For most entrepreneurs and small business owners — from companies making dresses to website templates — stress is very much a part of life.
When stress becomes too much, you will have to look for the best ways to deal with it so that you and your employees can avoid burnout. As someone from top management, you have the power to minimize stress in an organization.
However, you must start by ensuring you can effectively deal with your own stress. When you demonstrate and model most effective stress management practices, you will inspire others in your organization to do the same.
In that regard, here are top ten stress management tips for entrepreneurs and business leaders.
1. Adopt a healthy lifestyle
Getting even 30 minutes of rigorous physical exercise at least thrice a week can help you reduce the level of your stress.
Try to incorporate some exercises into your daily routine more regularly, either before or after work, or during a break.
Regular physical exercise will help boost the quality of your sleep.
Good eating habits, such as including more vegetables and fruits in your daily diet, can also provide you with more energy and help you deal with stress better.
2. Manage your time properly
Sometimes, you may feel overwhelmed by your seemingly endless to-do list; this can definitely be a big cause of stress. In this case, accept that you can’t do everything at once.
The answer is time management. Prioritize your tasks; create a list of everything you need to do and start with the most important ones. If possible, you can delegate those tasks to your employees.
Remember also to have some buffer time to handle unexpected tasks. Include time for your own well-being and relaxation.
3. Take systematic breaks
Apart from indulging in physical activities, going outside or taking a brief walk when you feel stressed can also help reduce the level of your stress.
Taking short breaks can give a very different perspective on your stressful situation and provide some relief.
4. Talk to someone
Talking to someone close to you about how you feel can help reduce stress.
Talking can help by either releasing some of the buildup tension or by distracting you from stressful thoughts.
Excessive stress can easily impair your judgment and even prevent you from making the right leadership decisions.
Discussing things with your work colleague, friends, or a trained professional can greatly help you find the best solution to your situation and put your problem into perspective.
5. Avoid alcohol, nicotine, and caffeine
Avoid consuming (or at least reduce) nicotine and drinks containing alcohol and caffeine. Nicotine and caffeine are stimulants that increase the level of stress instead of reducing it.
When consumed in large quantities, alcohol is a depressant, but acts as a stimulant when taken in smaller quantities. This means that alcohol can’t help to alleviate stress.
If possible, swap alcoholic and caffeinated drinks for diluted natural fruit juices, herbal teas, or water. Keeping yourself well hydrated is the best way to enable your body to cope well with stress.
6. Express your feelings
If you can’t talk about your feelings with someone else, you can do so in other ways.
You can, for instance, write them in a journal, or write a letter or poem that you can hide somewhere.
The important thing is to find an outlet where you can vent.
7. Get enough sleep
Stress can be caused by lack of sleep. Unfortunately, though, stress can interrupt your sleep, as your thoughts keep whirling through your head, stopping you from getting relaxed enough to fall asleep.
When this happens, don’t take pills. Relying on medication won’t help in managing your stress; instead try to maximize your relaxation before going to sleep. Turn off your phone or put it in silent mode so you won’t be disturbed.
8. Learn to say “No”
When it comes to stress management, learning to say “No” to certain things can help a lot. For instance, one of the most common causes of stress is having a lot of work to do and little time to accomplish them.
It’s therefore important to decline taking on any additional responsibility or less important requests if you feel overburdened. This will help you minimize your level of stress and may help you develop more self-confidence in leadership.
9. Get the financial situation of your business under control
For entrepreneurs, cash flow is a great source of anxiety.
It’s necessary to find ways to monitor your expenses and revenues. It’s also good to find ways to boost productivity and ultimately the financial health of your business.
10. Maintain a positive attitude
Leaders usually think of a stressful situation as one of the challenges to their creative thinking. Always be confident that everything will be done properly, whether it’s a shipping business or one that makes website templates.
Indeed, as an entrepreneur and a small business owner, by taking all these stress management tips into proper consideration, you can greatly reduce the level of your stress.
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Originally published at www.bookmark.com on July 12, 2016.
