Self-care for Busy Entrepreneurs
Starting up and running a small business, even a small side-hustle is demanding and can be stressful, especially if you’re also juggling the needs of a young family or a day job while you set up your business. It can be very easy to fall into the trap of working long hours, snatching a sandwich or snack instead of cooking a nutritious meal, and staring at a computer screen day and night working at making your particular dream come true.
But this strength of focus and single-mindedness that is one of the factors that lead entrepreneurs to success can also be their downfall, because neglecting your physical and mental health can have serious consequences, both personally and professionally.
Why Self-Care
Looking after yourself is the first step in establishing your sense of self-worth. It grounds you in a sense of valuing yourself which will radiate out to how you do business with people, how to relate with customers, team members, other professionals, and, perhaps more importantly in your relationships with family and friends. This is nothing to do with being arrogant or self-important.
This is about understanding that you are important in your life, and that your life is of value to you and to others. When you respect and value yourself, others will also respect and value you. Your customers, will understand, in an unspoken way, that you are worth their investment in you.
By looking after yourself, your business will benefit from the following:
Better decision-making: if you’re too exhausted to think, you cannot make intelligent or even intelligible decisions, nor can you work creatively and think up solutions.
Improved productivity: self-care means you avoid exhaustion and burnout and in turn you work more effectively and efficiently.
Reduced stress: giving yourself time to pause and reflect, take fresh air and exercise, time out to relax with friends and family, time to eat a nutritious meal all contribute to improve your wellbeing, mental and physical. That all helps you to be able to respond to the usual ups and downs of running a business in a calm manner. Stress stimuli become thrilling challenges that spur you to grow and improve, rather than an attack from dark forces perceived by an entrepreneur whose stress levels cannot be managed because of the 14-hour days on the occasional bag of crisps and energy drink that fuels them.
Improved resilience: prioritising self-care builds resilience and your ability to cope with challenges, whether these are professional or personal. Remember, whether time is spent personally or professionally, it is all life and all aspects of life have challenges and opportunities, good and bad. Resilience helps you deal with the tough times, wherever they come from.
Improved relationships: you simply cannot sustain good relationships with others, whether personally or professionally, when you are exhausted, stressed and manifesting this through bad tempered exchanges. Self-care can improve your attitude, turning it from negative to positive, it improves your mood and enhances your relationships.
Care for yourself better:
Starting from understanding that you are the most valuable person in your life and that others benefit enormously just from you being alive, here are some things you can do to improve the care you give yourself:
Sleep well
The importance of sleep in so underestimated. People pull all nighters all the time, from students needing to hand in that research project to entrepreneurs trying to get the figures to work out to impress investors. And if you have young children, sleep deprivations seems to be part of daily life. But when you don’t get enough sleep, your brain slows down, you cannot give things your full attention, you misjudge things, you misinterpret things. The quality of your output diminishes. And your sense of self-worth reduces. You enter a negative spiral. So listen to your body, observe yourself and find a way of getting enough rest. Sleep as much as you need – more often than not, a rested brain can do far more in the same time as a sleep deprived brain.
Eat well
Every one of us needs different nutrients at different times of our lives and even at different times of day. Be strict with the time you spend planning meals, shopping and cooking. Eating is a pleasure as well as a necessity. Pause to enjoy eating
healthy, nutritious and tasty meals that fuel your body, give you strength, energy and vitality and this will help you face every challenge the day throws at you. And don’t forget to drink plenty of water – this is just as important as eating well.
Stay physically active
So much work these days is spent on a seat in front of a screen, but exercise is good for your physical and mental wellbeing. You don’t have to have a gym membership, you don’t have to hurl yourself around a rugby pitch or run a marathon. Simply daily walking, yoga, dancing, swimming or whatever activity takes your fancy helps. Walking the kids in the park, kicking a ball around the seashore, taking the dog for a walk...there are so many ways to enjoy being outdoors and moving. And afterwards you feel relaxed enough for a good night’s sleep and invigorated with energy to face the next work challenge.
Set boundaries
As an entrepreneur you tend to feel that every waking moment should be dedicated to your business, and by default, to your clients. I have known business people (myself included) to answer client calls at weekends, having breakfast, during a meal out with a partner. But what you are communicating to your client is that you are always available, like their doormat. By setting time boundaries, you manage expectations. There’s nothing wrong with quiet time watching Netflix with your partner. Time out is still your time and your time is your life that you have the right to nurture.
Take breaks
Pausing and disconnecting from the whirlwind that is a small business is vital. Taking a holiday, disconnecting at weekends is essential. Stopping work at a set time every day is so important for a business leader – it helps establish boundaries, for you and for those around you. It keeps you grounded and also helps you focus when you get back to work. Breaks can be as short as a half hour lunchbreak or a summer holiday fortnight. The important thing is to allow yourself regular breaks, where you switch off your phone and you can refresh and recharge.
Time to reflect
Time spent pausing and reflecting on yourself, your life, the progress you are making is powerful. It heps you keep aligned with your personal values, with your goals. Often in the rush and drama of a start up and running a business, your values can be compromised and the path to your goals becomes blurred and confused. Reflection can help you adjust and stay on the right path. How you reflect is a personal choice – a walk by the sea can be as good as a session of mediation in your room. The important thing is to give yourself time to do this regularly, every day if possible.
Celebrate your every success
The life of an entrepreneur is marked by peaks and troughs that can be extremes, with exuberant highs and very serious lows. It is important to celebrate even small successes – that completed project, that thank you note from a happy customer, that new deal, that award, that positive review. It keeps you motivated and energised and it helps you balance out the inevitable difficulties that also come, and when they do, remember that these are all part of the balance of life and that all of these will eventually pass.
Self-care is a necessity for every business owner. Consider it part of your strategy, part of your roadmap to success.
Your business is about you and you deserve to lead a balanced successful life.