Stress Management Tips for Small Business Owners

If 2020 had an official mascot, it would look like an incredibly stressed business owner with a face mask and a bottle of disinfectant. It’s no lie that 2020 has caught us all off guard. We thought a new decade, new beginning; we just didn’t expect it to be this kind of new beginning. Our lives, our workplaces, our businesses have all changed and changed again, causing more stress than we’ve been accustomed to. For small business owners, that stress skyrocketed once stay-at-home orders were discussed and probably hasn’t gone away since.

We all know that stress isn’t good for our health, our mental well-being, and really anyone else in our lives, but how do we alleviate even a little bit of stress during an incredibly stressful time in our lives? In this blog post, we are sharing some tips and tricks small business owners can use to help reduce and manage their stress.

Make Sleep a Priority

When we are suffering from stress, our sleep tends to be one of the top things that get cut because clearly sleeping less means more time to get the stressful tasks handled. And while this seems to make sense in our heads, our bodies perceive it much differently. Without proper sleep, we will feel sluggish and ultimately will be less productive, causing us to stress even more. So how do you make sleep a priority?

Set and Stick to a Morning and Night Routine

Set a regular sleep schedule with a sleep and wake time and stick to it. Once you get used to your routine, you’ll fall asleep easily and get the quality sleep your body needs to refresh each day.

Avoid Caffeine at Night

You may feel like you need more caffeine to make it through the day, but that is your sluggish brain telling you that. To set yourself up for the best quality sleep you can, skip the caffeine in the evening. You’ll be surprised how much better you sleep.

Avoid Screen Time Before Bed

We all love lying in bed looking at our phone, but that little device can actually be contributing to your poor sleep. The blue light on the screen mimics the appearance of the sun, making it harder to fall into a restful sleep. Prevent this by turning off the screens an hour before bed.

Focus on the Wins

Especially with how crazy 2020 has been, it is really easy to focus on what is going wrong, not only with your business but with your personal life as well. When you spend your time worrying about being behind schedule, how you are going to grow your business when things feel bleak, or more, it will only increase the amount of stress you are under.

We know that those things are important, and you can’t just forget about them, but there is a way to add balance back into the equation. Remind yourself of all of the things that are going right. Take it a step further and write the wins down and hang them in a place you regularly look at. When you see all of the things going well, the things that worry you won’t feel as stressful, and you will feel motivated to conquer the problem areas.

Schedule Me-Time

We all have the tendency to put others ahead of ourselves. We go the extra mile to help someone even if we are completely out of energy. We give up sleep so that we can spend more time in the office to get things done. We sacrifice that night at home binging Netflix that we really wanted in order to go out and visit some friends. All of these things will eventually catch up. One of the best ways to prevent the burnout that often accompanies doing too much is to schedule time for self-care. It doesn’t require several hours a day; even a short meditation session can have major benefits.

The key to this one is to schedule it and stick with it. No matter how many times we tell ourselves we swear that we will do it when we get home later, something gets in the way. When you have it on your schedule with a reminder, you are more likely to actually do it than to just play it by ear.

Stop the Overactive Mind

Even though you likely started your business because you wanted a better work/life balance, you have to ask yourself if you are actually achieving those goals. When you leave work, are you actually present, or are you spending your time away from the office thinking about your next business move?

We get it. As a small business ourselves, we know how easy it is to let your business thoughts take over your day. Combat this intrusion by purging your brain. When your thoughts keep turning towards work, grab a piece of paper, and write down everything. Once you have all of your thoughts in a safe place, your brain will feel like it can relax and ward off some of that stress that keeps creeping in even at home.

Ask for Help

We always try to do everything on our own, but all that does is increase the amount of stress we put ourselves through. We convince ourselves that we have to do it all on our own and that no one can do as good of a job as we can. It’s time to let go of that thought process and start embracing the fact that we are not meant to do it all by ourselves.

When you start to feel like you can’t get your head above water or your family feels like they haven’t seen you in a week, you more than likely have too much on your plate. Hiring an executive assistant, virtual assistant, or personal assistant can benefit your work and personal life. These people are trained to make your life easier by helping you take care of the tasks and projects you don’t have time for. So don’t be afraid to ask, you’ll thank yourself later.

LifeSquire is your assistant resource and can help you find the perfect assistant for you. For more information about our services, click here.

Take a Break

We saved this one for last because when you are feeling extremely stressed, the last thing you are probably thinking about is taking a break, but it will do you more good than harm. There have been numerous studies that have shown that employees who use their vacation time are more productive and happy when they return to work; this also applies to business owners.

At first, you may want to argue that your business is your livelihood and that you have to dedicate your life to it, and while we understand, it can also be said that when you are so worn out and burned out, you are actually doing your business a disservice. It’s important to recharge your batteries, not only for productivity but also for clarity in decision making. So take a few days off to relax, recharge, or go on a fun vacation.