According to a recent study, “42% of small business owners said they have experienced burnout in the past month.” This is hardly surprising when you consider the intensities that come hand in hand with running a business, as challenges and complications often mean business owners are overworked and overburdened.
However, it's crucial that you do not view burnout as a side-effect of business success. In fact, it may even be standing in your way as:
- Burnout limits productivity and efficiency.
- Burnout impacts your ability to make smart, logical decisions for your business.
- Burnout reduces your ability to carry out your job to the best of your ability.
With that in mind, here are some top tips that you can use to grow your business in 2023 without facing burnout.
Grow your team.
One of the easiest methods of battling burnout from a business perspective relies on your ability to grow your team. After all, when there are more hands on deck, tasks can be shared out fairly. This reduces the chances of an individual employee feeling overworked. When hiring, think carefully about what you are looking for from each employee. For example, by hiring people based on specific skills and attributes, you can assign them tasks that work to their strengths. This way, everyone is able to work to the best of their abilities.
Outsource duties beyond your remit.
Some of your daily duties will align directly with your unique skill set. For example, you may be a pro when it comes to interacting with customers and convincing them to buy something from you. However, other duties, such as managing your finances, will not fall within your skill sets. You can remedy this through outsourcing. For example, if you find it hard to manage your payroll, you could work with a company that offers Payroll Bureau services. This way, your financial planning is in order come tax season, but you aren’t spending hours pouring over financial data you don’t understand. As such, you can focus on other tasks that will help you grow your business.
Reduce in-house competition.
Some industries tend to promote competitive working environments, where coworkers compete against each other to climb the company ladder or win over the most clients. While this may be viewed as a good thing, various studies have found that collaborative work environments are much more productive. This is because teamwork can, quite literally, make the dream work. It helps to unify your workforce, as you’re working towards shared goals instead of individual ones. As such, your team is more productive, focused and determined. Finally, a workplace with positive work cultures has better rates of employee retention, which means you can focus on growing employee skills as opposed to returning to square one every month and hiring afresh.
Work on becoming social-media savvy.
Most UK businesses now have some form of social media presence, whether they have a Facebook, Instagram or Twitter profile. However, in a world where social media trends can emerge (and vanish) seemingly overnight, it's crucial that you are using social media properly. Failure to do so means that your content may appear unprofessional or dated, which would have the opposite of the intended effect when it comes to growing your customer base. Thankfully, getting to grips with social media does not have to be a complicated process; you simply have to spend some time studying it.
Know when to ask for help from others.
Knowing when to ask for help is another excellent way to grow your business because it reduces the chances of you stretching yourself too thin. While you may consider yourself an expert in your field, the truth is that there’s always room to grow – and this growth is often obtained through support and instruction. For example, if you’re finding it hard to figure out what you need to do to grow, you could bring in a business consultant to carry out an audit. Alternatively, you can simply ask for help from other members of your team, as being a manager does not mean you have to do everything alone. In fact, your employees may respect you more if you show that their opinions, support and expertise is valued and that you do not consider yourself to be ‘above’ them in any way.
Ask customers for feedback.
Ensuring that you run a customer-focused company will enable you to grow your business without burnout. This is because, as your customer becomes your priority, you’re able to make better, more focused decisions that will keep a smile on their face no matter what. It encourages you to focus on the ‘human’ side of your business, as opposed to metrics and figures, which can actually make it easier to figure out what changes you have to make. However, don’t try to be a mind reader and make decisions on your customers' behalf without consulting them. Instead, get them involved in the growth of your company. For example, you could host regular focus groups where they can give feedback on new products or business processes.
Take a break.
Sometimes, taking a break is instrumental when it comes to running a successful business. This is because taking your foot off the pedal gives you the chance to decompress and reduce stress. As a result, when you do get back behind your desk again, you’re able to think clearly. This gives you the chance to resolve the issues that may previously have been plaguing you, as you’re able to look at them from a more objective viewpoint as opposed to feeling overwhelmed. As a result, if you feel as though you are on the cusp of burnout, try to take a step back. Even a fifteen to twenty-minute break can be beneficial. You should also ensure that you work reasonable hours – clocking out at a similar time to the rest of your employees. Avoid taking work home with you when possible so that your free time is actually free.
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