“I think about the business all the time,” says Ellison. “Well, I shouldn't say all the time. I don't think about it when I'm wakeboarding.”
There can be no doubt that for years Ellison has put in the long workdays that inevitably come with running a billion dollar company. But, after a near death experience in 1998, Ellison has come to understand more dearly the brevity of life and the importance of making time to enjoy himself.
In December 1998, Ellison was taking part in a sailing race off the coast of Australia in his 78-foot yacht called Sayonara. All of a sudden, the crew found themselves right in the middle of a typhoon with 40-foot waves pounding down on their boat. While Ellison suffered only broken bones, six other sailors were killed. “I’ve known for a long time that life is glorious and fragile and short,” says Ellison. “This reemphasized it…You realize life is short and fragile, and when you are facing walls of water you understand your own mortality and how quickly things could change.”
Ellison went on to win the race, but he came out of the experience with something much more rewarding. “It’s something I’ll never forget in my entire life,” he says. “The glory, the wonder of being alive.”
Today, Ellison’s passion for his work is as strong as it was the day he first founded the company. “I've run engineering since day one at Oracle, and I still run engineering,” he says. “I hold meetings every week with the database team, the middleware team, the applications team. I run engineering, and I will do that until the board throws me out of there.”
But, Ellison makes sure to balance his business life with some personal time, not only for his own sake, but also for the sake of the company as a whole. “In some ways, getting away from headquarters and having a little time to reflect allows you to find errors in your strategy,” he says. “You get to rethink things. Often, that helps me correct a mistake that I made or someone else is about to make. I'd rather be wrong than do something wrong.”
Trying to find the delicate balance between work and play is still a struggle for Ellison. “There should be a guide book to the intelligent pursuit of happiness,” he says. “There isn't such a book, but there should be. More than anything else, that's what all of us need: a guide to how to pursue happiness intelligently. Jefferson guaranteed our right to do it, but he didn't give us a map.”
In the meantime, Ellison does his best when he’s at work and plays his hardest when he’s not. He measures his success not by the dollar figures beside his name but by how happy he is all around in his life. And, the rest, he lets take care of itself. “All you can do is all you can do,” he says.
Lesson #1: Balance Work and Play
Like this article? Share it with your friends
 |
Related Articles |
|
Lessins Lessons for Life Balance
|
| |
10 points to remember about life balance.
|
Teamwork
|
| |
You don’t have to look far to know that the message for success so far in 2004 is teamwork.
|
Balance Yourself With Your Life Wheel
|
| |
Study after study in 2007 finds that workplace policies are not family friendly, more work pressures are brought on by ourselves, and work stress affects all other personal relationships. The life-wheel exercise can...
|
3 Simple Measurements for Developing Your Sales Team
|
| |
In addition to looking at the numbers, you can figure out very quickly whether or not a sales person is successful by ranking them on a scale of one to ten... in three key areas…
|
Step by Step
|
| |
Balance is a step by step process, changing as you and your life changes over time.
|
 |
Related Businesses - Evan Elite Authors |
|
Leanne Hoagland Smith
Are you or your business where you want to be? Are you facing constant struggles in business or life in general? Would you like to "unlock" those obstacles keeping you from greater business or personal success? As your results partner, we can work together to unlock those desired results by achieving tomorrow's solutions today. Let’s use your strengths for real change through proven and affordable solutions where the real problems are identified. Are you seeking loyal customers, great attitudes, increased sales, improved profitability or just some sleep filled nights? Then we should talk because my clients have experienced exactly those types of results. Learn more about customer loyalty at http://www.processspec ialist.com/customer-loyalty.htm Give me a call 219.759.5601 for a free strategy session. I look forward to speaking with you. P.S. If you are seeking a motivational speaker, sales trainer or small business expert that will leave your audience smiling and remembering, please feel free to contact me at 219.759.5601. - Visit Leanne Hoagland Smith's Website |
The Evan Elite Authors program is currently in beta phase. For details please contact us.
|
|
|
Larry Ellison Newsletter
Get our free newsletter to learn more about Larry Ellison and other famous entrepreneurs!
|
|
|