Today’s Top Three Healthcare Imperatives Every Entrepreneur Should Prioritize 

Entrepreneurship is often glamorized as a path to freedom and financial success. However, the persistent uphill struggles, and corresponding emotional darkness, that often exist among this cohort (a.k.a. my personal tribe), frequently go unnoticed by even the closest friends and family members. In the September 2013 edition of Inc., Jessica Bruder wrote a powerful piece titled “The Psychological Price of Entrepreneurship” that remarkably highlights many of the very real and dangerous issues business owners face. The drive to succeed can push entrepreneurs to work immeasurably long hours at the immediate expense of personal time for self-care, family engagement, and meaningful relationships that all have direct correlations to healthspan. 

This prioritization of “business success at all costs” undoubtedly leads to detrimental consequences for entrepreneurs’ businesses and their personal lives. With that understanding, here are today’s top three healthcare imperatives every entrepreneur should prioritize: 

1) Don’t Carry the Weight of the World on Your Shoulders

2) Aggressively Fight the Loneliness at the Top

3) Make Time to be Selfish

Don’t Carry the Weight of the World on Your Shoulders 

Running a business comes with countless inherent stressors: financial uncertainties, meeting investor deadlines, managing teams, wearing multiple hats—the list goes on. This stress quickly takes a toll on physical and mental health. For example, elevated cortisol levels from chronic stress increase our susceptibility to weight gain. Entrepreneurs often compound this stress with frequent travel (translation: poor food choices/options and disrupted exercise routines), and the pounds add up. 

We all know being overweight is an independent risk factor for a long list of ailments, including all of the four horsemen illnesses (i.e. cardiovascular disease, metabolic disease, neurodegenerative disease, and cancer) most likely to result in morbidity and mortality.  

To fight this gravitational pull, entrepreneurs must treat their health the way they treat any critical business initiative: create a plan, identify key performance indicators (KPIs), instill accountabilities, and routinely track/report progress. Consider your primary care physician as a collaborator who understands your genetic makeup, health proclivities, individual risk factors, and other key considerations needed to formulate a measurable, personalized plan—and hold you accountable to carrying it out.  

Aggressively Fight the Loneliness at the Top 

In the entrepreneurial world, mental health is often overlooked. The pressures of building a business and being in charge can lead to anxiety, depression, and extreme isolation. While our culture has started evolving to normalize seeking help for mental health as a sign of strength, not weakness, we still have much ground to cover.  

Further, the isolation and associated loneliness entrepreneurship creates must be addressed. Loneliness among entrepreneurs and its implications were explored in depth in Forbes back in July 2021. With this in mind, appreciating the immeasurable role of positive relationships in our happiness, as illustrated by an ongoing Harvard study. The more we isolate ourselves, the more we risk our overall health and wellbeing. 

To thrive, we must find our tribe(s) and invest in those relationships as intentionally as we invest in systems, technologies, other strategies to improve our business goals.  

Make Time to be Selfish  

One of the main barriers entrepreneurs face regarding healthcare is cost. Many startups operate on tight budgets, and investing in health initiatives may seem superfluous. However, the financial ramifications of neglecting health far outweigh the cost of a good health insurance plan. Medical emergencies, untreated conditions, and long-term illnesses can lead to significant downtime and indirect expenses, ultimately jeopardizing a business’s financial stability. 

Investing in health is not just a personal decision; it’s a smart business strategy. As a business owner, there is no investment more paramount than your longevity and wellbeing. We must take time to put ourselves first and see that as an essential investment in business success. So, be a little selfish by investing in your healthspan and watch the positive impacts it has on your business.