Combating Burnout. Founders' Experience.
I was recently at New York Tech Week, and one of the panels I attended was about working with burnout from founders, coaches, and doctors.
Here are some lines that I found particularly interesting:
Work-life balance is a problem.
— I don’t see work and life as opposing forces. My life’s work is to live in accordance with my purpose, and my work is a manifestation of my mission: to help others increase their resources.
How did you first realise you were burned out, and what steps did you take to deal with it?
— After a few days off last December, I entered 2024 energized. By January 9th, I was lying on the floor with a headache and couldn’t think clearly. Thanks to the rest, I was able to feel the difference between rest and overwork. Working with a coach, I realized that I was not delegating enough authority to our leaders to make decisions without me. As a result, I was exhausted from being involved in almost every decision, meeting, and channel at Slack.
The most significant realization was that I could foster a culture that embraces failure, enabling the team to progress swiftly and surpass their goals without my intervention. Or I could become a block to every decision, and maybe the team only achieved 60%. I was managing everything, and it took identifying the problem, having conversations with leaders, and then carefully creating a culture of radical accountability and determining which decisions I should be involved in and which I shouldn't. It's an ongoing process that requires me to give up perfectionism and control to save myself from burnout and allow the team to move FAST.
How do I combine results and enjoyment?
- I'm building a business for the greatest possible outcome for myself, the team, and investors. There are no guarantees, but I have to choose this path every day, regardless of the potential huge or zero outcome. I don't want to squander these years. If I live my purpose every day, then I am on track and that is what I find successful and fulfilling. So I choose to approach life by direction rather than by destination.
I always ask myself, “Is this the right path, do I want to continue on this path?” It’s a daily check-in: “Would I rather be doing something different today?” I continue to actively choose my path every day. The destination is not a given. It’s a daily journey that I get to enjoy.
How do you prioritise solving short-term problems and creating long-term strategy, creating space to brainstorm and vision when you have so many urgent tasks?
1. I need headspace. Time without incoming data. I won’t have the energy to create and have a long-term vision if I’m bogged down in tasks or booked in on endless calls and overflowing inboxes. I only had that headspace when I hired assistants and then delegated to my leadership team so they could move fast and make mistakes without me. This structure was critical to creating the space.
2. Next, I added creativity. Make time to read a book, listen to a podcast, meet with a coach or mentor, and brainstorm with a team member. The next big idea may not come from that meeting, but the combination of having the space for creativity and the freewheeling brainstorming creates the conditions for concepts to emerge.
How do you prioritise opportunities to say yes or no, and how has that changed for you over time?
In the early years, networking and making as many potential connections as possible was a top priority. At Techstars, I was given a good framework for founder priorities: fundraising, hiring, sales and product roadmap, vision setting along with being the face of the company, PR events. I aim to dedicate 90% of my time to these tasks. The other 10% is admin and other crap that just needs to be dealt with. Saying no is a practice. If it feels like I owe something to the outside company, it’s more of a no. I am committed to making time for my team. This has helped me stop feeling guilty about saying no to others and not having meetings I don’t have time for. My team deserves my time more than anything else. I replace meetups with asynchronous communication, sharing resources including my podcast interviews, posts, articles, or intros.
Share tactics to keep moving forward and avoid burnout.
Focus on one thing at a time; multitasking is a myth.
Set aside time to check your emails and messages to avoid constant distractions.
Practice mini-breaks throughout the day to unwind, such as mini-meditations or breathing exercises while showering, eating, or taking a walk.
Have short periods of incoming data-free time, such as no phone or podcast playing in the background.
Choose a day for deep work (like Fridays).
Avoid switching off text during the day.
Don't schedule evening events two nights in a row.
Originally published on Teletype