The title sounds heavy, but it is an important facet of having your own business.

To be clear, I’m not talking about multi level marketing, where you sell products on behalf of a large company and the profit is based on selling the “business” to others. I’m talking about you providing a service or product without a 3rd party dictating your sales goals.

When we dream of owning our own businesses, we often only picture the end result. This might be us working at our desks, making products or seeing clients. This end result often is what keeps us inspired to continue, but really doesn’t capture the journey to get to that point.

Working for a company does have it’s advantages. They take care of the logistics and administrative tasks, while we do the work and go home at the end of the workday. For some, this is exactly what they’re looking for, but for others, it may feel a bit tedious.

When you are working for yourself, often you’re working alone and this can feel overwhelming, especially if you have never ran a business before.

How can you reduce the strain on you to make your business grow into what you want it to be?

• Become active with groups of other business owners in your field. I have found that groups on social media can be extraordinarily helpful and can really expand your idea of what you want your business to look like. There may even be an opportunity in your town to become part of a consultation group or attend industry specific marketing events.

• Plan “no-work” days. It doesn’t have to be every week, but taking time to disconnect from work can help manage that feeling of being overwhelmed. If you can afford to do it, save for pto, just like you would earn time while working for a larger company. Build the cost of your downtime into your rates or prices.

• Enlist the help of people who can handle some of the less fun or enjoyable aspects of your business, like virtual assistants or services to handle payment processing. Along this same line, if you can, automate some of your administrative tasks.

• Keep a vision board or something that inspires you to keep working on your business. It could even be a picture of your children or your dream home, as long as it’s something you can see and remember what you’re doing this for.

These are only a few of the ways that you can help reduce the feeling of being overwhelmed or anxious about your businesses success. Having a successful business takes time and effort (oftentimes also money), but it’s an investment in your happiness and you deserve to take time to enjoy it.

If you’re struggling with your business and want to talk to a professional about it, talking to a business coach may be a way to plan and achieve your goals. If the anxiety is impacting your ability to function in other parts of your life, therapy may be able to help. DC is accepting new therapy clients and you can book a consultation here.

#business #mentalhealth #goals #dreams #smallbusiness #entrepreneur