Entrepreneurship is inherently stressful. Founders must contend with numerous demands on time, financial constraints, and other stressors.
According to a survey conducted by Startup Snapshot, 54% of respondents said they felt “very stressed” and 72% of founders reported experiencing mental health issues such as panic attacks, burnout, anxiety, and depression. They report feeling the effects.
Tarek Kamil, founder of Cincinnati-based startup Cerkl, compared starting a new business to having a child.
“What happens is you get carried away without realizing you have a child,” Kamil said. “This new business you’ve started is still a toddler and needs what it needs, when it needs it. The baby needs a bed, you feed it. If you need a change, you can Change. It doesn’t matter what’s going on in your life.”
Last June, Blue North, Northern Kentucky’s leading entrepreneurial resource and advocacy organization, launched the Resilience Accelerator, an initiative to help area founders manage stress and develop a healthy mindset for work. I launched it.
Blue North partnered with locally-based clinical psychologist Dr. Lina Ehlinger to produce monthly content for the Resilience Accelerator. Ehlinger herself is the founder of LE Psych, which provides therapy to people suffering from PTSD and bipolar disorder.
On Thursday, the Resilience Accelerator hosted a panel discussion featuring Kamil, Ehlinger, and Mark Phillips, managing partner of Chicago-based venture capital firm 11 Tribes, in which entrepreneurship The discussion centered on the importance of prioritizing mental health.
From Ehlinger’s perspective, the day-to-day responsibilities of running a business can lead to lingering anxiety. To combat this, founders should focus on making time for activities that reduce anxiety, such as sleep, exercise, and spending time with loved ones.
“I think seriously about founder mental health and whether I can look at my life and my values and say, yes, I care about all of these things,” Ehlinger said. Ta.
Entrepreneurship requires a huge commitment of time, so managing your mental health requires some concessions. Phillips said he personally stopped using the term “work-life balance” to describe how he allocates his time.
“I dropped the term work-life balance because I don’t think it’s realistic in entrepreneurship,” Phillips said. “I’ve adopted the term work-life inclusion. How are the two intertwined? We’re going to have weeks of over-representation at work.”
Because of the prevalence of this situation, Phillips emphasized that founders should prioritize rest. When founders rest, they are able to perform at a higher level.
“You’re not working too much, you’re just not getting enough rest,” Phillips says.
Kamil suggested founders adjust their expectations and accept that even when things are going well, there will be trials and tribulations along the way. This allows founders to better compartmentalize the inevitable stresses and failures.
“I feel like a big part of this problem is adjusting expectations. You think there’s going to be rainbows and unicorns, and I think it’s just one problem after another,” Kamil said. “Of course there will be mental health issues and anxiety and stress, but that’s when things go well.”
All three panelists acknowledged that mental health can be a stigmatized topic, especially in the entrepreneurial world where “hustle culture” and “sufferer” mentality are prevalent.
“One of the things I learned is that the whole idea of Mountain Dew and sleep deprivation is scary,” Kamil said. It’s a horrible, horrible way to live, and it’s actually counterproductive. ”
Philips’ venture, 11 Tribes, has actually made investing in the mental health of its founders a top priority. According to the website, his 2% of 11 Tribes’ investment capital is donated directly to the founders, allowing them to invest in their own mental and physical well-being.
For Phillips and his company, this is a way to help combat the stigma surrounding mental health in entrepreneurship while also showing founders that they are a long-term investment for their company.
Ehlinger concluded that while it may not be easy for founders to carve out dedicated time in their schedules, it’s ultimately worth the investment in the long run.
“Can you expect that prioritizing your mental health and making space for it will be easy? No, it’s not easy, but it’s definitely worth it and it’s good for yourself, your business, and your teams will also benefit,” Ehlinger said.
