vol.05 How to avoid founder burnout

Building a startup is a marathon, not a sprint, but too many founders treat it like a 24/7 sprint until they hit a wall. One minute, you’re raising capital like a boss, the next, you’re arguing with Excel, and suddenly it’s 2AM again, and you haven’t eaten anything except cold coffee and regret.

Burnout isn’t just some abstract concept. It’s that moment when even caffeine betrays you, and your brain starts buffering mid-sentence. If you want to build something game-changing, you need to play the long game. So here’s how to make sure you don’t flame out before your startup takes off.

1. Work Smarter, Not Longer

More hours ≠ More progress. If grinding 16-hour days actually worked, every founder would be a billionaire. Spoiler: They’re not. The smartest ones know that output matters more than effort.

• Identify the 20% of tasks that drive 80% of your results (shoutout to the Pareto Principle). Do those first.
• Delegate or cut everything else. Not every fire is worth your attention.
• Pro Tip: Before you log off, write down your top 3 priorities for tomorrow. This keeps you from getting lost in low-value work when you start the next day.

2. Create a Sustainable Work Schedule

Your startup will not collapse if you stop working at a reasonable hour. Set actual work hours and stick to them like your life depends on it. Because, honestly, it kind of does.

• Schedule “no work” time like it’s a non-negotiable meeting.

• Use time blocking: Deep work in the morning, meetings in the afternoon. Protect your best hours for high-impact tasks.

Maybe check out Artasaka CEO's post on how he stays productive.

3. Automate & Systemize Everything

If you do something more than twice, congratulations, you just unlocked a new automation opportunity.

• Use tools for scheduling, email follow-ups, and other repetitive tasks. No need to manually suffer.
• Document processes so your team can execute without you micromanaging. (SOPs: the underrated MVP of scaling.)
• Decision fatigue is real. Humans make around 35,000 decisions daily. Save your mental energy for the big ones by automating or eliminating the small stuff.

4. Set Non-Negotiable Boundaries

Startup life will consume you if you let it. So don’t.

• Turn off notifications after work hours. Your brain needs actual downtime.
• Take real breaks. No, scrolling LinkedIn doesn’t count.
• Have a hard stop time in your day (e.g., no work after 9 PM). If Jeff Bezos can do it, so can you.

5. Build a Mental Reset Routine

Your brain is not a machine, but it does need a proper startup and shutdown sequence.

• Start your day without checking emails in the first 30 minutes. Let your brain boot up before jumping into the madness.
• Create a wind-down ritual (walk, workout, meditation or whatever works) to separate work from life. Otherwise, you’ll be answering Slack messages in your dreams.

6. Know When to Step Back

If your entire day is just putting out fires, you’re not leading. You’re surviving. The best founders design their businesses to run without them.

• Take breaks before you crash. Recovery time from burnout is brutal.
• If you’re always “too busy” to step back, your systems are broken. Fix them now before they break you.

This time we asked our Oddsbreakers

How do you avoid burnout
while growing your business?

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GoodWatch

Entertainment

Media

Burnout is a serious problem and comes with many faces. Everyone has to find their own cadence to establish a healthy work life balance.
Working can be very rewarding. Especially when you're making big progress or are successful you'll likely don't want to stop. Sometimes we are determined to solve a problem for a long time and can't get it right. No matter if it's dopamine or frustration, we can drown in our business pretty easily if we aren't self-aware and take breaks to reflect on the situation.
What's essential is to think about what's important to me outside of work. For me that's my family, listening to audio books, meet with friends, playing hockey, making music, etc.

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Final Thought: Burn Bright, Not Out

Building something incredible takes time. If you burn yourself out in Year 1, you won’t make it to Year 10. Your startup needs a founder, not a martyr.

So pace yourself. Automate. Delegate. Set boundaries. And above all, remember: the goal isn’t just to survive entrepreneurship, it’s to win at it.

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