Don’t Stress When Running a Business
When running a small business, it’s impossible to avoid stress completely. However, there are certain things you can do to reduce stress and the effects of it, such as saving yourself money on a hair transplant by not pulling your hair out. Constantly dealing with stress can have serious negative impacts on your mental and physical health. You really need to be proactive in reducing stress-causing factors in your everyday life.
Stress can be caused by multiple factors, from financial insecurity to feeling like you are neglecting your family and friends. To minimise the stress that can come as a business owner, follow these tips.
Get Motivated
You are bound to lose motivation on occasion when running your business. It’s normal to face these lows as a business owner. However, what matters more is how you pick yourself up and get the motivational momentum going again. You should understand and highlight what gets you motivated, and this will vary for different individuals. Some of the most common factors that motivate small business owners are their family, their responsibility to their employees and focusing on why they started a business in the first place. You should keep these in mind and really think about other factors which make you love what you do. Having these in mind will help you get through the more difficult days of being a business owner.
Support System
You need to have a good support system around you, including like-minded people who are in a similar place to you. Start off by networking and getting to know people in the same industry as you. As the boss and the business owner, you are not very likely to get positive or negative feedback on how you are doing from your staff, and feedback is even less likely if you are working alone. Try to get people in your circle that are in a similar position to you, so they can offer you constructive criticism.
It’s important to open up and talk about your stresses and mental health. Do this with family and friends, as they are the people that know you the best. By talking about it, you may be able to get a better perspective on why and how your stress levels build.
Prioritise
It’s expected of you as a small business owner to be busy and be working on multiple things at the same time, which can lead to high levels of stress. Get organised and start prioritising; give yourself enough time to work on the most important tasks first. By working in an order of most important task to the least, it will relieve some stress.
Learn to delegate and understand that you don’t have to do everything by yourself. Some tasks which are not particularly important but need to be done can take up large amounts of time. Instead of wasting time on these tasks, delegate them and have an employee carry them out for you or outsource them if you don’t have a team to help you.
Wellbeing Culture
Create a mental and physical health and wellbeing culture in your business, and openly discuss topics to promote a healthier workplace for yourself and your employees. Around one in six employees are dealing with mental health problems; these include depression, anxiety and stress. This will obviously have an impact on the workplace and the environment that’s created. There is a strong correlation between mental health and motivation/productivity in the workplace.
Creating a healthy workplace is essential to the success of your business. Take regular breaks and encourage others to do the same, as this boosts productivity. On your lunch break, take a walk and go get fresh air. Set an example for your staff; encourage your team to follow your lead. A healthy workplace will mean a more successful business.
Schedule Time Off
It can sometimes be difficult to stick to your schedule, but you absolutely must try to take time off occasionally. This could vary. It could either be taking an hour out for lunch, a weekend trip away or not missing your child’s Christmas play. This will enable you to spend time with the people that are most important to you, ultimately making you happier. It will also mean that there is less strain on your personal relations.
Take time for yourself as well; spend some time doing something you love, as it will help you clear your mind. You will have a refreshed mind with a new perspective, which will benefit your business.
Eat, Sleep and Exercise
The combination of the three will ensure you have a healthier and more productive lifestyle. They three basic things that you need to do in order to release stress and recuperate after a long day. Exercising regularly will benefit you physically, but it can also work wonders on your mental health. It enables your body to increase endorphin levels, which will make you feel happier.
Although the amount of sleep each individual needs varies, try to sleep for around eight hours. Getting enough sleep is essential for decreasing stress levels and increasing productivity. It will also ensure that you have a clear mind, which will make you a better decision-maker.
Ensure that you have a balanced diet and make a conscious effort to eat clean and healthy food. When you are over-worked and have minimal time, you are likely to go for the easiest and most comforting kind of food. The problem is that those tend to be fatty foods which don’t benefit you. Rather, they’ll leave you feeling lethargic and tired. Get organised and think a little more about your food to ensure a healthy diet.
Stress is inevitable in most workplaces, even more so if you are running a business. However, these are some steps you can take to ensure that the stress doesn’t become overwhelming.
