Empowering entrepreneurs to prioritise mental health for sustainable business growth

The pressure to build a successful business can sometimes come at a personal cost, with long working hours, financial uncertainty and the weight of responsibility taking a toll on entrepreneurs' mental wellbeing.

To help entrepreneurs find practical ways to manage the demands of running a business while protecting their mental health, TUT’s Wellness Office, in collaboration with the Innovation and Technology Transfer Office and the Rail Manufacturing Centre for Entrepreneurship Rapid Incubator, held a workshop on Mental Health and Entrepreneurship.

Facilitated by Tertia Anthony, the interactive session focused on helping entrepreneurs recognise common mental health challenges throughout the entrepreneurial journey and equipping them with practical coping strategies to navigate uncertainty, decision-making pressures, and business-related stress.

The workshop highlighted three key pressure points in the entrepreneurial lifecycle: the launch-and-hustle phase, growth and scaling, and periods of crisis and volatility.

During the launch phase, entrepreneurs may become so emotionally invested in their businesses that they begin to equate business performance with their personal worth. Rejection, slow sales and criticism can therefore feel like personal failures. Participants were encouraged to separate their identities from their businesses, acknowledge personal achievements beyond financial performance and establish healthy digital boundaries.

As businesses grow, the increasing demands of managing staff, making decisions and responding to daily challenges can lead to decision fatigue and burnout. The workshop emphasised that burnout is not simply a lack of discipline, but can also result from excessive workloads, limited support and insufficient recovery time.

To address these pressures, participants were introduced to the SIMPLE framework, which encourages entrepreneurs to assess their Self, Intellect, Money, Physicality, Love and Entertainment. The framework provides a practical way to check in on different aspects of their lives and identify areas requiring attention.

The session also explored the emotional challenges associated with business crises, including anxiety, isolation and the tendency to imagine worst-case scenarios. Entrepreneurs were encouraged to distinguish between what they can and cannot control, build supportive relationships with peers and mentors, and seek professional assistance when necessary.

Through practical scenarios and group discussions, participants explored how entrepreneurs could respond constructively to rejection, increasing workloads and financial uncertainty.

A key message emerging from the workshop was that mental health should not be treated as an afterthought or something to address only when a crisis occurs. Sustainable entrepreneurship requires entrepreneurs to protect their wellbeing, establish boundaries, maintain supportive relationships and create space for recovery.

Ultimately, the workshop reinforced that building a sustainable business also means taking care of the person behind it.