4 Ways Entrepreneurs and Self-employed Can Prevent Burnout

Ask any entrepreneur, freelancer, self-employed, creatives, and business owners about their highs and lows, and the words “burnout” or “stressed out” may inevitably surface.  

As a cancer survivor at 23 and a solopreneur who switches between a freelancer and creative since, I first experienced my major burnout at 29. It hit me again during the height of the pandemic last year. 

Burnout is a state when one is unable to cope with all kinds of demands of life at both the personal and professional levels. The candles are burning at both ends and sometimes there aren’t any more candles left to burn.  

There are different signs and symptoms of burnout (physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual), which I will explore in detail. In this article, I am sharing my experience and tips on managing the emotional aspects of burnout, to help you prevent burnout. 

At the heart of burnout is emotional exhaustion.  

As a business owner, I spent every waking and sleeping hour making decisions concerning cash flow and building the business. My emotions and mood were gradually taxed. I felt like I had no control over everything in my life. I also felt trapped, even if it may not be a reality.  

At times, I was also cynical and pessimistic about everything that came my way with my business. Instead of getting excited and grateful about a closed sale or a potential brand partnership, I was skeptical about it. My thoughts were constantly focusing on the possible negative events.  

After 2-years, I decided that I had to make a conscious effort to prevent burnout. I did this by closing my business for the sake of my health and it took me another 2 years to recover from the emotional burnout from this period.  

Fast forward to 2020 during the height of the pandemic, I noticed similar symptoms to emotional burnout again. I was disinterested in activities that usually sparked joy for me or engaged in any news or conversations. In addition, I found myself going on an extreme emotional roller-coaster ride that lasted for extended periods.  

With my newfound self-awareness of emotional exhaustion, I decided to take small steps to prevent burnout. I knew that I had to intervene in this process before I continued to spiral downhill. I have found these 4 practices to support and prevent my body and mind from sinking further into an emotional pit.  

Take Short Intermittent Cold Showers  

 The first, and most easiest step I took to prevent burnout was taking short 5-min cold showers throughout the day. It has helped with relaxing or calming my sympathetic nervous system, which is often on overdrive during emotional burnout. Since I was working from home, this was an easy thing to do. 

If I do not have the option to take cold showers throughout the day, having an ice-cold wet wipe or wet towel around my extremities such as the neck, ears, face, or behind the knees may also do the trick.  

In addition, after my cold shower, I practiced 4-7-8 breathing, a technique coined by Dr. Andrew Weil to further activate the parasympathetic nervous system to promote relaxation.  

Let Out A Hard Cry 

It is not easy to prevent burnout, it is bound to happen to all of us at some point. While some might prefer to ignore burnout, it might be better to face it head-on. Sometimes, our body needs to let it all out with a good cathartic cry.

Depending on cultural upbringing or beliefs, crying may not be openly accepted, or one may feel uncomfortable crying. Suppressing emotions then causes the pent-up of overwhelming emotions. Yet the more we suppress, the more we spiral deeper into emotional exhaustion.  
 

I learned to place as little judgment as I can and let myself cry it all out in cold showers or put on a movie as a way to let my tears roll. This may be repeated for days or a couple of weeks. I also reminded myself not to rush to “end” this crying phase as experience has taught me that doing so is counter-intuitive.  

Cut Out All Screens 

These days, it is a well-known fact that we are constantly exposed to screens from our TVs, work laptops, and digital devices. We may not realize how much our brain is stimulated from repeated exposure to them.  

I have practiced going cold turkey and cutting out all screens 30 to 45 minutes before bed. This includes putting my mobile phone on airplane mode and reading a physical book or writing my journal with a good old-fashioned pen. I may play some soft music from an mp3 player (without connecting to the internet) to help prepare my body to relax.  

This is by far the best practice that has tremendously helped me to prevent burnout and bounce back from my emotional exhaustion. Cutting out screens helped me to live in the moment and helped me boost my self-esteem. I was comparing myself less to others and started finding joy in the smaller things around me.

Cut Out Stimulants 

When I was emotionally exhausted, my adrenal glands, which are one of the major endocrine glands that are responsible for human’s fight-or-flight response, were overworked. Consuming stimulants such as coffee further drive the adrenal cortex to work even more, which is counter-intuitive to recover from an emotional burnout.  

Instead of coffee, I opted for herbal or floral teas. If I felt the occasional caffeine kick, I would take no more than 6oz (180ml) within 3 hours of waking up.  

Not every entrepreneur or self-employed may experience extreme emotional burnout yet it can happen to anyone at any stage of their lives. Sometimes emotional burnout may also express itself in subtle ways and it is never too late to prevent burnout with good management skills as I did, whether at 23, 29, or 37. It might be the best gift you can give yourself for this new year ahead.  

Check out our career guidance page for more useful lifestyle and career tips!   

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