This post was developed via a partnership with BetterHelp.
So, you’ve decided to start a new business. Congratulations! Taking that step toward putting your vision out into the world demonstrates courage and confidence and this may be one of the most exciting ventures of your life. Numerous considerations go into getting your new business off the ground, including finances, legalities, and competition.
When you’re the brains behind the business, it can also be important to ensure you’re in the right state of mind to help everything run smoothly. Thus, looking after your mental health can be crucial during the process. In this article, we’ll discuss different ways you can stay mentally healthy while running a new business in the hopes that it helps you achieve the success you’re seeking.
How To Stay Mentally Healthy While Starting A New Business
The following are several tips and tricks to help you stay ahead of your mental health. By taking steps to prevent mental health concerns, you can give your all to your new venture.
- Don’t neglect other parts of your life: Before you started your business, you had a routine—people you saw regularly, places you went often, and activities you participated in daily. Instead of throwing that all out the window, ensure that you’re still giving time to the people and things that once made you happy. That way, if your business is ever going through a rough patch, you know you can count on other aspects of your life to fulfill you.
- Lean on your support network: Whether friends or family members, the people in your life are there for a reason. You’ll probably need extra support as you learn the ropes of opening a business and spending time with people you care for can be a stress reliever in and of itself. Leaning on your support network may also involve delegating tasks so that you aren’t doing everything on your own. Having others in your corner can be key to safeguarding your mental health.
- Make time for self-care: Finding time for yourself can be difficult when all of your focus is on the success of your new business. However, making time to care for your needs can actually give you more energy to put toward building up your business. Self-care involves things like eating healthy, exercising, and getting enough rest. It also can include engaging in your favorite pastimes, spending time with loved ones, or doing something small that you enjoy like getting your nails done or trying to cook a new recipe.
- Take breaks: It can be easy to get so caught up in your new business that you forget to spend some time doing other things. Whether you go for drinks with a friend, watch an episode of your favorite TV show, or step outside for a walk, changing up the scenery can be critical to your mental well-being.
- Find a mentor: Is there someone who can guide you as you make strides in running your new business? Maybe they have a few successful businesses of their own and can offer advice about what helped them. Having someone that you can run ideas past or vent to when you’ve had a hard day on the job can be relieving and help you feel less alone.
- Go to therapy: Starting a new business can be challenging, and you may face numerous obstacles while you get it up and running. For example, if you have a lot of competition, drawing customers in may be harder than you imagined. Further, you might find yourself overwhelmed by debt, particularly in the beginning stages when a steady cash flow hasn’t been established. These concerns can take a toll on your mental health and worsen if you don’t address them. You may consider a platform like BetterHelp, which offers online therapy for a range of problems relevant to entrepreneurs like yourself.
These are just a few of the ways you can maintain your mental health while running your new business. However, you may find other strategies that work well for you, and it’s important to lean into those as you discover them.
Conclusion
The life of an entrepreneur can be exciting, albeit filled with hurdles to overcome and problems to find solutions to. Staying mentally healthy while you open and run your new business can help improve your productivity while also allowing you to enjoy the fruits of your labor. Rather than focusing on what isn’t going well, you can see what’s going right and use that as leverage to continuously make improvements. By being proactive about safeguarding your mental health, you can remain in control, recognize concerns before they become overwhelming, and appreciate the unique journey you’re on.
