Marc Randolph, co-founder of Netflix and six other companies, recently shared a deeply personal reflection on success. In a post on a microblogging platform, Randolph introduced his “Tuesday night rule,” a principle that has helped him navigate the challenges of entrepreneurship without compromising on family and personal happiness.
A clear manifestation of his commitment to achieving a balance between work and life is Randolph’s “Tuesday night rule.” About this he wrote:
“I’ve worked hard, for my entire career, to keep my life balanced with my job. In my book, I write about my Tuesday date nights with my wife. For over thirty years, I had a hard cut-off on Tuesdays. Rain or shine, I left at exactly 5 pm and spent the evening with my best friend. We would go to a movie, have dinner, or just go window-shopping downtown together.”
“Nothing got in the way of that. No meeting, no conference call, no last-minute question or request. If you had something to say to me on Tuesday afternoon at 4:55, you had better say it on the way to the parking lot. If there was a crisis, we are going to wrap it up by 5:00.”
This unyielding commitment, he shared, was a key factor in helping him maintain perspective amid the pressures of building successful companies.
Redefining Success
While there is huge applause for Randolph’s professional successes, he shared an insight into what success really is to him. According to the co-founder of Netflix, success should be about preserving meaningful relationships and leading a balanced life.
He explained, “Those Tuesday nights kept me sane. And they put the rest of my work in perspective. I resolved a long time ago to not be one of those entrepreneurs on their 7th startup and their 7th wife. In fact, the thing I’m most proud of in my life is not the companies I started, it’s the fact that I was able to start them while staying married to the same woman; having my kids grow up knowing me and (best as I can tell) liking me, and being able to spend time pursuing the other passions in my life.”
For aspiring entrepreneurs, his words are an important lesson: the legacy you leave behind isn’t just measured by professional milestones but also by the relationships you nurture and the memories you create along the way.
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