Time and Space: The Keys to Reduced Stress for Entrepreneurs

Entrepreneurs have a lot on their plates, from securing financing for their business to making all the business decisions and bearing the brunt of the repercussions, good or bad, of those leadership calls.

It's no wonder they're stressed. According to research conducted by Gallup, 45% of entrepreneurs report being stressed "a lot of the day," compared with 34% of people who work for an employer.

In part, that's because they're passionate about their work, and that passion can be emotionally draining. Two other issues affecting entrepreneurs today are a lack of time and limited space. Both are needed to grow and sustain your business, but aren't always easy to secure. Maximize them, however, and entrepreneurs can alleviate much stress and concentrate on professional ambitions instead.

Maximize Your Time

Entrepreneurs routinely find there isn't enough time in the day to complete their work, prepare for tomorrow, and deal with every niggling chore that crops up in between. Unlike those who work for a third-party company, entrepreneurs rarely abide by a standard 40-hour work week. Rather, they put in hours whenever they have the chance, as they know the success of the business rests squarely on their shoulders. Naturally, this amount of extreme exertion can lead to undue stress.

One way to resolve this dilemma is to pass off those smaller tasks that don't require a high level of expertise. In a Forbes article, several contributors mentioned the importance of budgeting your time and being a ringmaster rather than a juggler. Delegation is key. Put your faith in trusted employees and partners to manage the aspects of your business that are critical to operations, but don't necessarily require a hands-on, passionate approach.

For example, training your staff in the nuances of your product or service is a good use of your time, as it ensures your team can to effectively represent the company on your behalf — one less thing the business leader needs to do.

Delegating includes duties like setting up your first office space or retail store, or managing a move to a new location. Because these are time-consuming and logistically complex events, entrusting them to a partner like PODS can reduce the stress that would otherwise be unavoidable. You can redirect your attention to other areas that need your entrepreneurial skills, like fine-tuning your product offering, developing your brand, and exploring opportunities for future growth.

Grow Your Space

Whether you're ready to move from a home office to a formal business space or are preparing to open a storefront, PODS business containers can help reducing stress here, too. This is a time when organizations typically feel under pressure to establish themselves in the market — just consider everything you'll be adding to your list of daily concerns when you branch out into a physical space.

Leasing property requires an increase to your business's overhead. Managing an office, which involves everything from ensuring it's always kept clean to ordering and replenishing office supplies, can be a full-time job. An on-site storage solution ensures the supplies you need to sustain your organization are always within reach for your customers and staff. For retailers, this may include extra shopping bags, gift wrapping materials, and off-season merchandise, while a startup might need to store furniture for future employees, raw materials for product production, and brand swag.

By letting PODS do the heavy lifting, you can focus your energies on being more productive — which in turn makes for a happier, healthier work life. For the sake of your emotional well-being, make a coordinated effort to reduce the stress that comes part and parcel with innovation and ambition. Entrepreneurs and small to medium-sized business owners deserve some much-needed peace of mind.

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