How can you avoid burnout in your startup?

Nurturing a startup requires a delicate dance, and recognizing the signs of burnout is the choreography of self-care. Think of it as tuning into your body's whispers; exhaustion is not a badge but a cautionary note. Just as a wise captain navigates stormy seas, heed the signals – mental fatigue, dwindling enthusiasm. In this startup saga, let self-awareness be your compass, steering you away from burnout's treacherous waters. So, as you embark on this entrepreneurial odyssey, dance to the rhythm of balance, recognizing the signs of burnout as subtle cues to recalibrate and ensure your startup sails through calmer seas with resilience and vigor.

The signs for me - agitated, heart beat rushing and forgetting where I put what. Sometimes, the over-thinking leads to issues in sleeping. True enough, there has been days, I question myself if, what I am doing is worth it or I should give up for being contented. To totally avoid these feelings may not be possible, but they can be minimised. Taking a break, relax first, before continuing and realising that I am not a superwoman. Apart from, I take naps in the afternoon during my off-peak hours, which does help. Let alone, planning ahead in the next few days, what should be the priorities, and gardening is one of it, fulfilling to my soul. I also realise that, it doesn’t have to be everyday on social media.

Take time to rest. Take a sabbath. Rest and balance your actions in a way that is sustainable spiritually, emotionally and physically. The “gain” of anything is not worth the depth and cost of burnout. Do not believe the hype that anything is worth your emotional and physical good.

Practicing emotional intelligence, in addition to knowing our limits, knowing where we want to go and following ways to get there. Also creating pillars of balance, including activities that bring joy during the rest period.

While burnout signs vary across individuals, they are likely to be specific for you. Meaning that signs of burnout might be more about having difficulty sleeping, mood swings and headaches; while for someone else, it manifests as losing interest and energy for work. We recognize the signs by zooming in on patterns, behaviors or emotions that seem to build on top of each other, to the point that we are unable to function through a normal day at a pace without feeling consistently overwhelmed, exhausted or easily triggered.

Healing from burnout takes time and requires space. Setting priorities and your own boundaries on what you need to navigate your own healing and priority items, is important because they allow you to navigate at your pace. It allows for space for you to break the cycle of disallowing excessive tasks and obligations to disrupt your ability to focus on what you need to get done, while healing from burnout itself.

Stay away from leaders that work in “extremes” or hyper “alpha” ideation. Successful leaders are balanced, empathetic and measured. Also most successful leaders are kind and consistent. Ego is a leader naturalizer. Be kind. Be humble. Be helpful. Add value. That’s leadership. Set boundaries for yourself and your family.

Periodically rotate responsibilities to keep tasks fresh and engage your team. It's a strategy often overlooked but can inject new energy into the work dynamic.

We are a team, walking alone is more difficult. So we need to have a group of colleagues to talk to, talk about our personal lives during a lunch, or drinking a coffee and exchange personal experiences. Also to have a mentor or a coach is important.

You can’t do it on your own. You need a tribe, a team and people that have your best interest in mind. Patience is key to determine who that is. Trust is gained in years and lost in moments. It’s wise to have patience before determining trustworthiness. You need others and others need you to be the best version of yourself. Be balanced and be kind. Put a clear boundary between you and people with clear agendas to the contrary.

I can't emphasize this enough. No one prevents or heals from burnout alone. We need a community or people who can trust to have our backs, to support us, show us our blind spots or simply remind us when they know we know to pause and change our pace to take a break.

A growth mindset tells us that we can continue to develop our potential and that there is something to learn from everyone around us. Continuous learning and improvements help us grow our businesses but also show us that there is always room for improvement. If we can be open to feedback and failing, stop taking it all personally and just realize it's part of the journey.

Avoiding burnout in a startup involves nurturing a growth mindset. Embrace challenges as opportunities for learning and improvement. Delegate tasks, fostering a culture of trust and collaboration. Prioritize self-care, setting boundaries for work-life balance. Stay adaptable, adjusting strategies based on feedback and market changes. Celebrate milestones, recognizing progress despite setbacks. Encourage a culture of continuous learning, supporting employees' professional development. Embracing a growth mindset cultivates resilience, reframing obstacles as stepping stones toward success. It fosters a sustainable approach, mitigating burnout by emphasizing progress, adaptability, and personal well-being within the startup environment.

I like so much to talk about this topic , because I really could improve my life a lot , once I started to creat a time to practice some actions like : - Wake up early - Cold shower - Pray - Work out - Cook my own breakfast - Read the main news - Get well dessed - And go to work I have created a routine , so 1 hour and half is enough time

Here are practical ways I have learned that can calm your mind, your body and your soul. 1. Prayer 2. Deep breaths. 3. Grounding (feet in the dirt). 4. Calm music. 5. Nature (get outside if possible for Vitamin D and sun ☀️).

Practise and prioritise self-care. I realised many leaders have the practice part down well, they know what to do and when to practise self-care. Some even schedule it at regular intervals. Prioritising, however, takes a little bit more push. Often many commitments, obligations, even seemingly urgent items come up (the more on your plate, the more it seems that prioritising self-care can be overlook when things around you build up).

I strongly believe in self-care, also, self-time and self-love. It is indeed challenging managing my business, home affairs and my marriage love. What u have learned is, there is a cut-off for everything. Thankfully, since I conduct yoga sessions, which includes meditation and mindfulness, these are a big support for me. Apart from, after 7.30pm, it’s me-time. I relax by watching movies and the movies I watch are motivational and meaningful ones, which teaches values. Weekends, for my marriage love, we dine out for lunch. It’s the bonding time. Also, part of of my self-care. I also have decided not to pick up unnecessary phone calls. No handing on the phone, listening to people whining about their life, as part of boundaries.

- Identify what are the must do areas that will help build your business. Then tackle them in the order of importance. E.g. build pipeline, network, social media, developing a system. - Set time-blocking away from distractions to do the non-negotiable important things. - Have mini breaks in the day to clear the mind & refresh. - Say No to things that don’t benefit you & suck up your time. - Dedicate at least one day in the week to rest and do things you love. - Not everything is urgent & don’t sweat the small stuff. There will be times when things will get crazy and that’s fine. Do what needs to done and then come back to the routine that serves you.

Early and continuing failures are strong catalysts for burnout. Making oneself ready for failures right in the begining can be immensely helpful. The urge to succeed and win in every participating initiative is also a huge drain on self motivation. Being frugal, particularly in financial aspects is crucial for sustaining and avliding early burnout

Build reliable team. Design & implement RACI matrix. You can do many things better, but its a company, hence delegate effectively. Stay away from unrealistic goals.

One of the best things to do is, for me is, I love being alone. Doing what pleases me, and every now then, I chat with my tribe in the phone. These are valuable conversations, sharing and learning from each other, instead of complaining. It helps me that I chat with my tribe. This tribe of mine are people who don’t judge, they don’t rush in giving opinions. Instead, they calm you don’t. Since those I hire are part-timers, there are not much I share with them, except related to work. I keep them in that way, because they are basically income earners and they are not interested in anything else. Even with my clients, I draw line. Only so much I feel they are part of what I do. Therefore, I encourage and motivate myself.

Traditional hierarchies can stifle communication. Foster an environment where team members feel comfortable expressing their concerns without fear of judgment. Honest conversations are the bedrock of a healthy workplace.