Mental Health While Running a Small Pet Business

Mental health is critical for business owners. However, it’s often drowned in the never-ending to-do list of owning your own small business, especially in the pet niche. Since your business requires so much compassion and passion, it’s even more important to prioritize your mental health each day.

The Unfortunate Reality

Pet business owners are suffering, and the results of COVID-19 have destabilized many businesses even years later. That kind of stress has consequences, especially for owners like you who nurture your business every day towards success. Unfortunately, many feel those effects and do not even realize it.

For example, veterinarians have an above-average suicide rate. For female vets, it’s 2.4 times the national average, and for male ones, it’s 1.6 times the national average (source).

Another US Chamber of Commerce survey showed that 39% of minority-owned businesses are very concerned about the pandemic’s impact on their mental health, versus 23% of non-minority-owned businesses expressing the same concern (source).

Prioritize Boundaries

The first step in maintaining mental health is establishing boundaries between your personal life and your pet business. While it may be tempting to do one more thing or have on-call hours, not doing these things actually helps you in the long run. After all, if you’re always working on your business, you have little time to interact with friends and family.

Recognize the Signs

In addition to boundaries, knowing what signs to look for is paramount to recognizing when your mental health is suffering. Symptoms like poor sleep, mood swings, and difficulty concentrating can all be signs your mental health is suffering. Before you notice these signs, consider making a plan to follow.

Establish Company Practices

While your mental health is vital, your employees’ mental health is also essential. Making sure you create a positive work environment, educate your employees, and have mental health-friendly policies all help you provide a healthier environment for all involved. For example, regular schedules and having enough people on your team are great options to start with.

Are you interested in systems that save you time and streamline your business? Book a demonstration with eh experts at Pet Connect Business to see how easy the changes you need could be.