Getting a startup off the ground is no walk in the park; entrepreneurs will experience many trials and tribulations on the way to running their own company. Between the business planning process, targeting a customer base and perfecting the firm’s offerings, entrepreneurs barely have time to sleep, yet alone focus on anything other than their new enterprise. This narrow-minded lifestyle can often lead to high levels of stress and looming self doubt. 

“I wasn’t just tired,” Ellen Barnard, co-owner and executive producer of production company Tomorrow Pictures, told Entrepreneur magazine regarding her business travels from Kenya to India to Romania back in 2008. “I wasn’t just experiencing malaise. I was really stressed out.”

Managing stress is difficult, especially with the added burden of building a business that is set up to be successful. In a recent article for the magazine, Barnard shared some strategies for getting rid of stress and making sure the responsibilities of being an entrepreneur don’t drive aspiring business owners to the brink of insanity.

Step away from the office for a few minutes
It doesn’t matter if entrepreneurs are running their companies out of their basement or if they have an office, it’s important for entrepreneurs to escape the walls of the business for a short time when they are feeling stressed. A walk around the block, a quick phone call with a friend or simply sitting on a park bench and people watching can give the body time to get out of the stressful confines of the office and into a peaceful environment where the pressures of running a business aren’t apparent.

“Those short little breaks give the system a chance to reset and decrease stress hormones in the brain,” Kathleen Hall, founder and CEO of The Stress Institute, told the magazine.

Don’t become too busy for friends
Nearly all Americans can admit to being fed up with a situation, turning to a friend for some guidance and quickly realizing that the problem isn’t as severe as it originally appeared. This is the calming effect that friends have on each other, demonstrating how important social interaction is in the life of an entrepreneur. The magazine referenced a Brigham Young University study conducted in 2010 that revealed the negative health effects of a lack of social relationships are comparable to those associated with smoking. Entrepreneurs want to be as happy as possible when they are trying to get their company to market, so don’t let anything stand in the way of friendships.

“Social connection will actually change your perceptions of the world around you,” Heidi Hanna, author of The Sharp Solution: A Brain-Based Approach for Optimal Performance and a fellow at the American Institute of Stress, asserted to the magazine. “It’s such a core survival need to be part of a tribe or a core community.”

Remain active
It is been proven for years that physical activity is the key to beating stress. According to the Mayo Clinic, nearly anything athletic can serve as a stress reliever for several reasons: working out pumps endorphins into the brain, creating a sense of happiness, and exercising serves as a form of meditation, giving entrepreneurs the chance to clear their head. Clear, productive thinking often occurs after a workout. Holding brainstorming sessions during these times could lead to deciding to invest in forecasting software, which will help entrepreneurs understand what the finances of their business will look like five to 10 years down the road. Thinking without stress gives aspiring small-business owners a renewed sense of optimism for their firms’ success.
 

var addthis_config = {services_compact: ‘facebook,twitter,linkedin’}