Top Ways For Business Leaders To Manage Their Stress



The fact is, running a business is stressful. Whether you’re doing well, and your products are trending so fast that you always have to make new orders, or you’re facing financial troubles and need the assistance of an attorney like Aaron Kelly, you’re always working. And while it’s exciting to work so hard, and face the everyday challenges that go along with your dream of running your own business, you feel overwhelmed sometimes. You feel stressed. Maybe it’s affecting your personal relationships or your general health, but lately, it’s just been too much. That’s why you’re looking for ways to manage your stress.

Luckily, there are some great strategies you can use to manage your stress–and they don’t have to take too much time out of your schedule. This is why we’ve created this guide for managing stress for business leaders as busy as you.

1 Take a step back and slow down

The first thing you need to do, when you’re experiencing stress to a high degree, is to take a step away from everything. You aren’t going to be able to think clearly or face your stress head on if you’re in the office or checking your business’s social media accounts from home. Take a step back from your business, and allow yourself time to reflect. If you need to go somewhere far away from everything, like another city or to your favorite bookstore to lose yourself in a book, do it. It’s worth taking some time to do it: according to Psychology Today, “almost half of all Americans (45 percent) report lying awake at night and experiencing regular sleeplessness.”

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This will give you the opportunity to understand what’s stressing you out. By slowing down and separating yourself from your problems, you’ll subconsciously start to understand what’s bothering you. Whether it’s stress from financial troubles or feeling like you’re losing control of your business as it grows, you’ll gain some clarity. That’s the first step in addressing your problems. However, if you work so hard and you’re so stressed that this still doesn’t work, you might want to see a professional.

2 See a therapist

Sometimes, professional help is what we need. Especially if you’ve been experiencing stress-related problems such as panic attacks or going out drinking with colleagues and clients so often that you don’t even remember what you said to them, you have a problem that can’t simply be resolved by thinking about things on your own. It may feel embarrassing, especially if you’re the kind of person who’s always managed things on their own, but there’s no shame in seeing a therapist.

The marriage and family therapist profession is expected to grow 23 percent from 2016 to 2026, and in large part, this is because people are finally starting to understand the importance of therapy in their personal lives. The same goes for the stressors in your work life. If you feel like you don’t have the time or aren’t fully ready to meet someone in person, think about speaking with an online therapist using a service like TalkSpace.

3 Detox from social media

Another stressor that’s likely to be grating on you is social media. Especially if social media is a large part of how your business runs, it can be easy to check your business’s accounts for immediate gratification. But what this does is distract you from your real problems–and it has the potential of becoming an addiction. According to the BBC:

“Social media addiction has been a much-flouted term lately; maybe it’s because it’s January and users are looking to be more active and spend less time online, or maybe that’s because social media can have a negative impact on our mental well-being. But a growing body of research is seriously considering whether problematic and excessive social media usage could be pathological and, in turn, designated as a mental health disorder.”

Considering that 88 percent of businesses are using social media, it’s likely you have a mild social media addiction. If you think this might be the case, go on a social media detox.

4 Go to the gym

Finally, sometimes the easiest way of dealing with stress is simply going to the gym. It’ll get you pumped up, give you energy, get your mind off things, and reconnect you with who you are. It’s a perfect escape from stress and has the added benefit of being healthy. Considering that strokes account for 1 out of 20 deaths in the US, it’s smart to exercise even when you aren’t stressed.

These are some of the best ways to manage your stress, especially when you’re as busy as you are. What do you think is stressing you out most? How do you plan on addressing it?