Running a business takes a lot out of a person. Financial, mental, emotional, and physical stresses can drain you really quickly if you aren’t careful.
One issue many small business owners run into is that they spend so much time taking care of their business, they forget to take care of their own mental health. If you just need some help getting back on track, you should know that there are many mental health tips to help small business owners just like you.
Set Your Hours and Stick to Them
One of the most important mental health tips for small business owners is to set your hours and stick to them. This seems to be one of the toughest things for many who own a business. It’s not uncommon to end up working 60+ hour weeks and not have enough time for self-care. If this sounds like you, keep in mind, the longer your mental health suffers, the quicker your business may go under as well.
Think about all the things you have going on in your life—your children, your household, your business, your social life, and yes, personal time as well. After you consider everything you have going on, decide how many hours you should reasonably be working each week and then make a plan to only work those hours. Don’t overdo it—there will always be next week.
Create a Flexible Working Environment
Another excellent tip for small business owners is to create a . Think about the tasks you need to do for your business. Do all of them necessarily have to be done in the office or at your company’s location? Are there things you can do at home or in a coffee shop? The more time you can spend out of the office, even if this includes working at home a bit, the better your mental health could be.
You may even want to consider setting up a schedule. For example, on Mondays and Fridays you are in your office or at the business location working. On Tuesdays and Thursdays, you are working out of a coffee shop. On Wednesdays, you are working from home. While this is just an example it’s important to create a flexible working arrangement that fits your lifestyle and provides emotional balance.
Get Help From Others
Being a small business owner can be extremely tough. If you are having trouble keeping your mental health stable, you should . When you outsource tasks, you have additional time for more pressing business matters. Additionally, outsourcing tasks allows you to have breaks or extra time to relax a bit as well.
If you haven’t asked for additional help yet, try delegating even a couple of your tasks each week. See how much better than makes you feel. Even freeing up a couple of hours of time can help you feel a great deal better emotionally, mentally and physically.
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Practice Relaxation Techniques
Anyone who is stressed or overwhelmed, especially small business owners, should . Research and studies have shown the amazing benefits of relaxation techniques on physical, mental, and emotional health. Small business owners often experience tremendous amounts of stress on a day-to-day basis. If you are looking to improve your mental health state, there are few relaxation techniques you can begin practicing today.
You can start with the 3-7-5 breathing technique. For this relaxation technique, you will breathe out for three seconds, then breathe in for seven seconds and finally breathe out for five seconds. You can do this for any length of time but it is recommended you do this for three-minute sessions if possible.
Another relaxation technique to practice is . In this technique, you will start by sitting or lying in a comfortable position. You will then tense your muscles or certain muscles such as in your hands and arms. The tension should be held for about 15 seconds. You will then release the tension for about 15 seconds. Try to do this in three-minute sessions.
These are just a couple of the relaxation techniques you can practice any time you’re feeling stressed and overwhelmed. If you practice them regularly, they can help to reduce stress and improve your productivity as well.
Push Your Body, Relax Your Mind
It’s likely you have work on your mind all day and sometimes nights as well. If you want to develop a better mental health state, you need to take your mind off work at times. One of the best ways to do that is by actively . This could be in a gym, fitness classes, or doing your own exercise regimen at home.
Exercising regularly can help to reduce stress, improve productivity, increase focus, improve physical fitness, and help you to feel better about yourself, as well. Even if you can’t seem to find enough motivation to go run a 5k, you should try to schedule at least five 30-minute walks each week. It’s amazing what just a half hour a day most days can do for your overall sense of well-being and mental health.
As a small business owner, you have a lot on your mind. However, you still need to remember to take care of yourself—physically, mentally, and emotionally. Use these five tips to reduce stress, get more done on the job, relax and most importantly, have a better state of mind at work and in your personal life as well.
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