Breaking the Stigma: Caring for the Mental Health of the Founder

"Chaotic!" said 2 out of the 3 founders on the panel, when the Sha-En asked them for ONE word to describe their journey.

The purpose of The Founders Peak is not just to improve startup success rates globally, but also to break the mental health stigma. We care deeply for the mental health of founders.

Our panelists Amit Gupta, Sharon Li and Theodoric Chew were candid and vulnerable in their sharing about how they coped being a founder, and finding the balance with other parts of their lives.

As they shared about their challenges - death of loved ones, struggles with anxiety and more, we couldn't help but be amazed at just what it takes to decide to commit to building a business - which ultimately becomes such a big part of one's life.

The panelists provided many nuggets of wisdom in the short time we had, which are useful not just for founders, but for all of us, as we try to find this elusive "balance" of well-being and performance.

Key highlights:

Break down things into small steps.

• The big things can be very daunting and thus feel overwhelming.

Don't see mental health as binary.

• It's not black or white, it's grey. You don't have to be perfect all the time, and there will be up and down moments.

Build a community and find support.

• It can be very lonely to be a founder as you're building and leading at the same time. Find like-minded people to connect with to build your support system.

Relentless prioritisation.

• Identify urgent vs important, and be present when doing what you're doing - be it work, or family.

Be comfortable with vulnerability.

• It's not a weakness, even if it feels like it. It builds connection, it allows others to lean in to support you.

Practice self-awareness.

• Notice how you feel, then regulate, before making a decision or facing the day.

Conclusion:

Behind all the pitches, meeting with clients and milestones, we need to prioritise our mental health as fundamental. That gives us a strong foundation to stand upon and to do all the things we want.

Speakers: