Being an entrepreneur comes with a lot of responsibilities. Especially for a small business that does not have all the needed structure yet.
As an entrepreneur running a small business, you are wearing a lot of caps, which can quickly lead to burnout.
Now, one of the reasons entrepreneurs experience burnout is the strive for productivity. And that is quite understandable. Here are some tips to help you boost productivity and avoid distraction. The tips here have helped a friend increase productivity by 50%, so you should try them too.
Back to burnout, check out these 7 practical ways you can avoid burnout as an entrepreneur:
Contents
1. Work on your routines and habits (why do you do what you do?)
Is there something you do because you always have? You may want to take another look at these activities to ensure that you’re not just busy but productive.
Being busy and being productive are two different things. While the former leads to burnout, the latter gets you results that keep you going.
Busy people often concentrate on ‘extras’. Try to take some time out to organise your routine and take out any activity that does not directly lead to productivity. Those are the activities stressing you out.
2. It’s okay to say no
This works with the first point above. You don’t have to do everything, and you shouldn’t say yes to every request.
Learn to say ‘NO’ to the things that take your focus away from the things that matter. If you’re focusing on too many things, you won’t be able to invest and develop what matters.
Think about it – you will most likely never regret saying no, but I’m sure you have memories of times you’ve regretted saying yes.
3. Take breaks
This is important. As established earlier, being busy does not always translate to productivity. No, your business will not suddenly die because you decided to take a day off. You must have plans in place, though.
Who even says it has to be a whole day? I know of many entrepreneurs who don’t leave their seats once they resume in the morning. You are like that, and you complain about burnout? Common now!
Make a conscious effort to take breaks between the day as you work. Make it part of your routine. I currently work from home, and my break time is 1 pm to 2 pm every day. I don’t miss it for anything. During this period, I go offline and shut out of work entirely. By the time I resume at 1 pm, I resume working with renewed energy that carries me till the close of work in the evening (usually 5 pm). You should have a similar plan.
4. Outsource responsibilities
There is this song by a Nigerian music star, Timaya, titled “I Can’t Kill Myself”. The song is not the most lyrically rich, but the message is clear – don’t overwork yourself.
There are two things you need to come to terms with to outsource responsibilities. First, you must recognise that you can’t do it all. Secondly and most importantly, spend this money!
Do you know when you can call yourself a successful entrepreneur? When you build a business that can run on its own without you. Make this one of your goals in your entrepreneurial journey.
5. Stop comparing yourselves to others
It’s the social media era, and there is enormous pressure to measure up. One day you may open your Twitter, and the first tweet in your face is “I built a million-dollar business at 22”. And just like that, depression sets in. You look at your own business, and it’s not even worth 500k (naira!). Let’s not talk about how you’re a lot older than 22 already.
So, what do you do? You start overworking yourself because you want to be like that absolute stranger whose tweet randomly showed up on your page. You need to calm down.
Don’t compare yourself to anyone. Don’t let social media put any pressure on you. Move at your pace, set your small goals and celebrate your small wins.
Recommended: How To Embody Inner Peace
6. Set clear expectations
Have a clear outline of what you want from your team to avoid back and forth. Not enough is said about the amount of time we spend on unnecessary corrections, which would have been avoided if we can just communicate clearly.
Avoid the need for unnecessary, time-consuming and burnout-inviting exchanges with your team by making expectations clear from the beginning.
7. Spend time with yourself
Lastly, spend some time with you. Introspecting has proven very useful in the fight against burnout. Meditate, do some breathing exercises, read a book, do long walks or just do any fun thing that won’t necessarily task your brain. You can call this period a reloading period.
Conclusion
Burnout is real, and you’re naturally susceptible to it as an entrepreneur. However, try the above tips on how to avoid burnout and watch it distance itself from you.
Have you had to deal with burnout before? How did you handle it? Do leave a comment so others can learn from your experience.
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