4 Tips For Handling Burnout When You Own A Business
From the outside looking in, owning a business can look like unlimited freedom and cash flowing in! But sometimes that is just not reality, or not the complete reality. Sure, being a business owner may mean you don’t have a boss to report to but that doesn’t mean you don’t have clients in your inbox or cash flow constantly on your mind!
We can get so into the weeds on the day to day work that before you know it - you’re burnt out.
When you find yourself in that place it is important to take a step back and take inventory. What do we actually have control over? What changes can we make to get the energy back into our business? If you are a business owner - turns out you have a lot more control than you think!
Below are my top tips for handling burnout when you are a business owner. The mindset you have as a business owner is going to affect every aspect of your business. By avoiding burnout you are going to be making sure all parts of your business are operating at their best!
1. Set Boundaries
This is actually pretty broad because there are so many boundaries you should be setting as a business owner. Here are a few:
When you clock in and clock out
When you respond to emails, texts, or calls
Your meeting availability
How people talk to you
The intention of boundaries is to create a respectful environment that allows you to be at your best. Sometimes you may need to work longer hours, respond to an emergency call or meet with someone at a different hour, but those situations should be the exception to the rule!
By setting boundaries you are taking care of your energy, which is one of the biggest factors that can affect burnout.
2. Increase Your Prices
This one may not seem so obvious at first but take it from an accountant - the money matters! When you are doing work and you know you are underpaid, it starts to create resentment. That resentment is going to lead to burnout. You are going to hate clocking in and out, the quality of your work will suffer, and you will feel negative feelings as you do the work.
Instead, increasing your prices can fix burnout in one of two ways. First, you will feel more positively toward your work and your clients. Upping your morale should be a goal in preventing burnout!
Second, when you up your prices you are giving yourself more flexibility to outsource your work. You can afford to bring on great team members who can lighten the workload. Then you can focus on the work you really want to do!
3. Align Your Business With Your Personal Life
I so admire entrepreneurs! We are some of the most creative people and have a ton to contribute to the world. We have so many goals and aspirations, sometimes we lose track of where we are and where we are headed.
If you started your business to spend more time at home with family, take care of yourself better, or just to have better work/life balance but find none of those things happening - then what’s the point!?
Take some time away from your work to remember WHY you started your business in the first place. Are you working towards those goals? Or are you working towards some other aspirations that you got caught up in as you decided to build? I know, it happens.
Remember why you started and reassess what needs to change.
4. Change Your Mindset
I get it. I am a business owner too! I see all the mistakes in my business and I want to reach my goals today! Not tomorrow.
I end up putting a ton of pressure on myself to have everything perfect but the problem is that can quickly lead to negative thoughts, unnecessary pressure, and…you guessed it, burnout!
You do not need to have everything resolved in your business today! It takes time to build a business and sometimes, that means months if not years.
Do some mindset work and find reliable people you can trust as you build your business - an accountant is a great option! Being a business owner myself and having a deep understanding of financial statements, our advisory services often dip into how you can build your business stronger!
The biggest takeaway with burnout is you need to make long-term sustainable changes. While things like taking a 5 minute break or walking are important, they will not do much if you are working against any of the problems mentioned above.
I know when you are in burnout it can feel like the only solution is to leave but I highly recommend giving some of these tips a shot before you close up shop. You have worked hard to get to this point, let’s make sure we are pinpointing what the real issue is!
To learn more about how we can help you prevent burnout or to get help on pricing your services, head on over to our Contact Page to schedule a consultation.
