Self-care tips for mental strength (for business owners and creatives)

This is for small business owners, creatives, and really anyone who is looking to change how they go about their everyday life and would like to have some more mental strength as they do.

As you might guess, this is not going to be a list of indulgent fluffy self-care – this has more to do with mental and emotional wellbeing. This is important when you’re going against the grain, when you do something different from most people you know – you need to take care of these aspects of your life so that you can keep going.

1 - Avoid comparing yourself to others

We often start following people who are doing what we do or what we’re trying to do, to get inspired and gain some nuggets that might help us on our way.

But somewhere along the way we can start falling into the comparison trap, wondering why we’re not “there” yet, or how come this and this person is doing so well while we’re struggling.

But we all know that social media might not reflect the true reality of how things are. This person may also have been at this far longer than you, and you can’t expect the same of yourself. This person may also have done things to “make it there” that you wouldn’t want to do, like miss out on every and all social events with friends, or pulling lots of all-nighters on the side of a regular job.

And we also don’t know what kind of support or resources they have had, right?

One thing I find helps me is to be genuinely happy for that person – to think about how them having success means that I can have success, too. I also try to figure out what it is that they have that I want, and start thinking about how I could have my own version of that - and in what ways am I willing to work towards that.

2 – Get off autopilot

While you’re not “successful” yet, it’s easy to go into this try *everything* mode and see what sticks. But sometimes we continue doing certain tasks because some expert somewhere said it’s something everyone “should” do and continue doing those tasks by default – without checking in on whether or not they’re actually benefiting us.

So take time to reflect regularly, to figure out if how you’re spending your time makes sense for you and for what you want to get out of your time – and then make some intentional decisions (which includes making a plan for when you’ll reflect again next time.)

3 – Don't be afraid to ask for help

I always did great in school, and in general things came easy to me prior to jumping from a traditional job to business ownership. But having a business is a whooole other thing – there are suddenly things to do that require the expertise of 10 different people. And while you can spend a crap ton of time learning how to do all those things yourself, it saves a lot of time and headache to find some key people to get help from.

And when you find the right people, they can turn into a support system that you didn’t even realize you really crave.

4 - Know who to turn to

Especially if most of the people in your life aren’t creatives or business owners, they aren’t always able to look at things from a similar perspective – which means that their advice and worries are based on a different view point.

This goes for anyone who’s on a self-improvement journey really (which I think is unavoidable as a business owner) – but if you are surrounded by people who don’t think there is a point in trying to better yourself, that attitude can rub off.

Try to find and connect with people who are doing what you want to do, or who are doing similar things – so that you can talk to others who believe what you’re building is possible.

If you do have people in your life that support you, that nudge you along when you feel like giving up on something you care about, hold onto those people tightly and remember to do the same for them.

5 – Take yourself seriously

Ultimately, everyone is mostly focused on what they’re going through in their own life – so most people won’t be too invested in whatever it is that you’re up to.

Whether it’s about belief in what you’re doing, or about believing what your body and mind are telling you that you want or need – you deserve to take yourself seriously.

Self-care is about so much more than how we care for our bodies – it is just as important that we care for our minds, too.