You are an entrepreneur who works for 24*7 with true passion and dedication. You have a desire to achieve success in your life. You put in the most effort to run your venture. You have independent thinking, a more realistic approach, creativity, and high motivation to run your business. You put more pressure on yourself than any other person and keeping up with this could be sometimes mentally exhausting. But what is that particular thing which keeps you moving and allows you to work with your true potential? Is it your mindset or your mental health?
Being an entrepreneur, you have to face so many challenges. And to face them without any obstacle, you need stable, strong, and moreover balanced mental health. Many of you will now think about what is the link between mental health and entrepreneurship. To answer this question, a 2015 study suggested that almost 72% of entrepreneurs are facing mental health issues and 49% reported having mental health conditions once in their lifetime. Factors which are responsible for mental health issues in entrepreneurs are being sedentary and working for longer hours, having a hectic work schedule that leads to drug intake or adapting to any other unhealthy behavior, working under higher pressure, etc. This often leads to chronic stress which in turn develops symptoms of anxiety, depression, burnout, hormonal imbalances, and insomnia. Many of you have knowledge about it but you find ignorance to be a better choice.
You have different organs in your body and each one of them responds to chronic stress differently. Your CNS handles fight and flight responses. Hypothalamus in your brain sends signals to adrenal glands to release stress-causing hormones. This leads to cardio-respiratory symptoms such as rapid heartbeat, breathlessness, and adrenaline rush. If you have other breathing issues such as asthma, chronic stress worsens your condition. Your digestive system also suffers because of chronic stress. Distress impacts your entire body in one way or the other. Many of you experience this on a daily basis and after knowing all the consequences, you know it is unworthy to ignore your mental health.
So the question is, what can you do about it? Your working hours are so long that you don’t know how to make time for yourself. This article will help you in finding ways out for your mental health. Also, your mental wellness is as important as your financial and occupational wellness. These are some of the ways that can help you in dealing with your mental health.
CHOOSE THE RIGHT EXERCISE PLAN
Exercising will not just help you physically but also mentally. It helps in relieving anxiety, stress, and tension from the mind and body by releasing endorphins, which are happy hormones in the body. In turn, it energizes your body too. It also helps in improving your memory and thinking process. There are so many other mental health benefits attached to exercises. Exercises can be in any form. Be it dancing, Zumba, weight training, yoga, cardio, etc.
PRACTICE MINDFULNESS
Entrepreneurship comes with a lot of responsibilities. To keep up with your working needs and optimal mental health, you can practice mindfulness in the morning every day. This could be in the form of planning your day, walking and counting steps, body scanning, guided meditation, and breath works.
BUILD RESILIENCE
As an entrepreneur, you have to attend several meetings, attend several social gatherings, and hear good or bad from a lot of people. There will be many things you achieve, there will be many failure and success stories you have related to your business. Resilience is something that keeps you moving and lets you have stability in the competitive market. Even when you fail or get stuck in a difficult situation, if you are resilient, you will accept responsibility. You will be able to find your solutions and move towards your goals. The best way to build resilience is to keep your strengths on the top of your list and work on your weaknesses.
CHANGE YOUR INTERNAL DIALOGUES
There will be situations in which you feel exhausted. You tend to feel confused and start doubting yourself. The dialogues which usually strike are putting your values and confidence down in such situations. But what you can do about it is change the way you tell things to yourself. For eg. “I don’t know what the next step is. I am stuck!” could be replaced by “I have started my entrepreneurship journey with a plan. I have come this far to keep going and it is my duty to resolve my plan and go with the new one”.
SEEK MENTAL HEALTH SUPPORT
Sometimes you feel that things are going out of your control and you have multiple issues related to your mental health. It is important that you see a certified psychologist or a counselor help you out in situations like this. With their expertise, they can help you in many ways to get back to your entrepreneurship journey.
What to remember is you are the boss of your life as much as you are of your business. Keeping yourself healthy is not just important but is a priority. Make sure you take all these tips forward in your life and live successfully.