In September, 2013, Inc. Magazine‘s Jessica Bruder discusses the issues that entrepreneurs face with regard to mental illness. They often suffer from depression, anxiety, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), or bipolar disorder. Entrepreneurs are often swept up in new ideas and bouts of creativity that are actually mania or can mirror the symptoms of mania or hypomania. When followed by doubt in their business or product, failure to see growth, failure to make certain incomes, or not achieving certain markers of success, there can be depressive feelings. If these phases cycle, it can mimic bipolar disorder, or be an expression of bipolar disorder. Anxiety is often found in the entrepreneur as he/she worries about product launch, deadlines, and if the business is “good enough” to be a hit. The tendency to jump form one part of the project to the next is often a marker for ADHD and adults with ADHD will gravitate toward work that allows them to function in time with their brain chemistry. Continue reading “Entrepreneurs face Anxiety, Fear”
Tag: entrepreneur
Entrepreneur Success
Entrepreneurs are faced with stressors that are uncommon among the rest of society. There is an ebb and flow of fear and excitement, worry about project failure and success, a feeling of being an impostor, anxiety over being in over your head, self-assuredness and self-doubt.
When explained to a 9 to 5 employee, these things make no sense as a pattern for every day living. People will wonder if you’re crazy for this emotional roller coaster – and so will you. It only makes sense that those who are up late and up early with ideas, who are perceiving the pressures of time and deadlines differently will be seen as different. You even see yourself as different.
Multitask Efficiently without Comparison
When I meet someone new, inevitably, they ask “What do you do for a living?” There’s always a moment of awkward silence where I figure out what to state first – usually whatever has the newest project happening or what I think will resonate with the listener. My friends always laugh in that pause because they know there’s a litany of answers coming. My husband says he has the same pause when people ask “What does your wife do? Is she in software, too?” My husband has a 9-5 job, just one, but is also co-owner of our board game business.
I answer, usually all in one breath, and they squint at me with one eyebrow raised skeptically and look at our mutual friend for confirmation, who always nods enthusiastically. Continue reading “Multitask Efficiently without Comparison”
Short-Term Therapy 