4 Ways to Reduce the Stress of Owning a Small Business

Owning a small business is one of the best things that you can do with your life. Instead of working your fingers to the bone to pad someone else’s bottom line, running a small business means that you’re offering a product or service that’s truly your own. 

You’re the one making the decisions, and you’re the one making your customers happy. When times are good, you’re the one reaping the benefits. There’s also a chance that your small business will one day become a large business.

On the other hand, owning a small business is also a major stressor. When you work for someone else, your paycheck is more or less secure. As the owner of a new and unestablished business, though, there will be days when you’ll honestly have no idea when your next payday will come. 

Whether you’re riding high or trying to figure out how to dig yourself out of a hole, the reality of small business ownership is that it’s never really going to become less stressful. However, there are a few ways you can reduce the stress of small business ownership.

Always Know What You’re Doing

One of the biggest stressors of small business ownership is the paralysis of not knowing what you should be doing right now. You can end up sitting around for hours, unable to devote yourself fully to any one task because you’re not sure how best to spend your time. 

Uncertainty breeds stress. You don’t want to feel confused and uncertain – you want to feel confident. For that to happen, you need to know what you’re doing.

If you have difficulty figuring out what you should be doing at any given moment, start maintaining a list of the tasks you need to complete. If things aren’t going as well for your business as you’d like, don’t sit around worrying about it – and don’t fill your list with broad goals that are difficult to define. Break those broad goals down into actionable tasks that you know how to complete. 

Every task should advance your business toward a broader goal, even if it’s only in a small way. Whenever you’re not sure what you should be doing, refer to the list.

Find a Supplement That Can Help You Relax

If you have trouble managing the stress of small business ownership, you may find it helpful to make a few lifestyle changes. Avoiding nicotine use can help you sleep better at night, for instance. You may also find that you can improve your sleep quality if you limit yourself to just one or two caffeinated beverages in the morning. Don’t rely on alcohol to help yourself wind down every day because that can cause dependency. 

You may find it helpful, though, to add a new supplement to your regimen. Some supplements can reduce stress by helping you relax, and other supplements may increase your confidence by helping to support a high level of mental acuity. 

Here are a few supplements that may be helpful for stress management.

• Valerian root
• Passionflower
• Gingko biloba
• Panax ginseng
• Kava root
• CBD
• Delta-8 THC

Many people have heard about CBD’s stress-relieving properties. It effectively reduces anxiety, promoting a calm and stable mental state. If you want to take your relaxation up a notch though, try Delta-8 THC. 

When you come home from a long day of work, nothing helps you unwind and destress like Delta-8 THC. It’s about two-thirds as intoxicating as Delta-9 THC, the THC that produces marijuana’s psychoactive effects, making it perfect for people who want a mellower, more relaxed high. 

Because the Farm Bill of 2018 legalized all hemp-derived products with less than 0.3% Delta-9 THC, Delta-8 THC is federally legal. 

Make the Most of Your Downtime

Being fully present in each moment is one of the best ways to mitigate the stress of small business ownership. The advice that we provided above – maintaining a list of actionable tasks that you need to complete – will help you use your time more effectively when you’re working because it’ll help to eliminate unproductive time spent wondering what you should be doing. 

Keeping your stress levels low, however, isn’t just about doing the right things and being present in the moment at work – it’s also about having work-life balance.  It’s sometimes hard when you’re the one in charge, but you should try to avoid bringing your work home with you. 

Promise yourself that you’ll set aside at least one long block of time each weekend, using that time to fully engage with your loved ones. Choose an activity that requires active use of your mind or body – whether it’s playing a board game, going out for a hike or something else. 

Don’t wait for a stress-free time to start improving your work-life balance. As a small business owner, you’re probably going to experience at least a little stress every day – no matter how well things are going. If you make the most of your downtime, prioritizing your passions and relaxation, you’ll do a much better job of handling that stress.

Find Ways to Delegate Tasks to Others

As a business owner, you have very specific ideas about what needs to be done and how to do it. If your business is doing well, it’s doing well because you’re the one providing the direction – and if things aren’t going as well as they should, you’re the one who’s going to turn things around. 

There’s a reason, though, why the general usually stays out of the trenches. It’s hard to see the big picture and make effective decisions when you’re also the one carrying out every task. 

Learning how to delegate is one of the biggest and most important steps that you can take as a small business owner. When your business first began, you probably did everything yourself – and it’s hard to let go when it would be virtually impossible for another person to know exactly what’s in your head and to complete every task exactly as you would. If your entire business grinds to a halt while you’re working on something, though, that’s going to limit your ability to grow. 

Find ways to delegate some of your small tasks to others while you focus your energy on the most important things. If you have employees, identify good people who are ready to take on greater responsibilities. Treat them right, because top talent is hard to find. 

If you haven’t reached the point where you’re ready to take on employees, explore the world of outsourcing instead. Thanks to the power of the Internet, it’s possible to find a freelancer to handle almost any task you can imagine. 

It’s impossible to avoid stress if you’re a small business owner. However, with these tips and practices you can reduce your stress so you can focus more on what’s important: making your business successful.