No one has voluntarily signed up for it, but burnout is (unfortunately) an inevitable part of the entrepreneurial journey. Nevertheless, there are many ways to overcome it.
Don’t worry, though. You’re not doomed to a life of exhaustion and stress. The first step is in knowing what exactly triggers burnout. As they say, knowing your enemy is half the battle. Here are a few reasons entrepreneurs experience burnout:
Work takeover
Business is hard work. Right off the foundation phase, you would experience long hours of labor — drafting your business plan, revising it, finding your restaurant location, doing the legal and financial paperwork, and many more. Work will soon pour into your evenings, robbing you of sleep, or on weekends, leaving you with no time anymore with family and friends.
When your business has taken over every aspect of your life, you would soon find yourself worn out to the core. Not just physically, but mentally, emotionally, and socially. That’s why no matter how demanding your business is, always find time to take a break. Rest and go out of town every now and then. Don’t bail out on family dinner or your daughter’s ballet recital. Join happy hour with friends. Don’t let your work take over your life and be the one in control.
No milestones
It can be tiring doing all the hard work, and not seeing any results from it. There are two sides to this matter. One is you may just have too high of expectations that you don’t see mini victories. The other is you may indeed be in a slump in terms of growth.
The solution to the first one is to draw up SMART (Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant, and Timely) goals for each phase and aspect of the business. This way, you can track your progress and spot immediately what you’ve accomplished.
For the second one, this calls for a review of your strategies. Do an analysis of your business operations so you can see where your efforts are lacking. For entrepreneurs who chose to be franchisees, they’re in for some good perks because parent companies offer training programs in running businesses. They have industry experts to turn to for advice.
If you’re still on the stage of exploring opportunities, consider restaurant franchises for sale and you might just find it a little easier to hit milestones down the road.
Wrong passion
Passion is without question is one of the crucial ingredients for success in business, but not all passions can sustain an endeavor. Some, in fact, just push people into a downward spiral of insecurity, self-loathing, and ultimately, sheer exhaustion.
How does this happen? When an entrepreneur is only concerned about the material gains of the business — money, fame, and status. These rewards are most unpredictable in business. You’ll never know when they’ll come, and you’re never sure if they’ll come.
For these to be the primary goal of doing business would be putting yourself in a cycle of ceaseless frustration, which is a sure-fire way of falling into burnout quickly. What all these point to is the importance of having the right kind of passion. The right one is the one that gives you a sense of purpose, even without the material rewards.
Again, the first defense to entrepreneurial burnout is to know what triggers it. Beware of these culprits that could hurt your business.
