An entrepreneur’s journey is not for the faint-hearted, and the stresses could push you to – or beyond – your limits. So the expert business coach and mental fitness leader Simac Konkader has some helpful tips to gain strength from the inevitable challenges of being a founder.
Being a business leader can be extremely rewarding, but equally, those who want to make it to the top are likely to put themselves in some incredibly stressful situations. In fact, the workplace is notorious for stress, and there are plenty of stats that prove it. The 2022 Workplace Health Report, for example, found that most workers (67%) are experiencing moderate-to-high levels of stress at work, with a further 58% experiencing symptoms of anxiety and 52% admitting to experiencing depression as a result of work.
Of course, ambition is a positive and encourageable trait, but you don’t want your business prospects to leave you with deteriorating and debilitating mental health – nothing is worth paying this price and you don’t have to: Equipped with the right knowledge, it’s very possible to cope with the stresses that come with being a successful entrepreneur.
How to go from a negative state to a positive state
‘Positive manifestation’ has become quite a popular phrase of late, used by absolutely everyone – from lifestyle bloggers to meditation guides. While there’s seemingly nothing wrong with willing yourself to be positive, it’s important to remember those negative feelings such as disappointment, sadness and anxiety are natural and healthy. What’s not going to be healthy is glossing over them with unreasonably optimistic thinking or equally, dwelling on those negative feelings.
If you do find that the stress of work is eating you up, making it almost impossible to dig your way out of a negative headspace, acknowledging the thoughts and feelings that are weighing you down is a good start. Don’t be too hard on yourself for feeling demotivated or overly manifest with affirmations like ‘I am ready to take on the world.’ This is just not going to help you if you don’t truly believe in what you’re saying – but being kind and reasonable will. Forgive yourself for feeling demotivated. This could involve telling yourself ‘it’s okay that I’m feeling demotivated, I am making a conscious effort to change this.’ Thoughts like this will help to redirect the energy you’d spend beating yourself up into effectively reframing your thinking. In times like these, it’s also good to revisualise the path you need to be on and break down your projects into manageable tasks, refocusing and tackling your to-do list instead.
What is self-sabotage and how to avoid it
Self-sabotage occurs when people either knowingly or unknowingly hinder their own success. Self-sabotage might seem unfathomable to the rational business person, but it happens more often than you think and occasionally without you even knowing. Have you ever found yourself working toward an important goal only to fail at the last minute after making a silly mistake? If so, you might well be self-sabotaging.
An extreme example of a self-sabotage situation is if you had a big meeting pitching for funding for the business. You’d been preparing for this moment for weeks, and were very excited but also nervous to present and doubtful you would be able to succeed. Instead of remaining positive, you start to feel unworthy and make an impulsive decision to stay out late the night before, causing you to miss the meeting altogether.
It might take you by surprise, but it’s not unusual for business leaders to undermine their goals, in fact, it’s a common trait of perfectionists or those finding themselves in high-pressure situations. But as we’ve seen, doing so can have a direct impact on success. My advice is to avoid striving for perfection – it’s futile to strive for something that is intangible – and react to high-pressure situations by making small yet effective decisions that will put the brakes on a sabotaging mind.
Positive Intelligence
Positive intelligence is one of the best ways to measure your mental fitness, so for obvious reasons, it’s good to be aware of your positive quotient. As we have seen, just as your mind can be your protector and friend, reminding you to set an extra early alarm to prepare for tomorrow’s meeting, it can also act as your saboteur, snoozing the very same alarm. Those with low positive intelligence are far more likely to self-sabotage, whereas the higher your positive intelligence, the more control you’ll have over your mind.
Luckily improving your ‘positive quotient’ is not entirely dissimilar from going to the gym – it just takes a bit of brain training and rewiring. When your saboteur starts chattering away in your head – command your mind to stop and direct your attention to one of your five senses, such as by humming a song or applying pressure onto a nearby object. It’s also a good idea to Identify and label your saboteurs when they make themselves known, instead of accepting or glossing over them. Recognising that this is your saboteur’s voice instead of your own will really diminish the power of these thoughts and feelings, making room for your positive quotient.
When your mind is on your side you will be unstoppable – both in life and in business. But equally, your mind acting against you has the power to seriously harm these. Boosting your mental fitness is all about understanding your mind and identifying your thoughts. Just taking a minute to do this and start a new positive habit will go a long way in bolstering your mental health and setting you up for success. Even though, it may feel like you don’t have a spare minute in the day to do this – making time to take a breather and do these simple exercises will save you a lot of time in the long term.
