Welcome to the Staying Stable Series
Women entrepreneurs share their secrets for staying stable as they ride the emotional roller coaster of running a business.
Meg Casebolt, founder of Love At First Search, an SEO consulting firm in Rochester, NY, has made a major shift in her business to accommodate COVID. She had just rebranded when the demand for SEO support online skyrocketed as everyone turned their attention online. In her mental health story, Meg hits on a really important theme: what works for mental wellness is idiosyncratic.
Everyone is different.
I’ve always had anxiety — the lovely companion to being “high achieving” is that constant feeling of “I could be doing more” or “What am I missing?” — and it’s been mixed with depression on and off throughout my life (ie grief when I lost my dad, postpartum with both kids). I also recently discovered (while researching symptoms for my kiddos) that ADHD has very different presenting symptoms for women, and have self-diagnosed with ADHD (which partially explains the anxiety, entrepreneurship, inattentiveness, and more).
Mental health is about finding ways to deal with the stress of life. -Meg Casebolt
For me, mental health is about finding ways to deal with the stress of life.
When I first became an entrepreneur, I treated it like a 24/7 job and fell straight into burnout. Over time, I’ve been trying to find the balance between work, family & self … and to hold strong boundaries for each of them.
When I’m in “work mode” about 25 hours a week, I try to focus exclusively on what needs to get done, then try my best to turn itoff at the end. Same with family time — sometimes I’ll check my emails when the kids are watching TV, but otherwise, I try to shut off the work portion of my brain for at least breakfast, dinner & bedtime. And then I try every day to take some time alone for myself … whether that’s reading, showering so long the water runs cold, talking the dog for a long hike, or getting extra sleep.
The main mental wellness tip I have found useful is to find what works for you and do it. -Meg Casebolt
The main mental wellness tip I have found useful is to find what works for you and do it.
I’ve always struggled with meditation, so I don’t beat myself up over not having a daily practice … instead, I find that reading a novel can have a calming effect on my brain, so I try to read for half an hour every day.
There’s only so hard you can hustle before the marginal benefits don’t add up. -Meg Casebolt
There’s only so hard you can hustle before the marginal benefits don’t add up.
By giving yourself firm boundaries (I use time blocking techniques), you’ll produce more in less time.
Entrepreneurship isn’t a job, and you shouldn’t feel locked into doing things the way you used to at the office for your old boss.
Find your way and embrace it. -Meg Casebolt
