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Entrepreneurship & Mental Health: Time To Overcome The Stigma

While entrepreneurship can be amazingly rewarding, it’s never a smooth road. And the effort of building and running your own business can lead to severe consequences. The experts discovered that 34% of entrepreneurs report experiencing anxiety. And nearly half of them accept feeling stressed. Another study has revealed that mental health challenges affect more than 70% of entrepreneurs. These individuals were more likely than the general population to deal with depression, bipolar diagnosis, ADHD, and addiction. Though unfortunate, these statistics shouldn’t be shocking. After all, nearly 75% of venture-backed startups fail. And less than 5% live up to their primary projections. Of course, it’s not just the numbers that rise over you. The very nature of entrepreneurship usually means that you end up ignoring your health. Mealtimes become sporadic and of low quality. Exercise and sleep fall to the wayside. This is because your endocrine system takes a “fight or flight” approach to chronic stress, overriding anything the brain deems non-critical, such as digestion and sleep. For some, the pressures of entrepreneurship cause a loss of quality of life. Other times, it becomes more traumatic. Many entrepreneurs are rising to the challenge, sharing their conflicts in the open like never before. Experts agree that the best remedies and defenses for mental health challenges come from holding the “fight or flight” mode that can lead you to neglect yourself and your health. Potential Solutions Entrepreneurs are ready to work 80 hours to avoid working 40 hours a week. Especially when a business is in the early stages, many entrepreneurs struggle to find a work-life balance. It is vital to the mental health of an entrepreneur to make time for nonbusiness-related activities. Finding a balance between work and life and making time for yourself is of the utmost importance, even for founders in the early stages of their company who are working the “80 hours.” Historically, people with mental health problems have been considered “crazy” or “insane.” One way to help change the stigma is through education. People need to be aware of what mental health challenges are and what they look like. In addition, people should recognize that they aren’t alone. As mentioned, depression is the most prevalent mental illness globally and is particularly common among entrepreneurs. Lastly, if someone is dealing with mental illness, they should seek professional help and social support. Conclusion In conclusion, while the stigma surrounding mental health in business and entrepreneurship has started to change, there’s still a long way to go. Entrepreneurs are more likely than “typical employees” to face mental health challenges for various reasons, including the pressure to succeed, failure rate, and loneliness. Additionally, the reason an entrepreneur prefers to start their company can impact their ability to create a successful company and deal with mental health issues as they arise. For example, people driven by external factors such as status or money are more prone to exit their company than those caused by intrinsic factors. With the increasing popularity of entrepreneurship in culture, it is essential to discuss these issues and the challenges of starting a business. The future is up to us. It’s time we all moved forward and invested in mental health. Feel free to reach out to Stephen Hays , Founder of What If Ventures, focused on the mental health and addiction recovery industry. The goal of Stephen Hays is to share insights that founders and investors can leverage as they move into a new year of building, investing in, and supporting entrepreneurs who are solving one of the greatest problems of our time around mental health and emotional wellbeing.