The chat has come to an end
Today’s chat on building your resilience has come to an end. Thank you to everyone who asked questions, who was on the panel or simply followed along. We hope the blog summaries below are useful.
If you would like to get in touch with the Guardian Small Business Network, please email smallbusinessnetwork@theguardian.com.
Samantha Kingston from Virtual Umbrella, shares her own experience of looking after your mental health as an entrepreneur:
I recently learnt that burnt out is very real. After nearly two & half years of putting everything into my company (working 24/7 - 7 days a week), I ended up in the hospital because I had worked myself into the ground. This had a huge impact on the way I looked after myself, especially my mental health.
All my passion had gone into one thing, my health was not always a part of that. I have learnt from this but still working to understand how to change my work-life balance for me. I am very honest and happy to share this with others as it’s not always talked about.
This recent blog from an entrepreneur might offer some useful further reading:
How to manage the stress of a starting a business
Our panel offer their advice to this reader:
James Routledge, founder, Sanctus:
Create space for yourself to explore your challenges. That space could be simply the gym in the morning. It could be meditation. It could be mindfulness. It could be coaching or therapy. It could just be writing. It could be all of them! Explore, be curious and find what works for you. Some space to reflect is so important I think.
Samantha Kingston, co-founder, Virtual Umbrella:
Set goals that are achievable. It’s very easy to want to achieve everything in one day. Set tasks that you know you can achieve.
Emily Forbes, founder, Seenit:
From a working perspective, if applicable, maybe don’t work from home but find a separate place which is your ‘work place’. It helped me to have work and chill separate. I worked form a co-working space in the early days and it was just awesome to be able to make a coffee next to someone who I then found out has just gone through something i’m about to dive into. You pick up so much without realising.
Updated
Strategies for building resilience
Our panel share some of their tried-and-tested tips:
Anis Qizilbash, motivational speaker, founder, Mindful Sales Training:
Introducing a daily mindfulness exercise – like listening to your breathing for five minutes – can help. It doesn’t stop bad things from happening. But it changes the way you react to things, which means you can make better decisions.
Emily Forbes, founder, Seenit:
I seriously vouch for building support groups, finding your ‘community’ or ‘tribe’, people you respect, trust and admire [who you are] able to be frank and open with and who also will be relatable in their feedback. For example i’m part of a founder chat network and some of the discussions there have impacted the way i’ve chosen to build Seenit. They also help to build confidence in your decision making, which I think is a huge part of growing resilience.
Updated
Are there any downsides to resilience?
The panel are tackling this question:
Are there any downsides to resilience?
Can there be a fine line between being resilient and not facing up to some home truths?
Richard Reid, psychotherapist, coach and founder of Pinnacle Therapy, says:
I totally agree that it is about balance. For me, it’s probably more about realism rather than unbridled positivity. [Most of us] inherently tend to place to veer towards the negative though, as it keeps us safe [...] Hence working towards an objective review of both sides and viewing setbacks as feedback as opposed to absolute failure (“all-or-nothing” mentality) is key.
Gail Kinman, occupational health psychologist, the University of Bedfordshire and the British Psychological Society, adds:
Mindfulness techniques can be useful in helping people reflect on their thoughts and feelings. Also, insight into your signature strengths and how they can be used creatively to tackle challenges. Some well validated tools are available here
Updated
A recent piece by Richard Reid, one of today’s panellists, offers some helpful points for discussion on learning to better handle failure and criticism.
The chat has started
Welcome to today’s live chat on the how to build your resilience. In the next hour, our panel will be discussing the strategies for growing resilience, how to cope in times of adversity and where to go for support.
Join us as we discuss how entrepreneurs and business owners can deal with setbacks, both personal and professional, and how to keep motivated. Please do put your questions to the panel in the comment space below.
How to join in the discussion
Make sure you are a registered user of the Guardian (if not, it’s quick to register) and join us in the comments section below on 31 May.
What we'll be discussing
Do you easily adapt to stressful situations? Are you quick to recover from failure? The more confidently, and honestly, you can answer yes to these questions, the more likely you are to be resilient.
It’s a trait valuable to business owners, whose careers can be rife with knock backs. Indeed, four in 10 businesses cease trading in their first five years, according to an analysis of Office for National Statistics data by Ormsby Street.
Whether you’ve been told your idea is unfeasible, been refused a bank loan or are dealing with a difficult client, strength in adversity will enable you to keep your enterprise alive – and help it grow.
And yet some of the simplest strategies for improving resilience – getting enough sleep, exercising regularly and eating healthily – can be challenging for time-strapped entrepreneurs. But looking after yourself, taking breaks and creating a support network are a worthwhile investment.
Questions we’ll look to cover in this webchat include:
- What is resilience?
- How can entrepreneurs help themselves to be more resilient?
- Where can they go for support in times of adversity?
- How useful are strategies such as mindfulness or cognitive behavioural therapy for building resilience?
- What’s the impact of poor mental, or physical, health on resilience?
- What practical steps can entrepreneurs take to make their businesses resilient?
Our panel
Andy Chamberlain, deputy director of policy, The Association of Independent Professionals (IPSE)
Gail Kinman, occupational health psychologist, the University of Bedfordshire and the British Psychological Society
Emily Forbes, founder, Seenit
Samantha Kingston, co-founder, Virtual Umbrella
James Routledge, founder, Sanctus
Leon Ifayemi, co-founder and CEO, SPCE
Richard Reid, psychotherapist, coach, founder of Pinnacle Therapy
Anis Qizilbash, motivational speaker, founder, Mindful Sales Training
Updated
Submit a question
You can post questions in the comments section below during the chat. Or you can send questions in advance, or during the discussion, by emailing smallbusinessnetwork@theguardian.com or by tweeting us at @GdnSmallBiz with your question. You can also post questions in the comments section at any time before the chat and the panel will take a look when it begins.
Updated
.jpg?w=600)
I am planning on setting up, I know I will face challenges - can anyone give me some practical tips to minimise the stress?