As a young business owner, you become so committed to your work that you tend to double up your hours in a day. Maybe you think your stress is your workload, which includes numerous emails, late night strategy, and the pressure to advance your startup. However, if the source of your fatigue is not the workload itself? How about the fact that you are working hard on things that you don’t really care about? This difference is very important for young entrepreneurs who are dealing with the startup’s havoc and the knowledge of it can be a game changer for your work and welfare.
The path of an entrepreneur is tough from the very outset. You are handling product development, investor pitches, team management, and marketing all this along with creating a personal life. Working for long hours is easy to be seen as making progress, yet the hustle culture largely gets the young founders stuck in doing the same thing repeatedly without any significant outcomes. For instance, you may spend several weeks creating pitch decks with an idea of the investors you are presenting it to are most probably going to disagree with you in terms of values, or merely following the market trends without enthusiasm only to experience the feeling of being drained and unfed. The stress is not of the effort; it is that you are giving your time to things that do not match your basic idea of vision or purpose.
Just think about a young entrepreneur who decides to build a tech startup. Maybe you might be so passionate about creating something that really is helpful with some aspects of life like making the education available. However, instead of concentrating on product development or listening to the user's needs, you might be way too involved in activities such as chasing your social media clout or going to networking events that make you feel empty. These activities, although they may look productive, compromise your passion and distance you from your "why". Over a certain period, this lack of conformity will make you frustrated, exhausted, and feel that you are moving nowhere.
Single-minded prioritization is the help that will solve the problem. As a young entrepreneur, the two most precious things you have are time and energy. The very first thing to do is to clarify your mission, values, and the impact that you want to make what matters the most to you. Then, go through your daily tasks one by one: Are these tasks bringing you closer to your dream or are they just distractions? It is just as important to say no to the opportunities that do not match your aims as it is to say yes to the right ones.
For instance, in the case that your firm is with the sustainable fashion industry, do not go to the standard tech conference rather, focus on meeting with the suppliers or customers that are environmentally friendly and have the same values as you.
This alteration needs bravery. The pressure to "do it all" is very strong, particularly when social media is always showing and praising the hustle and the comparison. But if what you choose to do is working hard on what really gives you pleasure be it the creation of a product, the mentoring of your team, or community engagement you will undoubtedly feel empowered to do more, not exhausted. The feeling of stress will disappear when your works are in harmony with your calling.
at the end of the day, the cause that young entrepreneurs have to understand is that stressful situations are not only the consequences of hard work but also the signs that you are off track. Refocus on what matters to you, and you will find that the grind becomes a source of joy, not burnout.
Posted Using INLEO