Burnout is a pervasive and sometimes seemingly evasive force affecting employees and entrepreneurs alike. No doubt, burnout is somewhat of an epidemic in today’s modern world, and our desire to brag about how busy we are, how little sleep we run on, and how much we work all in the name of “productivity” only leads more people to feeling tired of their jobs, tired in general, and burnt out.
With this in mind, I wanted to take a couple minutes to explore some things we can implement – as entrepreneurs – to help prevent burnout. Remember, an ounce of prevention is better than a pound of cure.
Free Time
I know what a lot of you may be thinking —’what is free time?’ but the truth is, we have to make the time to find free time. And, believe it or not, getting a day or two away from some of life’s stressors and taking the time to sit down with a friend over a cup of coffee or a nice dinner with a significant other can make a huge difference for our mental health. Sometimes, just getting out of our own head and pouring into someone else and enjoying their company can do wonders for our mental health.
As an entrepreneur, this can be tough. We often feel like we need to do everything in order to succeed. But we also need to make sure we invest in ourselves if we hope to invest in the future of our entrepreneurial endeavors.
Doing Too Much
It’s true, businesses can take a lot to get off the ground. But one of the things that entrepreneurs tend to fall into is that they end up treating their day-to-day more like a business owner and less like an entrepreneur. If one of the draws to being an entrepreneur is to break free of the 9-5 schedule, then why do we find ourselves working, in some cases, all day? The truth is, a busy week(s) is bound to occur, but if we’re constantly devoting all of our time to work – no matter how much you love it – you’re bound to get burnt out from time to time.
Understanding Burnout
A big thing to determine is whether you are undergoing a lot of stress or you are experiencing burnout. While stress certainly can lead to burnout, burnout is something much more pernicious and dangerous to one’s well-being. It can be helpful to take a look at your career and ask yourself, “am I satisfied?”. If you’re constantly stressed and always experiencing an intense manifestation of the Sunday-Scaries, then you may want to consider having a conversation with your coworkers or leadership at work, or find a new place of employment. Or, in the case of entrepreneurs, you may want to consider finding trustful people you can delegate your workload to.
While this is far from an exhaustive list, I do hope some of these tips – while simple – will help you prevent burnout in your own life. A little goes a long way, especially when caught early.