Are you burning fuel more than what you’ve put in your tank? If you are, then you are this close to hitting a wall and end up with a big lump on your head that screams “burnout.”
Just because you’re taking care of business doesn’t mean that’s an excuse to forget about your well-being. However, tireless it is to own and run a company, you still need to live the life you love outside the office.
Or, are you perhaps hesitant to pivot away from work, thinking no one can do a better job than you do?
Ugh, pause for a second, will you? Take a breather.
Your business should serve your life, and not exhaust you to a point that your everyday workplace scenario becomes an emotional, physical and mental labor.
Here are some tips on how to avoid entrepreneur burnout, so you can take your business to dizzying heights without burning up in the process.
Sometimes, you only remember “self-care” when you’ve already burned out.
This, however, presents a very annoying thinking, you should develop a self-care practice before you come across a point where you’re turning cynical and feeling useless with a wandering mind.
Self-care is not being selfish — please, get that out of your head.
When you take care of yourself, you also have energy and patience for others. It’s a positive well-being that overflows, radiating warmth to the people around you, and prompting a “ripple effect.”
Even the tiniest acts of self-care matter to get you focused and strong to meet the massive demands of your business.
So, how does self-care prevent overload burnout? Let’s go over some of these self-care tips.
How’s your breathing? Are you holding your breath, unintentionally?
Practice mindful breathing, do yoga, breathe deeply in full abdominal breaths and do breathing practice until it becomes your second nature.
This one doesn’t come as a surprise, exercise fights off stress hormones and pumps up “endorphins,” a chemical in the brain that helps relieve stress and pain.
Get moving for at least 30 minutes every day, which may sound like a lot in your busy schedule. Well, you can always break it into small chunks, whatever works for you.
Don’t make it a habit to burn the midnight oil — get a solid 8 hours of sleep and practice better sleeping habits instead.
Sleeps calms and restores the body. In fact, it is the most powerful stress reducer without asking for too much.
The best thing about being an entrepreneur is that you make and control the rules.
So, treat yourself. Take a day off doing exactly what you want — watch a movie, read a book, get a massage, hang out with friends, whatever it is that spikes your spirit and gets you relaxed.
As an entrepreneur, you’d perhaps rather spend every waking day running your business to perfection.
While we admire your pluck of intense dedication, blurring your personal life to get more work done is not the way to do it.
If you insist on doing so, you might end up burning up with burnout and risk not only your business but yourself.
So, what can you do?
Well, here’s a list of what you can do to avoid that dangerous descent.
Seriously, get out of the office. Do something else outside flipping pages upon pages of financial sheets and drawing up marketing strategies.
Take a real vacation, it doesn’t have to be long. Sometimes, all it takes is a day, two or three to get you recharged.
The best way to avoid burnout is to understand where it’s coming from. So, pay attention to those stressful moments, and perhaps, you can make changes in how you do your work.
Learn to identify the stress triggers. When it comes up, make a note of what you’re currently doing at that moment.
Staving off stress is a great move to keep burnout at bay.
You might think that you’re being productive when you’re doing many things at once; scheduling appointments while managing your website on the side. But on the contrary, multitasking can decrease your work performance.
Bouncing back and forth is an extreme workout for your brain. Practice single-tasking instead, it leads to better productivity and lower stress levels.
We know how hard it is to let go of “control.” But do you know that people who constantly worry about not having enough time are more prone to burnout?
They do. That’s why you should discover other ways to boost productivity without doing it all. Hire a reliable virtual assistant, for instance, they’re economical and can do almost every task that’s been bleeding you dry.
At the end of the day, your health is your wealth, so spare yourself the unnecessary burden and ask for support.
Positive people know how to get over tough situations. They can encourage you to dwell on the positive aspect of things like turning challenges into opportunities. Rather than think of bad experiences as immovable boundaries.
You know, positive energy is quite infectious. So, if you hang out with a crowd that resonates with that same vibe, you’ll likely catch it too.
It’s nothing new for entrepreneurs to get swamped by work that they completely forget about eating. While it looks like you’re making time to accomplish more, this could instantly backfire on your work performance.
Your time management strategy should include YOU, we mean “YOU,” not your work. Set a time for breaks, eating and even naps.
If you want to maintain a healthy work-life balance, then manage your time properly. At the end of every workday, sign off. The time for work is up; it’s time to relax your mind and body.
Burnout is more than you think.
According to Christina Maslach of the University of California, there are three components that define the “burnout” experience; emotional and physical exhaustion and your way of “thinking” that details the “blaming yourself” agenda.
To beat the burnout, the best thing that you can do is to create a caring environment.
Follow these easy steps to get back up strong and more focused at work.
You can’t find a perfect recovery strategy for something that you don’t understand, to begin with. That said, when dealing with burnout, start by pointing out the work-related conditions or situations that induced your stress.
By finding what caused the problem, you can avoid it altogether or minimize the stress factors.
Just remember that everyone has their own coping mechanism, so, you should also listen to yourself.
By setting boundaries, you’re allowing yourself the freedom to communicate what you can do, what you cannot do and how you want to be treated. And if any of your rights and needs are consistently violated, you’re more likely to experience burnout.
On the contrary, when your needs are met, you become more engaged at work and gain confidence in overcoming any challenges that may come.
Why is it important to take breaks from work? Because too much work is damaging to your mind and body.
In view of that, taking short breaks in between intense work, say 15 to 20-minute breaks, helps you maintain a raving performance. It’s even better to go outside, away from your workstation. Set an alarm if you must, so it won’t escape your busy mind.
We understand that some people love the thrill of spontaneity. But at times, especially during great stress, maintaining a sense of routine or structure can give you the feeling of being in control.
In the words of Rachel Goldman Ph.D., a clinical assistant professor at NYU, “If people don't have structure and are sitting around with less to focus on, then they also probably will find themselves thinking about the stressful situation more, which can also lead to additional stress and anxiety."
As an entrepreneur, working too much as if you’re in “time poverty” will do more damage than good in the long run.
You don’t need to hustle to achieve greater results. You can always shift your work processes; hire a virtual assistant or integrate tools for support.
Take our advice with our list of how to avoid entrepreneur burnout. Wear “self-care” in your sleeve, so that when it’s time to work, you’re at your very best.
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