You may start off your business with a lot of enthusiasm – a passion that led you to start your business. Over time though, that enthusiasm may decline, and you may experience entrepreneurial burnout. This article explores ways of regaining your passion for your startup, with practical approaches to become excited again.
Remembering why you got into your business
One of the first things to help you regain some of your excitement about your business is to try and remember why you got into your business. Sometimes there are any underlying reasons why you decided to set up your own firm – may be to give yourself some freedom, or to be your own boss, that can get forgotten about over time. It can be useful to remind yourself of some of the advantages associated with being an entrepreneur.
Cut yourself some slack
It is also important to cut yourself some slack. Remember, starting a firm is a marathon, and although daily progress will cumulate over time, having an unproductive day is a common occurrence.
There are lots of challenges associated with starting a new business. Setbacks and common, and you will inevitably make some missteps. You will look back and think ‘why did I do that’, or ‘I wish I had done something different there’. Recognizing your prior missteps is a good thing: now you won’t make the same mistake again. Treat the entire process as a process, and recognize that some days, weeks, and months will be more productive than others.
Change your outlook on your business
It is not uncommon for founders to envision their company as the next unicorn – a phenomenal success that is going to revolutionize your industry. While it can be great to have high ambitions, often success is much more modest. At some point, you may have to come to terms with the fact that your company may not be the game-changer that you once hoped for.
At some point, you may have to re-calibrate your expectations. Rather than seeing your business as your path to becoming the next billionaire, you may need to change your outlook to something more realistic.
A key thing to remember though is that there is nothing wrong with a small business. Success does not mean being big. Simply making a good living is still a success. You don’t even need to grow to lots of employees – a lot of entrepreneurs opt to start up a business alone – and going down this route often has a lot less stress involved of employing others.
Adjust your routine: Emphasize your lifestyle
Another way of regaining enthusiasm in your company is to reprioritize the balance between your company and your lifestyle. Maybe you started your business because of the entrepreneurial lifestyle – only to discover that over time the business started to consume all of your time, with your life taking a back burner.
Periodically reassessing the balance between your business and lifestyle is important. While you may enjoy putting full effort into your company early on, over time this balance may not work. Taking a step back and re-assessing this priority can be important in helping you regain your motivation for working on your business.
Final thoughts: Don’t wait until you have reached the point of burnout
A key danger is to see any attempt to take a pause as a weakness when starting a firm. While it is important to maintain a level of effort in your firm, taking proactive steps to avoid entrepreneurial burnout is not a weakness. You don’t need to wait to the point in which your motivation has dropped and you are no longer excited about your startup before taking steps to reduce the burnout. In fact, it may be a lot easier to take proactive steps early on to avoid burnout, than to regain energy once you are tired.
Remember, proactive steps to help you keep the passion in your firm is not only good for your own motivation, but it is important for the success of the firm.
Related Articles
