How is your mental load?

How is your mental load?

As a business owner with so much occupying our minds its easy to forget that there is a bunch of other stuff too. Often when we talk to business owners who are feeling burnout or struggling, it isn’t always about time or issues.

Mental load can be exhausting, effects concentration, functionality and overall wellbeing.

So what is mental load?

➕Everything you have to do or think about in your business

➕All the stuff that needs taking care of at home

➕Looking after children, spouses or other loved ones

➕Thinking about your friends and supporting them

➕Upcoming activities and everything that goes with it

➕Stuff others are doing but you still think about

➕Your own wellbeing and health concerns

➕Everything you feel responsible for

And the list goes on. For example right now as I write this my mental load consists of:

⚡️Social media, answering messages and sorting emails

⚡️Booking my tv home move and arranging broadband

⚡️Cleaning the bathroom and doing some washing

⚡️Cooking dinner and the schedule for the rest of the week

⚡️Watching what I eat and my exercise

⚡️Time to read and my own wellbeing

⚡️Helping my clients, following up on others and chasing prospects

⚡️Checking in on friends, family and helping my husband with something

⚡️Sorting my blogs and creating my newsletter schedule

⚡️Following up on a projects and chasing outstanding decisions

⚡️Thinking about bills and cashflow

⚡️Organise my activity for the week and my august schedule

⚡️My holiday and what I will take and do

These are just some of things I feel responsible for and this is mental load. Even if I don’t need to do something I am thinking…

💡How does my husband feel and what can I do

💡Is my mum okay and does my sister need any help

💡How does my friend feel after being ill

💡Are they enjoying their new job

💡When can I meet up for coffee with them

💡Do they miss me and am I being neglectful

💡Should I be trying harder or what am I messing up

Wow this is a lot right?!! This is why it is so important that we simplify our businesses to reduce how much we have to do and think about. Knowing things are taken care of can reduce this mental burden.

Simplification, sharing the load and talking things through will help in other areas of your life too.

So whenever you are thinking about creating or starting something, check in how full your mental load is first.