 mowers and all the other goodies I'm basically a one man show. Makes me feel kinda stupid at times!:rolleyes: I get into this rut thinking that I'm not progressing as fast as I should but I have to look at all the accounts I've given away over the years too. I could be bigger than what I am but didn't want the hassle. Got the equpment so might as well keep it and use it, if I get rid of it something good will come along and then I'll not be prepared to take it on. I look at others that drag around 3 or 4 employees and wonder how they do it, I know our market and it just ain't there..........so I think they must be doing something right and I'm doing it wrong.

I then have to change my thought processes back to where I'm at in life and where they are. I've been able to buy that house I never could before. Drive better vehicles than I ever could working "down at the factory". I've got a lot of debt that's for sure, that brings me down at times, but I'm making it by the grace of GOD.

We all want to see that silver lining in the clouds. Some see it when they walk outside, others have to look through the haze. Some days I see it and some days the haze is too thick.

I think it's called being human. It takes an outside force along the way to get us back on track, a new account, that new house you want. I love to come home now, I love to mow my own grass now and sit out under the Pecan trees when I'm done with a cold Coca-Cola........it somehow makes everything fall into perspective.

Keep your chin up and remember how things were before. Tell yourself every day that your doing what thousands of people out there only dream of. You took that leap of faith and proved to all the nay sayers that you could do it, not only could you do it but you can do it succesfully and be prosperous at it. Do as the others have said and look for a small escape hatch from the daily routine........at least until the good thoughts return.

Your gonna be fine;)