Startup life can be intense, grueling, and last way much longer than expected.
Success depends on resilience. By concentrating on what you control, taking care of yourself, and constantly improving, you have the opportunity to grow along with the business.
First put yourself in the right mindset and then take the right actions.
Resilience Mindset
Optimism
Define the meaning and purpose in your life, or at least, be really clear why you started a business. Write these thoughts down and continually refer to them.
As you review, be grateful that you have made it this far and are able to keep learning.
Insight
Identify the stressors affecting you, simply naming them without judgement. This self-awareness can derive from meditation, reflection, or conversation with others. With each insight, determine one step forward (no matter how small such as an email, outlining a plan, initial research, etc.) to evoke change.
We are tempted to solve every problem immediately and fully. Taking a step in the right direction benefits you by finding a solution without overwhelming everything else.
Adaptability
Many people, especially founders, assume change is easy. However, breaking a routine and facing the unknown are surprisingly hard, even when change is for our benefit.
Distinguish between the idea of change and the direct impact on your life and goals. Recognize the reasons for your discomfort and identify the pros and cons of any transition, which helps you to realize there is nuance.
Compassion
We may seek perfectionism, but we are inevitably flawed. Forgive yourself when you make mistakes. Hopefully, you embrace a growth mindset and know that these mistakes eventually can lead to a wealth of insights.
When you make a mistake, own accept responsibility, apologize to those impacted, fix it to the extent possible. Learn from what happened so the mistake is not repeated.
Compassion is recognizing that most people are trying to do their best yet they too make mistakes. Give yourself that same compassion when the time comes.
Resilience in Action
With these considerations in mind, here are some ways you can practice self-care and be more resilient over the long haul of entrepreneurism.
Positive Self-Talk
Face life with the confidence that while you may not control your circumstances, you can control your response. When it comes to adverse circumstances, treat yourself the same as you would a friend. What advice would you give to someone you love?
If you’re stuck in the negative loop, try breaking the cycle by shifting to a new activity for a while. Some people benefit by shouting “STOP!” in their heads (or literally) whenever ruminating thoughts consume them.
As soon as possible, start describing ways you can improve your situation. You may need to reset expectations, seek advice, and simply decide to try something (anything) to make a change from your current situation. That helps get you to the right place.
Connect with People
Review your current relationships and find or reconnect with people who truly support you.
You want to identify and foster two types of relationships. There should be people in your life who support you unconditionally and be willing to set you holistically, not simply based on your latest actions. There also should be people who challenge you to be a better person. They also support you but show respect by pushing you to the next level and beyond.
If someone does not fall into either of these categories and is not working with you to build your company and improve your life, since a way to stop spending time with them.
Help Others
Find a way to assist others. This may seem counterintuitive. How will you have the time to help others when you’re already overwhelmed? If you’re struggling, how can you muster the energy to help others?
Here’s my contrarian thought – helping others is downright selfish. It turns your attention to positive activity, refocuses somewhere besides your own problems, reinforces your value and worth, allows you to learn, and feels good.
Supporting others also promotes asking for help because you witness the value. To successfully grow, you will need the help of many others.
Nourish Yourself
Add times to take care of yourself into your current schedule.
Open your calendar now! Block out times for physical and mental health. Having time to care for yourself will improve your energy when it comes to collaborating with others.
You may need to adjust the calendar, but never delete items only move them to other times.
Persistence
Keep practicing your resilience mindset and actions with intention. The marathon is run differently than the sprint and you need to pace yourself for the long run.
If you are not seeing desired results in any area, make changes. In some cases, you may benefit from a professional coach or seek professional advice. This may sound simple, but resilience is not easy.
Success is a long game. It's worthless if you are scared and dejected. With a resilience mindset, you're ready to move towards your dreams.
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Photo by Karim Manjra who can be found here: https://bit.ly/3KRWcN1