Where's the love? You're trying hard not to show it—you've lost that lovin' feeling for your business. But don't let it slip away. It's time to rekindle your passion and renew your commitment as an entrepreneur

Entrepreneur, Oct, 2003 by Nichole L. Torres

BURNED OUT?

Definitive signs you've lost your passion for your business:

* Getting up to go to work in the morning is tantamount to climbing Mount Everest.

* An employee asks you where the stapler is, and you launch into a 25-minute diatribe on how staplers don't matter, paper doesn't matter, telephones don't matter and computers don't matter, because it's all meaningless anyway.

* Those infomercials promising "$1 million in three weeks" start to sound attractive.

* You'd rather watch I Love Lucy reruns on your sofa, in your pajamas, while eating a supersize bag of cheese puffs than interact with clients. (Note: This is only a bad thing if combined with two or more of the other signs.)

* "Free Bagel Friday," "Bring Your Pet to Work Day," "Foosball Lunch Hour" and all your other fun employee activities start to feel like regular, boring days.

* You can't remember the last time you said, "I love my business."

* You start to envy that kid at the Starbucks counter because she doesn't have to worry about tax laws, investor meetings or building codes.

* You used to dream about being on the cover of Entrepreneur; now you dream about being on the cover of Sleep Digest.

* You feel the same way you did back when you used to work for someone else--you constantly hear "Work sucks--I quit!" echoing in your brain.

NICHOLE L. TORRES covers start-up issues as a staff writer for Entrepreneur and claims her true passions are margaritas, Pride and Prejudice and the Anaheim Angels.