Hey friend,
As far as I’m concerned, creators are entrepreneurs!
One factor of any creative pursuit is that aiming for large goals can become stressful, fast.
I’ve gone through burnout and back to know from personal experience that it’s all about building up the basics.
We can’t sustain high performance over time - which should be the goal - unless we prioritise self-care regularly.
Let’s get into it.
Stress and entrepreneurship don’t have to go hand in hand.
Let’s tackle the 5 biggest causes of stress for entrepreneurs (so you can avoid them) 👇
When you’re starting a business, you might have to sacrifice some:
- Evenings 🌙
- Weekends 🏖️
- Spare time 🎮
- Time with family 👨👩👧
This is hard to do and can quickly become a source of stress.
👉 Solution: Getting clear on your WHY
Understand your deeper purpose to guide your decisions and bring fulfilment amidst challenges.
Revisit your goals regularly to stay aligned and motivated.
If your WHY is strong enough, the HOW becomes easy.
An inconsistent routine = CHAOS
An unpredictable schedule can destroy your productivity, causing stress as tasks pile up without structure.
👉 Solution: Build a healthy routine
Sketch out a weekly schedule, including work, breaks, and personal time.
Stick to it for consistency; routines boost productivity and bring a much-needed sense of stability.
Adjust it over time as you learn what works for you.
Stop glamourising the grind in 2024. 🚫
Persistent stress from overworking will eventually take a toll on your health, decision-making, and creativity.
👉 Solution: Protect your focus
If your work is taking more than 8 hours a day, you’re probably doing it wrong.
Make sure that you get stuff done by:
- Creating a dedicated workspace 🖥️
- Setting clear deadlines 🗓️
- Minimizing interruptions 🧘♀️
Entrepreneurs are known for their ability to work under pressure, but don’t set unrealistic standards for yourself. This will just lead to disappointment and stress.
Anticipating perfection every single day will cause frustration and self-doubt.
👉 Solution: Manage your expectations
Internalise The Rule of Thirds:
- 1/3 days will be great 🤩
- 1/3 days will be good 🙂
- 1/3 days will be crap 😮💨
So embrace setbacks as part of the journey.
Set realistic daily goals, celebrate small wins, and appreciate the overall progress.
Starting from scratch in every area of your business will be time-consuming and overwhelming.
Attempting to learn everything on your own can easily lead to burnout and inefficiency.
👉 Solution: Learn from your network
Tap into your network's expertise.
Identify people who have the skills you lack and seek their guidance (I’ve found from experience that people usually want to help)
After all, your network is your net worth.
Have a hack to beat stress? Help our community by replying to this email. I’ll feature the best tips in next week’s newsletter 🚀
Looking to make your work more enjoyable?
Ask yourself: “How could I make this more fun?”
This is the premise of Ali Abdaal’s new book Feel-Good Productivity. Back when we both lived in Cambridge, Ali would often work all day at a coffee shop inviting various people to co-work with him.
I’m taking a leaf out of Ali’s book (literally) by dabbling with co-working days and heading to a coffee shop on Fridays to focus on sales. I’ll let you know how it goes ☕️
🎙 Podcast - This Past Weekend w/ Theo Von: Tony Robbins
- I love watching coaching interactions where a coach creates a safe space for somebody to be vulnerable. This episode was so good.
📚️ Book - Feel-Good Productivity: How to Do More of What Matters to You by Ali Abdaal
- I’m thrilled for Ali as he’s poured so much into this. A must-read for anybody who wants to feel energised by their work and projects.
📸 Image - Cathryn Lavery’s desk set-up on X
- This photo made my jaw drop. Talk about goals…
❝
Hold people to a high standard but in a loving way.
Alan Stein Jr.
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