Know your own body.
This might seem like strange advice from someone who writes about business and entrepreneurship. But it's become one of the most important lessons I've learned.
The Entrepreneurial Blind Spot
Entrepreneurs are trained to understand systems. We analyze markets, study customers, optimize processes. We're good at understanding external systems.
But we're often terrible at understanding the most important system of all: our own bodies.
We ignore the warning signs. We push through fatigue. We treat our bodies like machines that should just keep running, regardless of maintenance.
I did this for years. And it caught up with me.
The Wake-Up Call
My wake-up call came in stages. First, the constant exhaustion that I attributed to "just working hard." Then the brain fog that made it hard to think clearly. Then the physical symptoms that couldn't be ignored.
When I finally paid attention—when I finally got curious about my own body—I discovered things I should have known years earlier. Food sensitivities. Sleep issues. Stress patterns. Hormonal imbalances.
All of these were affecting my performance, my mood, my relationships, my work. And I had been completely oblivious.
The Education
Learning to know your own body is a process. Here's what it's involved for me:
Tracking: I started paying attention to how I felt after eating certain foods, after certain activities, at certain times of day. Patterns emerged that I had never noticed.
Testing: I got blood work done. I did food sensitivity tests. I tracked my sleep with devices. Data revealed things that intuition had missed.
Experimenting: I tried eliminating certain foods, adding certain supplements, changing certain habits. Some experiments worked; others didn't. But each one taught me something.
Listening: Most importantly, I started actually listening to my body instead of overriding its signals. Tired? Maybe I should rest instead of drinking more coffee. Stressed? Maybe I should address the cause instead of pushing through.
What I've Learned
Some specific things I've learned about my body:
- Certain foods cause inflammation that affects my thinking
- My energy follows predictable patterns throughout the day
- Sleep quality matters more than sleep quantity
- Stress manifests physically before I'm consciously aware of it
- Movement isn't optional—it's essential for my mental health
Your body is different. Your patterns will be different. But the principle is the same: you need to know your own body.
The Business Case
If the health argument doesn't convince you, consider the business case.
Your body is your primary asset. It's the vehicle through which all your work happens. If it breaks down, everything breaks down.
The most successful entrepreneurs I know take their health seriously. Not as an afterthought, but as a foundation. They know that sustainable success requires a sustainable body.
The Invitation
I'm not a doctor or a health expert. I'm just someone who learned the hard way that ignoring your body is a losing strategy.
If you've been treating your body like an afterthought, I encourage you to start paying attention. Get curious. Track. Test. Experiment. Listen.
Your body is trying to tell you things. The question is whether you're willing to listen.
Know your own body. It's the most important system you'll ever understand.
