How to Deal with Feeling Overwhelmed as a Business Owner

Emails piling up with no sense where to start? Days, possibly weeks behind your posting schedule? Social media engagements in a down-spiral?

...It’s Monday already!?

As a business owner, you might find yourself starting off many days with this heavy sense of overwhelm. You just feel off your rhythm: so much to do and so little time, you can’t help but question if the weeks have somehow become shorter. It’s totally normal, don’t worry — and better yet, avoidable. When running a business, it’s important that the brains behind the operation (that’s you) has a clear headspace, and can maintain an organized and consistent approach to what is being displayed to potential clients. Your confidence in your work is more evident to your audience than you may think, and it plays a major role in determining their interest in your products and services. So, how can you make sure both you and your business aren’t hurting from your overwhelm as an entrepreneur?

Throughout our years in business ownership, we’ve gathered a handful of strategies for tackling burnout that are so simple it’s hard to believe we ever approached things differently. Here are the five things we’ve found to be the most effective in dealing with the stress of the business world:

1. Schedule your time wisely (and don’t divert) - To start off, what might seem like the most obvious habit but is often the most neglected: scheduling. It’s more than likely your business is being marketed on various social media platforms, and with your phone conveniently able to be at your side 24/7, you have ample opportunity to be checking your emails and socials. While this may initially seem like an advantage when it comes to running your business, it puts you in a position where there’s suddenly no divide between your personal life and work life. For many of us, including myself, this can quickly lead to anxiousness and overwhelm. So, instead, we recommend dedicating specific slots of time to your work — including all things social media — and aiming to do no more and no less than what you’ve deemed absolutely necessary.

2. Know your most and least productive times - When running a business, it’s super important to be familiar with your strengths and weaknesses. That especially includes your work ethic, and correspondingly, when your most and least productive times tend to land. Don’t fall for the idea that your work day has to look like everyone else’s — learn what works best for you personally, and plan your days accordingly!

3. Change up your environment - Trust me, I get it. With covid still rampant and such limited options for a functional workspace, it can be tempting to limit yourself to the comfort of your own bed. What most people fail to realize when stuck in a creative rut and little sense of direction in guiding their business forward, however, is the major difference a change of space can make. Even something as simple as claiming a new room or sitting area in your home for work can drastically affect your levels of motivation and creativity, going hand in hand with tackling your workload. Try it, see the difference it makes!

4. Try different approaches - It sounds trivial to actually suggest, but rarely do us business owners take the time to question our work habits — after all, they’re habits, what’s there to question? Many flaws in our systems tend to go unnoticed that way. The main idea in trying different approaches to your work routine is stepping back, examining each aspect of your routine, and tweaking bits and pieces until you’re left with a final product that not only feels more you, but is tailored to help you get more done and in less time than before.

5. Have confidence in your why - A major issue that can lead to overwhelm in business is a weak connection to your “WHY.” If you have difficulty articulating exactly why you’re doing what you’re doing, the motivation to run a truly successful business simply won’t be there, and the work will thus continue to pile up. To help avoid this feeling of disconnect between you and your business, ensure your why truly reflects your heart and passion. If it doesn’t, keep searching until you find one that does! It’s more than worth it for both the short term and long term success of your business.

… And that’s it. Easy, right? Starting and running a business is never going to be a smooth sailing journey. It’s a daunting task, and it can often lead to many loose threads in your workload. That being said, we hope that after reading about our five strategies, you have been able to find something of value for you and your business. And as a gentle reminder to leave you with: while working hard to tackle the sources of your stress is rewarding in many ways, your mental health and happiness is always a top priority. Allow yourself whatever rest you may need, and be patient with yourself during your business endeavours.

Good luck friends!