Page 170 - James Caan - The Real Deal

The Real Deal

– I smoked a lot more in those days – and cigars and cigarettes
helped ease my stress, but that only made my lifestyle even
unhealthier. Regular meals, fresh food, a balanced diet – these
things just don’t happen when you work as hard as I did, and the
only way I found to unwind was massage. Several times a week a
masseuse came to the house and pushed and pulled at my muscles
to release some of the tension.
We had a tennis club at the back of the house – you could reach
it through a gate at the end of our garden – and I found playing a
couple of sets helped to get me focused on something other than
the business for an hour, and, of course, when I was with the girls
I would forget about the hassles and excitement of work. They
were utterly delightful toddlers, and I loved taking them out for
day trips or just watching them play together in the garden.
Building a business was so demanding, so time-consuming and
so engrossing and rewarding that when I look back on those years
I don’t remember much else. I couldn’t be sure who was Prime
Minister half the time, let alone Chancellor. I don’t even know
how Chelsea did for entire seasons in the eighties and nineties.
Royal weddings came and went, elections passed without me
knowing, and I even had nieces and nephews I didn’t get to meet
until they were toddlers.
The business was fantastic, but building it came at a price. It
was one I was prepared to pay, but I am well aware that there are
people who have worked just as hard as me and paid a much
higher price. I’ve met entrepreneurs who have turned to drink and
drugs to get them through; some of them then lost control of their
businesses and were left with nothing. Building a business is great
fun, but it is also the hardest thing I’ve ever done in my life.

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