Entrepreneurs: The only people who work eighty-hour weeks to avoid working forty-hour weeks.

—LORI GREINER, SHARK TANK

Imagine that you’re creating an employee handbook for yourself.

YOU WILL BE EXPECTED TO WORK ____ HOURS A WEEK. ANYTHING OVER ____ HOURS A WEEK WILL BE COMPENSATED EXTRA WITH _____.

WORK HOURS ARE FROM ____ TO ____ AND NEVER _______.

YOUR PAY IS $________ / YEAR. YOU WILL RECEIVE A REVIEW EVERY _____ MONTHS AND WILL RECEIVE A PAY RAISE BASED ON _____________________.

YOUR SELF-EMPLOYMENT BENEFITS INCLUDE __________, _________, AND _________.

YOU DONATE ____PERCENT OF EACH PAYCHECK TO ________.

YOUR COMPANY VALUES ________, ________, AND _______. THIS IS REFLECTED IN HOW YOU TREAT YOURSELF, YOUR CUSTOMERS, AND YOUR PEERS.

DRESS CODE IS AS FOLLOWS:

ON CASUAL DAYS YOU CAN WEAR _______.

YOU FEEL MOST BOSS WHEN WEARING ________.

ANYTHING ELSE? __________.

YOU ARE REQUIRED TO TAKE AT LEAST _________ WEEKS OF VACATION PER YEAR.

ON SICK DAYS YOU ARE EXPECTED TO __________________.

As you’re filling out this exercise, really consider the answers: Are these old expectations? Or are they honest answers that show how you would conduct work in the way that is most authentic to you? For example, in the past you may have been expected to come to work unless you have a doctor’s note, but your new rules require you to take a bath and cuddle up with some Netflix. Maybe in the past you felt like tattoos and wild colors in your hair were “unprofessional”—now, what’s your new dress code? What really, actually makes you feel most like your most confident self? Is there anything else you would add to your self-employment handbook?

NOW, IMAGINE WHAT A HANDBOOK FOR LIFE MIGHT LOOK LIKE. WHAT KINDS OF RULES AND BOUNDARIES WOULD YOU CREATE FOR YOUR HOME, FAMILY, FRIENDSHIPS, PHYSICAL HEALTH, SPIRITUALITY AND EMOTIONS, SELF-CARE, MONEY, HOBBIES, TRAVEL, FOOD, AND CREATIVITY?