As entrepreneurs, chasing big dreams and setting ambitious goals runs through our veins.
Many of us can remember doing that ever since we were kids, possibly influenced by demanding parents or by beliefs we took for granted. We expect a lot from ourselves, and then we get caught in an endless loop of hard work and hustle that can often lead to burnout and desperation when things don’t go as planned.
But as discussions around mental health and quality of life are becoming more prevalent, we are starting to understand that our happiness should come first. Of course, it is easier said than done.
Why are entrepreneurs 30% more likely to experience depression, and what can we do to protect our mental health while we face the ups and downs of entrepreneurship?
Advertisement
Is your business life FUN – or stressful?
Our Strategies Subscription will help you easily beat the competition, enhance your profits and have more FUN.
Get access to three strategies at no charge by clicking here or on the image below.
At the heart of the “entrepreneurship struggle” is what I call the “hustle vs. detach dilemma”.
On one side, we have “hustle culture”. We deeply believe that if we want to be successful, we have to work extremely hard. In fact, we have to work harder than anyone else; we have to put our goals above anything and anyone; we have to be obsessed with our mission; and, of course, quitting is NEVER an option. We have heard this from all the most successful people out there, and it goes even deeper. We have heard it from our parents, our teachers, and every adult we ever trusted. Even if this has been proven to lead to burnout and poor mental health, we just can’t help it. We devote our lives to our goals, and if we fail, there’s nothing left but despair. And then we blame ourselves, and we start again, convinced that we have to work even harder.
These beliefs are so deeply ingrained in our minds that if we try to listen to all the narratives around balance and mindfulness, we end up feeling guilty.
You Found It!
Our valued readers get a no-charge consultation on Monetizing Your Invention from Inventor of the Bendy Butler, Serena Fadlun. Click here or on Serena’s pic at the right for details.
I’m willing to bet every entrepreneur out there knows the feeling of trying to unplug and relax, only to be nagged by the uncomfortable thought that we are not doing enough.
And here is where “detachment” comes in.
Detachment is a Buddhist principle that suggests that if we cling too strongly to anything, we’re bound to be unhappy. Our fulfillment becomes dependent on external things and circumstances, and we convince ourselves that without the object of our desire, we would be miserable.
Instead, detachment makes us free. If we get what we want, that’s great. But if we don’t, we’ll still be happy.
But how can we apply this if we’re scared that if we let go of our obsession even a little bit, we’ll lose it completely? How do we let go of that scrappy attitude that we’re so sure is the only path to success? Sometimes we are afraid of being unafraid because we’re convinced that the fear of being left behind is what propels us forward.
I believe the answer to this lies in what I call “focused detachment”.
We can, and we should, love and believe in our mission. We should follow our goals from a place of joy, because those big dreams are our purpose. They are part of us. They make us excited about getting up in the morning. They make us feel complete, meaningful, and alive.
Advertisement
Is your business life FUN – or stressful?
Our Strategies Subscription will help you easily beat the competition, enhance your profits and have more FUN.
Get access to three strategies at no charge by clicking here or on the image below.
We should dedicate our time to our purpose, because that’s what we crave. We should find our flow, the place where, as Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi puts it, “people are so involved in an activity that nothing else seems to matter”.
And we should commit to this work. We should focus on it (while also prioritizing our mental health and relationships, of course), we should care, and we should give it our all.
But then, we need to detach from the outcome. We have to learn that regardless of what happens, we will still be ourselves, and we will still be OK. We’ll have other goals, we’ll learn new lessons, and all the failures will lead to bigger dreams.
As the Baghavad Gita teaches, we have to fully devote ourselves to our purpose and then let go of the fruits of our labor.
Listen to an audio version of this article below.
Voiced by the Author, Serena Fadlun.
Serena is an inventor, game designer and entrepreneur. She completed a BHSc in Psychology in Auckland, New Zealand and then returned to her home country (Italy) and worked as a translator for a few years.
In 2020 she became a mother and decided to follow her dream of becoming an inventor. After successfully licensing in the toy and game industry, she decided to bring one of her ideas to market on her own; The Bendy Butler. It will be available in June 2023.
Contact Information
Header Image Credit: Heiner. Find it here.
