How Do You Avoid Burnout as a Small Business Owner?

​Running a small business isn’t easy. Working towards your dreams isn’t simple. It takes effort and commitment and it can be easy to justify working on your business every waking minute of the day.

The problem is, if you keep pushing yourself, working longer and longer hours, you’ll find yourself becoming stressed, losing focus and suffering from burnout which can actually have an opposite effect on your small business than what you’d intended.

The key thing to remember is that you need time away from your business, time where you can relax, clear your mind and take care of yourself so that you can approach your business feeling refreshed and with a new perspective.

​Here are our top tips to help get you started:

• ​Outsource – If you’re constantly battling against your to-do list, working on tasks that you just don’t have time for, it might be time to consider handing these tasks over to someone else. But don’t worry, if you don’t require a full-time employee, there are still plenty of options where you can find support. For example, a virtual assistant can handle a range of tasks including business admin, customer support and social media; a telephone answering service can ensure that all of your customer calls are answered efficiently; a book-keeper can keep your finances in order giving you a clear overview of how your business is running. You can find freelancers to help you with almost anything you need help with. Try searching on Google, your LinkedIn network or a dedicated freelancing website.
• Rest – Your brain needs rest in order to function. Giving yourself time to sleep deeply, not just for a few minutes, and rest after a busy day can help to restore your focus, and improve your productivity
• Exercise – Finding time to exercise can seem like an impossible feat, but just 10 minutes of exercise each day can do wonders for your body and mind. Exercise gets your blood pumping, oxygen flowing and will also help to physically tire you out so that falling into a deep sleep at the end of the day is much easier.
• Find Your Time – What time of day do you work best? Are you an early riser who’s most productive in the morning? Do you find it easier to focus in the middle of the day once you’ve had a chance to wake up? Find your most productive time and establish a routine around it to help you be more productive.
• Avoid Distractions – When you’re focusing on your work, minimise distractions such as email and social media. Avoiding these time-consumers will help to keep you focused and on-track.

Remember that burnout can lead to depression, which can prevent you from working at all. Your business needs you, so remember to take care of yourself as a top priority.