5 Mistakes Entrepreneurs Make that Get Them Heading for Burnout

Are you wondering what are the 5 mistakes entrepreneurs make?

When I think about entrepreneurial life, I see all the mistakes and ups and downs I've gone through in my own journey. From the early days, feeling like I had so much time on my hands and planning out perfect routines. Spending hours prepping myself, frankly to only put in the equivalent of two hours of productivity in any given day.

That was my start up phase.

Back then, I thought I had it made. I was excited about what I was up to. It all seemed relatively easy.

And then my business took off.

The Beginning of Entrepreneurial Mistakes

Entrepreneurial life started to get very chaotic. There were those ups and downs, those moments where I couldn't fit anything else into my day.

And then… there were times where perhaps I had a little bit too much time on my hands.

There came a point where I was growing my business and I was just wearing way too many hats.

It's very easy to get busy focusing on growing our business and on everything that we need to accomplish during the day.

We run around trying to build up that ‘next level’ in our business, yet we can easily neglect building the foundation that's going to make us strong, robust, and able to thrive over the long term.

But before we talk about building that foundation, let’s look at the 5 mistakes entrepreneurs make (and yes that includes me too!) that puts them on the road to burnout.

1. Wearing too many hats in the business. 

We can find ourselves wearing too many hats for many years. As the founder and operator there’s no business card title that could capture all that you do - Chief of Everything would best sum it up! From generating new business to working with clients,  from invoicing and collecting money to marketing, admin and everything in between. You’re in the middle of everything and your business can’t run without you.

2. Juggling too many balls in the air.

You may feel like you never have much time for yourself. I used to juggle too many balls. Too many projects all at once, and many did not get finished.

Back then, I used to pride myself on the fact that I was juggling many balls until I started dropping some and then it didn’t feel so good.

3. Riding the emotional roller coaster.

Some days can feel like an emotional roller coaster - great one day and the next day, you want to throw the towel in. One minute your business is amazing, and 5 minutes later you lose a client or a team member and it sucks. You end up worrying where that extra income you already counted on will come from. Or, you end up picking up all the pieces that your team member used to do. So now you are back to juggling too many balls again…

4. Burning the candle at both ends.

The reality is that many entrepreneurs and business owners are burning the candle at both ends and sacrificing a lot in the process.

We work long days. We sleep less than we want to. We aren’t taking time off to recover in months, if not years!

And that brings us to the final, 5th mistake.

5. Treating your business like a marathon instead of a series of short sprints with breaks for recovery.

I often speak with business owners who are working minimum 60 hour weeks and haven’t taken a vacation in years. Without realising it they’ve entered a marathon that they never wanted to compete in and can’t see how to get off the track. They’re waiting for someday when it will all miraculously change and get better.

The reality is you must change your thinking first and start seeing yourself as the CEO who is a peak performer in your business.

This means taking care of your first.

If you own a thoroughbred racehorse, you wouldn't neglect it and give it the worst food possible and leave it in a dirty stable, would you?

Putting Yourself First

When you put yourself first you’ll quickly realize that your energy is key to growth!

This means you must think like an athlete that has to perform at top levels and build a solid foundation for yourself.

We often think in terms of quarterly or yearly goals and forget the fundamentals of a daily practice that lead to superior performance.

Having just watched Nadal beat Schwartzman in the US Open quarterfinals in 4 sets playing past midnight - this is a great example of peak performance at work!

Nadal immediately shared after this epic performance that he would be back on the courts practicing the following day. And then he went out to win the championship.

It’s all about creating a series of short sprints and focusing on our own recovery. And yes, the business growth happens with a lot less friction when we know where we are heading and when we actually have the energy to get there!

The most noteworthy advice any successful Entrepreneur will tell you, is get a mentor or coach. Skip the costly pitfalls of "doing it all yourself" and start growing your business quickly!

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