Edition: November 7th, 2021
Curated by the Knowledge Team of ICS Career GPS
(Image source: gcu.edu)
Article by Jonathan Brooks, published on Entrepreneur.com
Entrepreneurship tends to be thought of as a glitzy way of life. A lot of that can be attributed to what’s posted and seen on social media from the most successful entrepreneurs who show off their ‘freedom’ and affluent lifestyle.
This kind of life makes up a very small minority of entrepreneurs, and almost all of them didn’t get to that point of success without years of struggle and financial hardship while building their companies.
Being an entrepreneur isn’t about waking up on a remote island and sending out a few emails before hopping on a private jet to Italy. The business is a daily grind.
It’s not easy deciding to start and build a business, mentions a study in which 72% of entrepreneurs self-reported mental health concerns. The study also noted that entrepreneurs were significantly more likely to report a lifetime history of depression, ADHD, substance use and bipolar diagnosis.
Here are a few tips for entrepreneurs to protect their mental health, as they create and build their business:
1. Take care of your finances
- Financial issues are the number one reported cause for stress and anxiety among entrepreneurs.
- Some put their entire life savings into the startup.
- As many as 39% of small business owners use cash to fund their companies. This could leave someone in a tough spot if the company doesn’t work out.
- Putting everything into a basket that fails 90% of the time is not smart.
- It’s important to make sure there’s a financial cushion.
- You can consider working part-time, or have a side hustle that brings income, e.g. a rental company.
- The takeaway is to try and leave as much money on the table to take care of your personal expenses and find a way to still have some additional income.
2. Don’t be afraid to delegate
- A quick way to burn yourself out is trying to do everything by yourself.
- Even if a startup isn’t in a place to take on full-time employees quite yet, there are resources available to outsource certain tasks to.
- Another option to avoid wearing yourself down is going into business with a partner.
- Typically, each person would be an expert in a certain area of the company which would not only take things off one’s plate, but also be beneficial in driving the venture forward.
3. Surround yourself with the right people
- When beginning your entrepreneurial journey, it’s important for your mental well-being to be surrounded by positive influences.
- There will be some friends and family members that question the decision to leave behind your corporate life with its steady paycheck.
- Remember, they come from a position of care and love but they aren’t entrepreneurs.
- Surround yourself with mentors who have been successful as entrepreneurs. Continue to develop that relationship and expand a professional network as your business grows.
- Mental health can easily deteriorate with the wrong people giving the wrong advice, or pushing yourself to the point of burnout.
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(Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in the article mentioned above are those of the author(s). They do not purport to reflect the opinions or views of ICS Career GPS or its staff.)
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