Six ways to manage the stress of being an entrepreneur

While facing stress is inevitable for anyone tackling the demanding life of an entrepreneur, there are ways to effectively manage and minimise it.

Managing potentially stressful situations properly will help you keep a clear head and stay focused. Working around the clock can take a heavy toll on both your mind and body, so maintaining your health is integral to keeping up with the demands of an entrepreneur’s lifestyle.

The sooner you accept that stress will be a factor in your life as an entrepreneur, the sooner you can embrace it and use it to your advantage. Stress, when managed, has become a driving force for me and a wake-up call when I need to work smarter.

When stress gets to you it impacts both your mood and your work. If you’re stressed your team will notice and naturally become stressed as well, which means a lack of productivity, an anxious environment and the risk of personal animosity. It’s important for you to manage stress effectively not only for your own sanity, but for the respect of your team and the survival of your business.

So how do you manage stress effectively?

Quality sleep

Poor sleep is a ticking time bomb in managing stress. The less shuteye you get, the more both your mind and body suffer, inevitably putting you under more pressure with an inability to focus properly and perform at your best.

Whilst it isn’t always realistic to get to bed at the same time every night, it is important to know when to shut off. If you’re going to survive the long haul you’re going to need quality sleep so you need to learn to put down the phone, and step away from the computer to let your mind and body relax.

Rise and shine

You snooze, you lose. It’s blunt, but true. There’s no time to sleep-in when you’re an entrepreneur. Business is fast, competitive, and requires you to show up on time, so you need to be up early and ready to go. As they say, the early bird gets the worm.

When you’re running a business your day is likely to fill up fast, so early mornings are the only time you’ll have to get all those extra things completed with the least amount of distractions.

Get active

If you’re getting quality sleep then an early start should be a breeze, and hopefully a nice cool breeze as you take an early morning jog. That’s right, exercise!

Exercise is a fundamental part of my daily routine. Even a light walk first thing in the morning gives me the vitality, energy and buzz to get my day started.

Some exercise is great for clearing your mind, getting your adrenaline pumping and releasing endorphins to get you in a positive frame of mind.

Food for thought

Literally! In my experience maintaining a healthy diet has been a key ingredient in enhancing my ability to concentrate and combat fatigue.

Sticking to a healthy diet has given me the clarity I need to function at my best each day and improves my overall attitude toward my work, and let’s face it a clear mind is a necessity when thinking up new innovative business ideas!

Positive thinking

Great things can happen when you distance yourself from negativity and staying positive is something you’ll need to learn early on to survive in business.

The life of an entrepreneur can be unpredictable at times, and you will face many obstacles, but it’s how you approach them that matters most. Nothing is ever as hard as it first seems.

As the late Wayne Dyer said so perfectly, “If you change the way you look at things, the things you look at change”.

Time out

Being an entrepreneur is an overwhelming commitment that takes a lot of hard work and a long time before you get where you aspire to be, but every now and again you still need to take time for you.

Take some time to relax, laugh and have fun. It’s important to escape the pressures of work from time to time and enjoy life.

Getting away from the office for even a day can provide a welcoming change of scenery and gives you the break you need to relax, reboot and give you a fresh perspective.

Entrepreneurs face many challenges and can’t always avoid stress. How you choose to deal with it is ultimately what will make or break you.

Strong mind and strong health will take you a long way in your pursuit of success.

How do you combat stress? Do you use it to your advantage?

Sam Bashiry is co-founder of Smart50 finalist Broadband Solutions. This article was first published on his website. 

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