10 ways you can stay happy & cope with business stress
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Middleton-in-Teesdale
I’ve been thinking a lot about mental health this week it seems to be something in business that isn’t talked about enough. I think the isolation and stress of being self employed can make it harder. Depression and more recently anxiety have been a problem for me for most of my life, though not nearly as much for the last decade. I’m lucky in that I’ve found lots of ways to improve my mental health and stop myself spiralling, but they’ll always be that black dog looming in the background ready to catch me off guard. For me having other business owners to talk to, taking regular exercise outside and spending time away from work are vital. This and regularly reminding myself of how much I have to feel grateful for and the progress I’ve made are key.
If you’re an independent shop owner, working 5 plus days per week, it’s often difficult to prioritise yourself and you can’t just have a mental health day. I’m hoping some of the tips below will give you some ideas on how to cope with stress in business and fit in some self care.
Exercise- it doesn’t have to be a lot but make sure you do something to get your heart beat up every day - even a power walk to the corner shop helps or 5 minutes of yoga in the morning
Get some sun - ok it’s not possible every day in the UK but whenever it is go outside and get a vitamin d boost
Put on some music & dance - as if no ones watching (or in my case the only time I dance is with my daughter which always results in lots of giggling!)
Go for a walk somewhere green - I take a daily detour on my walk to work through a park and have a chat to the local ducks!
Do something just for you - whether it’s shopping, reading a book, getting your nails done, getting a hair cut, having a bath.
Put your favourite song on loud - and sing at the top of your lungs. For me this works best when no one else is home or I’m driving somewhere alone!
Spend some time with animals- borrow a dog, talk to a cat, visit a wildlife park, feed some ducks. There’s something incredibly therapeutic about seeing happy animals.
Meet up with a friend - go for coffee, go to a gig or if you’re feeling lonely join a meet up group.
Go to a networking session - there’s so many business networks now you’re bound to find one that suits you and the support and camaraderie you get from other business owners is incredible.
Talk things through - whether things are really bad and you need to talk to a medical professional or the stress, to-do list and fear of the unknown is getting to you a business mentor could help you see the woods for the trees talking the problems through can be the thing you’ll benefit from most.
Do you have any other tips? I’d love to hear them!