Venture Deals - Spring 2023 Course - 5. Mental Wellness

This post features my notes from Lesson Five of the Venture Deals Spring 2023 course. This is part of a post series. Go to Part 4.

Mental Wellness - Guidance from the Teachers

• Do your part to reduce the stigma around mental health.
• Being a founder is challenging, don't suffer in silence.
• Current working environments can be devastating for mental wellness. Working crazy hours every week isn't healthy. Working 80 hours a week is fine if you do it once, then you back way off. Doing 80 hours a week every week isn't healthy.
• Stress and anxiety with no end in sight are not good things. Some stress can be good, for example, if you are working to push your limits slightly and then following that up with some time to rest and recover.
• Being a CEO can be lonely because you have to choose what you share with different people at the company. Your positivity and mental well-being also set a tone for others. Miriam tries to be vulnerable at work to make it safer for others to do the same.
• Success is hard. Build tools and systems of support for your mental well-being during difficult journeys.
• Sometimes it can be helpful to join communities where you can connect with others and share stories.
• If you are working remotely, getting together occasionally with your team can help build empathy.

And finally...

Think of your uniqueness as your competitive advantage. Shed yourself of the individuals who don't allow you to do that.