Managing mental health on a regular day is challenging for anyone. Let alone when you’re a small business owner. Small business owners often struggle. From managing their financials, workload, and employees all before we sit down and wonder, “How Am I Actually Feeling Today?”

In this article, Hannah of OKGN Co., in honour of Bell’s Let’s Talk Day, will be covering 3 different ways you can take care of your mind and mental health while managing your business to give you practical tips for managing your mental health as a business owner.

First, let me introduce myself.

Hey there! My name is Hannah, and I am a Digital Marketing Assistant here at OKGN CO. I’m also a small business owner. I run a small creative wellness business called Hannah Grace Studios. I help others connect to their sense of well-being through art and mindfulness practices.

You might be wondering where my passion for mental health stems from…

The truth is, I’ve been navigating my own mental health challenges for nearly 15 years. At just 17, I experienced my first episode of psychosis. Since then, I’ve had two more episodes and received several additional diagnoses, though I’ll spare you the details for now.

After my second episode at 18, I reached a turning point. I realized I couldn’t continue living in a state of unwellness. I needed to discover what wellness could look like for me. That realization marked the beginning of my journey toward learning. How can I care for myself and my brain in ways that truly worked for me?

Along the way, I wanted to dig deeper and understand the hard truths: what really works in mental health? That curiosity led me to study Social Services, where I gained valuable knowledge and experience working in the field for several years. I made progress. But I eventually became severely burned out from prioritizing others’ mental health over my own.

This Imbalance Led To My Third—And Most Challenging—Episode

Happening just five years ago, at the start of the pandemic, I promised myself during this episode that this would be the last time. Since then, I have basically made mental health my whole personality. I switched my perspective from managing my mental health as something that is “on my to-do list” to a practice that I am invited to engage in every day, no matter where I’m at. Where I am now, I can honestly say that my mental health is in the best state it’s ever been. Yes, everything ebbs and flows.

Yes, I still have some incredibly hard days. That is okay. It’s all part of this grand adventure we call life. What I know to be true is that even if your mental health is in its worst state. Suppose you’re struggling to manage your mind and your small business. In that case, you can find balance in managing your well-being while you operate your business.

Here are 3 tips on how to manage your mental health as a small business owner.

1. Prioritize Your Body’s Needs Over Your Businesses’ (even when it sucks)

Okay, I’m not gonna beat around the bush here; you might not like this first one. But I am going to be real with you.

As human beings on this planet, we all have various needs. If we look at Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, there’s a full range there. And somehow, our basic needs are at the very bottom of that pyramid. The things we all desperately require to survive. I would venture to say that most people have some idea of what they need themselves: shelter, food, water, clothing, and sleep. Above that in the pyramid are our needs for safety and security, which come in the form of employment (or self-employment), family, and social ability. The pyramid continues, and at the top is the need for self-actualization, which comes in the form of creativity, purpose, meaning and potential.

So, what does this mean for you as a small business owner?

If you’re struggling with your mental health while managing your business, one of the very first places you can look to assess where you at is: “Are my most basic needs being met?” This means if you’re avoiding going to the bathroom because you “just have to get this done for your client,” you’re essentially denying your basic needs.

If you are skipping a lunch or snack break to maximize productivity, you are denying yourself of your most very basic needs; if you don’t allow yourself to take a fricken break in an 8-hour work day, hello! You are denying yourself your most basic needs.

Not only is it less productive, but it’s also confusing to your body and brain. Your body and brain are doing their very best to keep you alive and well every single day. It will send you signals of what your needs are and when they need to be met. I.e., having a snack when your stomach grumbles like a grizzly after hibernation season.

When we continually deny our needs in favour of “being productive,” we actually create separation between ourselves and our bodies and minds. Eventually, it can become so hard even to distinguish what your body needs. It can leave you feeling depleted, exhausted and unmotivated. Sometimes even depressed or anxious, even at unmanageable levels. 

Ask Yourself The Hard Questions Before You Even Think About Work

Invite yourself to notice what your needs are at the beginning of every work day, even before you start your work day (even before you make your to-do list).  Take ONE minute. Close your eyes. See what is there. Ask yourself, “What am I feeling today?” You may notice tension in different places in your body. You may be feeling some residual stress or anxiety from a past or upcoming task. You may notice you have had 3 cups of coffee already and not a drop of that sweet, sweet natural elixir, H20. It’s okay to experience any of these things. Once you are in tune with yourself, ask yourself, “Is there anything I need right now before I start my day?”

Then feel free to get yourself a glass of water, a small pillow for your back or even a comfort playlist while you work. Here’s the thing: meeting these little needs goes a long way in strengthening your relationship with yourself and your own body and mind. The more we practice taking care of ourselves rather than being hard on ourselves (and denying we have needs at all), the more we can flourish and actually have an increased capacity to take care of ourselves, our families, and our businesses. This is an exercise that you can return to throughout your day to check in with yourself as the day progresses and as your needs change. 

2. Inviting Self-Compassion into Your Mind Space 

As small business owners, one of the reasons why we got into self-employment is because we didn’t want to deal with a boss breathing down our necks with harsh criticisms. Am I Right? So, why on earth are our toughest critics usually in our own brains? I don’t know about you, but when I was in my worst place with my mental well-being, I tended to be overly hard on myself, trying to force myself to push through and produce anyway. I often felt guilty, unworthy and just downright depressed. What I have realized now, after many years of trying to force and pressure myself into performing, is that that doesn’t work. And when I am feeling low, that’s not what I need. 

