Tips for entrepreneurs experiencing post-holiday anxiety

When experiencing the post-holiday lull in business, think about it as a time to re-energize and reinvest in yourself.Getty Images
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Question: I’m a small-business owner coming off a hectic holiday period when business was great, almost too busy to handle! But now, I’m anxious and filled with dread about the slow months to come. How can I better cope with this ‘feast-or-famine’ life?
We asked Sarah Burrows, assistant professor of entrepreneurship at Smith School of Business at Queen’s University, to tackle this one:
The holiday season is non-stop for many entrepreneurs. Then you’re hit with January, and you experience this lull and you’re not sure what to do with that time. You may experience a decrease in revenue and that is certainly going to exacerbate your stress. But it’s very important to leverage the lull of a post-holiday season to re-energize and refocus and really take care of yourself.
Our society’s obsession with ‘hustle culture’ makes it hard to slow down. Oftentimes when I speak to entrepreneurs, they’ll say, ‘I only need four hours of sleep to function.’ Or, ‘I just need to push a bit longer.’ This is not sustainable. At some point there will be a breaking point and then you won’t be there for your business.
In 2023, the Business Development Bank of Canada issued a report showing that approximately 45 per cent of entrepreneurs within Canada struggle with their mental health. The two primary reasons that contributed to this was rising costs and a struggle to balance work and home life. That [stress] can come out as not being able to sleep, feelings of anxiety, feelings of depression, addiction and alcohol abuse.
So, leverage this post-holiday lull as time for yourself to reinvest and re-energize. Engage in the recovery of your personal resources with the three Rs:
1. Rest. It’s well-documented that we need to detach from work. Take time to connect with others, spend time with friends and family and do the things that you love doing. The other thing I’m a big proponent of is spending time in nature, which has positive effects on our well-being.
2. Reappraise. When it comes to stressors, take what is known as a growth mindset. Reappraise stressors as challenges, something to be overcome. Don’t fall into the hustle trap. Recognize the need to recharge your batteries.
3. Develop a routine. This is about making time for your personal life as well as your business life. You’ve just exited the holiday season where routines probably went out the window. Now, schedule rest and reappraisal into your day or week. Schedule when you’re going to take a physical activity break, a mental health break or spend time with family, and respect that time the way you would a meeting with a client or a promise to a customer. If it’s not [scheduled], it’s easy to say, ‘I’ll do it tomorrow.’
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