By Maud Gérard, Professionnal Coach,  www.emcouleurs.com-3 April 2023

Source: Blog réseau Diane

These days, more and more women are taking the plunge into entrepreneurship, whether to set up their own business or to become self-employed. However, being a woman entrepreneur in 2023 is not always a smooth ride. In addition to the professional challenges they face, they also have to learn to manage their stress and not let their emotions get the better of them in conflict situations. In this article, we explain how you can improve your emotional intelligence to be more effective in your professional (and personal) life.

Understanding your emotions

The first step in managing your emotions is to understand their nature. Scientifically speaking, emotions are nothing more than mental and physical responses to stimuli. They can be positive or negative, and each individual experiences them differently. As a woman entrepreneur, you may sometimes feel intense emotions as a result of the many challenges you face on a daily basis, such as financing problems, time pressure, the stress of decision-making, dealing with difficult clients who speak badly to you or don’t pay you, etc. However, it’s important to recognise that these emotions are natural and that there’s nothing wrong with feeling them.

To understand them better, take some time for introspection and identify the stimuli that trigger negative emotions in you.

Taking care of yourself

The less you take care of yourself, the harder it will be to manage your emotions. Unfortunately, women, whether entrepreneurs or not, all too often tend to neglect their physical and mental well-being because of their busy schedules. Taking care of yourself then becomes an almost guilt-inducing act. But it’s essential to take time out to recharge and relax. Activities such as meditation, reading or simply spending time with friends and family can help reduce stress and improve mood.

Express your emotions

Understanding your emotions is crucial, but you also need to express them and not keep them to yourself. We are conditioned to believe that showing our emotions is a sign of weakness or vulnerability. As well as being wrong, by keeping everything to yourself, your repressed emotions risk accumulating and causing additional stress.

So dare to express yourself! As Martin Luther Link said, “Silence is the enemy of truth”.

Set limits

It’s so easy to become overwhelmed by work… However, don’t be one of those people who always accepts everything without saying anything: define your limits to avoid emotional exhaustion! This can be done by setting yourself working hours, delegating certain tasks or allowing yourself time to rest. Work on your assertiveness and learn to say “no” to preserve your time and energy, which are far too precious, if it has to be said.

Set yourself realistic goals

Being a woman entrepreneur means having to deal with sometimes overwhelming pressure, pressure that leads to negative emotions such as anxiety and depression. To avoid this, it’s important to set realistic goals and recognise your progress and successes, whatever they may be. This will put less pressure on you and boost your self-esteem.

Finding support

Unfortunately, women entrepreneurs are often confronted with feelings of loneliness. Whether it’s joining a women’s business network or sharing your difficulties with someone close to you who understands the pressures of entrepreneurship, finding support is essential for a fulfilling entrepreneurial life. Don’t be alone and connect, as much as possible, with people who share the same challenges as you.

Practising empathy

Empathy means understanding and feeling the emotions of others. Showing empathy allows you to better understand how an employee, customer, colleague or business partner functions. As well as defusing conflicts and solving problems more effectively, it also improves relationships and builds trust between the different parties. To learn how to manage your emotions, it’s just as important to practise self-empathy by understanding and accepting your own feelings without judgement.

And here’s a little tip: you can never truly understand another person if you don’t understand yourself.

Learn to cope with failure

Failure is part of life. It’s never pleasant to fail, especially when you’re putting your heart and soul into a project. However, you can decide how you react to failure. Learning to deal with them and seeing them as a learning opportunity, rather than a source of stress, helps you to bounce back more quickly. Take the opportunity to step back and reflect on the reasons behind the failure. Identify the mistakes so that you don’t repeat them in the future.

As Confucius said, “our greatest glory is not in never falling, but in getting up every time we fall”.

In conclusion

Being a woman entrepreneur can be emotionally difficult. However, there are ways of better understanding and managing your emotions. From now on, it’s important to take care of yourself, communicate your emotions, set your limits, set realistic goals to relieve the pressure, find support, practise empathy and learn to cope with failure.

By following these simple tips, you’ll boost the success of all your projects.

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