Enter self-compassion.

Now, I know sometimes self-compassion gets a bad reputation. Often, it can be thought of as a way to distract or “go soft” on all our expectations, deadlines and responsibilities. Dr. Krisitne Neff is a leading psychologist in self-compassion studies, and in her book, “Self Compassion Step-By-Step,” she talks about how self-compassion is not a means of giving yourself excuses to get out of work or responsibilities. It is actually a way of talking to yourself and to others that invites understanding of human suffering. If you think of the last time you were with a close friend who was suffering, it’s natural to feel compassion and share kindness with this friend. Self-compassion takes the same perspective, but we give it to ourselves first. 

So, what does this look like for you as a small business owner? Well, much like the practical tip in the first section of this article, noticing is the first step. Noticing is a deep mindfulness practice that has been around for centuries. When we notice what is in our experience, we become aware of it, and awareness is the first step to change.

Acknowledge Your Challenge, Difficulty Or Suffering.

You can say to yourself, “This is really hard right now.” or “Wow, this is really impacting me more than I thought it would.” Really, you can greet this suffering with whatever phrase that helps you to acknowledge the pain and discomfort. The idea is to empathize with yourself for the suffering you may be feeling. The Final step to introducing self-compassion into your work is to invite kindness and compassion to yourself like you would a dear friend in need. For example, maybe you run a small home-based jewelry company. Maybe your hands are so sore from working on your craft, but you feel you need to keep going to maximize your efficiency and bring in those dollar bills. Practicing self-compassion can look like putting down the earrings and stating, “Wow, my hands really hurt right now.” And then, invite kindness and compassion to yourself.

Ask yourself, “How can I comfort myself in this moment?”

You may wrap your hands in a heating pad, do some light wrist and arm stretches, or take a break and refuel. What you choose to do for that comfort is up to you. It will be different for every person. When we allow ourselves permission to be kind to ourselves first, we are more likely to “show grit, motivation and determination to meet important goals and maintain a healthy work-life balance.” So next time your brain is yelling at your to “KEEP GOING DAMMIT.” Maybe take a step back and say, “I hear you. I’m having a hard time. I think I need a lil sweet treat.” 

3. Putting Down Time Into Your Calendar 

Listen, it’s 2025, and if it’s not on my calendar, it is completely absent from my mind. Are you with me? Okay, maybe you can remember tasks and events better than I can. Congratulations, I’m truly happy for you, but when was the last time you got to a Sunday evening and the Sunday scaries started to creep in when you realized you forgot to relax over the weekend?!  Too often, our calendars are jam-packed with all the things we want and need to be doing. I’d be lying if I said I didn’t even schedule hanging out with friends and family on my calendar. My thought is, why should it be any different with rest time? 

Time Blocking Will Save Your Day-To-Day

Time Blocking lets me see my days broken down in chunks of time and allows me the freedom to work on whatever feels appropriate. At the time. Given the specific time block. It removes the emotional response to the effort you’re putting in. At some point during my wellness ventures, I was finding myself suffocated by my schedule. I maxed myself out with work and activities and chores. By the end of the day, I was exhausted and had no time left before I had to go to sleep, wake up, and do it all over again. So, at one point, I said, “Forget it! I’m scheduling rest in my calendar!” Now, I have every evening after dinner time (6-9pm) in my calendar as “Chill Time.”

I have one rule for this time: absolutely under no circumstances, no “work.”

Now I know that as small business owners, the lines between what is work and what is fun can very easily be blurred. Especially with social media because, let’s just face it, we’re all chronically online.

Set Guidelines For What Is Allowed During Your Downtime

I have been known to upload the occasional reel during this time. For me, that’s okay because it’s “work” that feels exciting and fun to me. It gives me energy.

My limits are set:

• away from my desk,
• with the laptop shut until the next day
• and prioritizing that this time is meant for you to recharge and fill your boots.

I like to use this time to catch up on the latest episode of RuPaul or The Traitors with my partner, eat a snack that brings me joy, get outside for some fresh air and maybe even partake in a mindful creative activity like colouring or sculpting with air dry clay (side note: creating with your hands is a great grounding technique!).

The things we choose to do during this downtime are totally up to you! They can be different every day or the same if you like routine. The main idea is to give yourself a time set aside where you don’t have to be a big, responsible, business-owning adult. You can even, dare I say, do absolutely nothing. Putting scheduled rest time in the calendar has also given me peace of mind. Even on my busiest days, I know that when I get home, I can rest assured that I actually do have time to rest.

Keep in mind also that it doesn’t have to be in the evening! It can be in the morning, afternoon, or whatever time fits with the rest of your responsibilities. 

If you look at your calendar, and even in planning you can’t find the time to do all the things on your list, it might be time to also consider ways to lessen your load, or consider offloading some of your day-to-day tasks to a trusted marketing partner. *cough*

Interested In More Mental Health Resources And Tips?

If you read this entire article, I hope you found some concrete ways that you can reset and give some love to your brain while running your small business.

Remember that you are doing your absolute best and deserve a pat on the back.

If you are looking for more from me, you can catch me on YouTube and IG @hannahgracestudioss.

Otherwise, I’ll catch you next time right here at OKGN Co. loving up your content on our Instagram feed 🙂 If you want to take a breather and read some of our other articles, check out our Kids Gift Guide, a kick-butt example of Social Media in action, or sign up for Camp Sagebrush 😉

May we all be well. Happy Bell. Let’s Talk Day.