Taking Care of Business Means Taking Care of Yourself: How to Avoid Burnout
Owning your own business is hard, and it’s not always pretty. It can be incredibly stressful, tiring, irritating, and even sometimes intimidating.
It’s the truth.
Owning your own business is glamorous until it’s just not.
When it gets to the point where you’re constantly struggling and it’s beginning to interfere with your personal life, you’re probably dealing with entrepreneurial burnout!
Yep, it has a name!
Here are 5 signs that you’re struggling with burnout:
You’re irritable instead of passionate about business.
It’s okay to get upset sometimes, but if you’re irritable to the point where you can’t shut it off- that’s something that should be addressed. If you’re starting to recognize a pattern in your irritability and it all goes back to things in your business that drive you to your wit’s end, then it’s time to take a step back. No, I don’t mean calling it quits, I mean searching for that initial tick that made you want to start your own business in the first place!
Let yourself get back to those roots and try incorporating those things that made you oh so passionate into your now-evolved business.
You’re having trouble sleeping.
Do you know what’s keeping you awake? Is it a pit in your stomach or maybe even racing thoughts? I’ve been there and let me tell you- this is my least favorite sign of burnout.
For me, it’s usually that nagging feeling that I’m just not doing enough. I’m working late hours, not taking days off yet I’m just not where I should be?!
Remember… running an effective and successful business is a marathon, not a race.
You have no boundaries.
That pendulum has swung too far in the opposite direction and now you’re constantly getting emails, phone calls, and texts regarding business matters. You’re now stuck in an environment where you can’t relax because your business is now interfering with your personal time.
You’re abnormally forgetful.
Listen, we’ve all been here countless times. When it comes to forgetting to take your trash out to the curb and all the way to forgetting your keys somewhere (story of my life).
It’s a different kind of forgetful when it comes to your business though. When you start to notice that you’re forgetting to do simple tasks or missing deadlines all you can do is take a step back and assess what’s causing this to happen….
You’re procrastinating.
Putting off projects for days or even weeks at a time is a telltale sign that you’re unable to keep up with your workload and going down the path of burnout! When the work just keeps piling on, it can be incredibly overwhelming. It can even get to a point where you have absolutely no drive to finish any of it, and when you do the work goes incomplete or even just littered with mistakes.
We both know that running a business like this isn’t sustainable and isn’t going to get you those results you’ve been overworking yourself for.
Before I tell you solutions to these issues, I want you to know that it’s okay to mess up… we’re only human. If you think that what you’re dealing with could be something more, don’t hesitate to reach out for help! I’ll be your biggest cheerleader when you can’t be!
Just remember that nobody is perfect, and you should be so proud of how far you’ve come because I know that I sure am!
How to deal with burnout:
Outsource some of those tasks!
This is something that I’ll always scream from the rooftops! Outsourcing is a huge move that will make your life so much easier! It’s definitely worth the investment, but even if you’re looking for something more affordable the internet is so vast, and the number of entrepreneurs out there is endless at this point! As a Virtual Assistant, I have worked alongside people (even temporarily) who just needed some form of relief from tasks that they started to hate or seemed to forget being caught up in their day-to-day grind.
One of my favorite compliments that I get from clients is hearing that I’ve helped make their lives so much easier! At this point, I’m wondering if I should get a Virtual Assistant for myself!🤣
Set your working/personal hours!
You’ve got to bite the bullet and set boundaries between your work life and your personal life! Make it clear to your clients that you’re only available at certain times and that you’ll get back to them whenever you’re “back in the office” … Even if you don’t work in an office. They even have ways to automate this, but if you just typed out a message with your hours and sent it to everyone reaching out to you whenever you’re having some much-needed personal time - you’ll quickly notice a difference in when you’re receiving those messages.
If your clients aren’t the issue, give yourself a set time to stop working and find something to distract yourself: like your favorite show on Netflix or even just a nice bath!
Try picking up a hobby!
Working on those endless tasks for your business is not a hobby!! Pick up a book, a pen, play a game, crochet, exercise, anything! This will help keep you distracted from wanting to jump on your computer to work and will give you a new skillset! It’s the best of both worlds!
Spruce up your workspace!
Ahhh!!! My favorite form of dealing with burnout, and the perfect excuse to make a Target run! Investing in your workspace will not only reignite that spark when thinking about working, but it could seriously benefit your health! Sure, you can buy cute new decor, but buy a desk chair that won’t kill your back or a pair of shoes that aren’t going to aid in the destruction of your knees! Whatever you do to spruce up your workspace make sure it benefits you in a positive way and isn’t going to give you temporary relief. Retail therapy is fun until you run up a balance that isn’t reasonable… been there, done that.
Create a community of people in your field!
Find some like-minded people who could potentially be dealing with the same issues as you, or even just people in your field that can give you those words of encouragement when you can’t do it for yourself!
Having someone to confide in is the best medicine, and when that person is also a business owner it’s so exciting getting the chance to grow together!
Step out of your comfort zone and reach out to someone who seems like your type of friend or join a Facebook group!
Like I said before, owning a business is glamorous until it’s not and you should be so proud of how far you’ve come. It’s okay to take a step back every once in a while and breathe.
You should always come first!
