Starting a business...
Being an entrepreneur is tough. Even the word entrepreneur itself evokes an image in my head of someone who's always busy, is fueled by coffee and barely has a social life. For some this image of a business person can be a bit intimidating. It's almost ironic that those who tend to be so good at managing appointments and goals, tend to be very poor at self-care, especially when it comes to mental health and well-being (I was this person for a long time, and still am to a degree). I want to open up by saying something really important, and if there's one take-away from everything I'm writing today, it's this. You do NOT have to work yourself to death, sacrificing your principles and health along the way to succeed, and taking the opposite approach can actually make you much more productive!
Burnout and what it means.
Let's talk a bit more about what working yourself into an early grave does, not in the long term, but more tangibly in the now. What does it mean for your business? Burnout is a serious issue and to highlight why, at Arkode, we're a two person team. We have to manage all of our social media presence, business obligations, going to networking events, working part-time jobs and of course building our product, all within a super competitive market and a strict time-frame. All of these responsibilities can be exhausting to say the least, and it quickly seeps into the quality and volume of your work.
Because I was working non stop a couple of months ago, our social media schedule was set back massively, due to me just not having the energy or mental clarity to carry on being productive. You sometimes get to the point where all you want to do is sit down and eat junk food, because your body and mind NEED rest and recovery. It's a difficult skill to master, and varies from person to person, but actively try to listen you what your body and mind are telling you, and don't shy away from that.
There is a fine line you always have to walk in terms of the energy you put into anything, where if you push too hard, it's almost like putting your body into an energy debt, for which you will have to pay tomorrow (with interest!). Be mindful of your breaks and if you really need to take your performance to the next level, then take your rest to the next level too. Mindful practices such as meditation, or even having some quiet time can really help your brain recover faster, with the added benefit of improved clarity for your decision making. You really have to find your own groove when it comes to your work/life balance and experimentation is key, so do your research and find what works for you.
Get back up!
There may be times you've burnt out despite your best efforts, or maybe you're really struggling with something specific? You could've made a massive mistake with a client, or you've had a personal hardship that you cant seem to get through? It's tough to pick yourself up again and again, you have to keep on going if you want to succeed in your domain. Look after your emotions by all means, but no one got where they are today without failure, with the top people in any discipline having failed more times than most others have even tried.
Every time you get back on the saddle, so to speak, you learn, and that's what's important. Take the time you need to process what you're struggling with, but move forward with it in the back of your mind as a lesson, not just a loss or sticking point. Through re-framing things as a lesson to learn from I've been able to deal with a lot of negative experiences in my own life, so that I'm not always dwelling on them, and can actually use them as a source of strength. In our own work for example, I'm always very optimistic about deadlines, but rarely hit them. Every-time I miss one, I adjust my expectations and deliberately ask myself what went wrong or what could I do better. Note that throughout this I don't judge myself, just look at it objectively. Work is work, and you need to make that distinction so you don't become miserable doing something you should learn to enjoy.
Fortitude and discipline.
One of the hardest personal qualities to develop is consistency and drive, especially when it comes to business work. As an entrepreneur it's common to end up with huge tasks outside of your primary discipline, particularly those that can be mundane or tedious. Building a sense of mental fortitude can be difficult, but it's important to build a few specific mental habits that you practice on a regular basis to pull you through dealing with daily tasks and challenges. This is so that when you are having a particularly tough time, you have a default process to follow that will pull you through it.
Regulating mood is very key in this process, as I've found it's my number one biggest source of issues when it comes to not wanting to work at any particular time. I personally have a technique that I employ constantly in a variety of scenarios, where I visualize myself physically shifting gears in my head. I imagine as strongly as I can where I know where my head should be, and try to "feel" the transition over to that state of mind. It's a hard concept to explain and even harder to get used to, but if you think you see where I'm coming from, try it for yourself. It might just help, but as with meditation, it can require a bit of practice to really see results.
Your body is important.
One area of entrepreneurship that has seen a massive influx of interest and attention recently is the link between physical health and your ability to work effectively. There is a strong connection between the body and mind, and your fitness is one key component to that. Nearly every high performer that I know follows a strict or at least consistent exercise routine, with the focus being on doing it efficiently and often. Don't waste your time and take the focus away from your work, and instead build a concise weekly routine that is well rounded and suits your needs. I won't go into any more detail on this, as I'm far from an exercise guru and you can find all you need to build what works for you online.
Something that goes hand in hand with exercise is of course your diet. Now again, I'm not going to go into detail on how to craft a great diet, but there are a couple of things I want to draw your attention to. Firstly, healthy eating (especially healthy cooking) can be time consuming if you don't plan for it properly, so find a way to cut that time investment down once you know what you want to eat. Freezing meals, and cooking in bulk are great things to do if time is an issue. In addition, when planing your ingredients for this food, keep a look out for foods that promote healthy brain function. Just like crafting a great meal for your exercise routine, you can craft something great for your mind as well, and this will support your efforts in doing your best work.
Sleep and routine.
Lastly, but most importantly is a focus and emphasis on daily consistency and sleep. I noticed a massive uptick in mood and performance when I sorted my sleep schedule out, and having something to get up for in the morning can be a massive help in getting this right, so long as you are going to bed consistently. I find having a set time to get to the gym in a morning is a good combination of this and my points about exercise, while also being a massive confidence boost to start my day!
It becomes apparent that having a routine to implement all of these changes can really help manage the chaos that introducing so many new pursuits can bring. As a bonus, routine also helps keep your hormones in check when it comes to things like fatigue and hunger pangs, so it's helpful to do certain activities at the same time each day if you can help it. To cope with this myself, I made my productivity planner, which I talked at length about in my last post and I highly recommend it.
Get going!
Now this was a very quick fly through, and it's important to not let everything I've written about here overwhelm you if your new to a number or all of these activities and habits. By all means though don't be afraid to just dive in, but remember not to try implementing too many things at once, so that you can get the most out of each new addition to your life. Be mindful of what you are doing, and take each step carefully so you can really listen to how your body and mind are responding to adaptations to your day to day. Learning and improving is the key to this, and it's all useless if you aren't going forward with this in mind. Be kind to yourself too, as things can take time to start seeing benefits from.
I hope that this has provided a solid starting point, but I highly encourage that for each thing you are considering you do extensive research first and find what might be best for you. Just experiment with different techniques, habits and health goals until something really clicks, and just use this as a starting point to know where to look. As always, I hope you have a nice week, and be sure to let me know if there's anything I haven't covered so far or that you want me to take a look at in more detail. Thanks everyone!