Thinking about wellbeing for you and your staff is not just a nice-to-have. It is essential to productivity, retention and long-term business performance. Here is why wellbeing in your small business deserves serious attention, and how to build it into the way you work.

Starting your own business is a life choice. You have probably chosen this path knowing that many new businesses fail, that the buck stops with you, and that it will be demanding. But you are also likely to be highly driven, a trait you rely on to see you through a bumpy ride.

That ride may involve worrying about family, business partners, staff and money. You may need to make difficult decisions, like letting people go. And if you work from a solitary desk, you may lack reliable people to test ideas and share worries.

Success may follow, but pressure to scale up can mean the slog continues if you let it. All of this can be a toxic cocktail for extreme stress and poor self-care. It is not surprising that stress and poor wellbeing, even burnout, can be high among leaders of small and medium-sized enterprises and micro-businesses. The most recent figures from the Health and Safety Executive, for 2023/24, show that an estimated 776,000 workers in Great Britain were suffering from work-related stress, depression or anxiety, and 16.4 million working days were lost as a result.

Our work can impact our wellbeing; it can both trigger and aggravate poor mental health. Business support organisations and mental health charities see the effects in their day-to-day work with businesses across the UK. Stigma around mental health, and the notion that discussing stress in the business environment makes you seem weak, prevents many people from seeking help.

The mental and physical stress of running your own business, the responsibility and long hours involved, and the sometimes less-than-healthy lifestyle that goes with it, may make small business owners more vulnerable than most to poor mental health. And if you employ people, that makes your staff more vulnerable too. For a broader picture of the pressures facing UK women founders, see our Women in Business: Key UK Facts page.

Wellbeing in your small business is more than a nice-to-have

You might be thinking: so what? You have a business to run and a livelihood to develop. Sacrifices will need to be made. You can catch up on your wellbeing later, right?

However, good mental health, which is basically about feeling good and functioning well, is closely linked to optimal productivity.

We also know that showing up for work when you are not well, known as presenteeism, is a false economy. It is bad for productivity. In fact, presenteeism is worse than being off work sick, because it prevents you from being your best and delays or even impedes recovery. Deloitte research published in 2024 estimates that poor mental health costs UK employers up to £56 billion a year, with presenteeism accounting for the largest share. The same research found that for every £1 employers spend on mental health interventions, they see an average return of £5.30.

The lesson is clear: it does not pay to skimp on mental health. Many business owners have pushed themselves to the point of burnout and have been forced to take time off.

Why women founders are especially exposed

Women running businesses often carry additional pressures. Many juggle caregiving responsibilities, navigate sectors where they are under-represented, and face a funding landscape that remains harder to crack. A 2023 Simply Business survey found that more than 80% of small business owners said running their business had affected their mental health. Research by the Federation of Small Businesses has also highlighted that self-employed people can face particular wellbeing pressures, including isolation and difficulty switching off from work.

These pressures do not mean women are less capable leaders. They mean the conditions in which you lead deserve deliberate attention. Building wellbeing into your business model is not indulgent; it is a way to protect the asset your business depends on most: you.

We are all affected, like it or not

You might think you have never had mental health issues, that stress can be a good motivator, and that burnout could never happen to you. That you are tough and strong, and that the people you work with are of the same ilk.

The reality is we all have mental health. Much like good physical health, we cannot take good mental health for granted. Around one in four people in England will experience a mental health problem in any given year, including common mental illnesses like anxiety and depression, according to Mind. A challenging event, an unexpected trigger or a combination of pressures could tip the balance into being overwhelmed, especially if we do not already have good coping mechanisms. People who experience burnout often say they did not see it coming.

Stress is a typical response to the pressures and demands of business and life. Some stress is good for us, but excessive stress happens when the demands put upon you are greater than your capacity to manage them. While stress is not the same as mental health conditions like anxiety or depression, excessive or long-term stress can increase your risk of developing a mental health condition.

If you can identify the tell-tale signs of worsening mental health in yourself, you are more likely to be able to do something about it and keep your stress at a healthy level.

Some of the early warning signs and symptoms may include:

• physical changes, such as feeling tired, headaches, not sleeping or stomach problems;
• cognitive changes, such as trouble focusing on tasks or finding it hard to make decisions;
• emotional changes, such as being unusually tearful or angry; and
• behavioural changes, such as snapping at people, avoiding social situations or turning to alcohol to cope.

You may not always spot these early signs yourself, or associate them with stress, especially when you are experiencing them. Sharing what you know in advance with someone you trust can help, and being more aware of your own warning signs may also make you more aware of your colleagues’ struggles. You may be willing to risk your own health, but others around you may not be as emotionally invested in your business or as resilient.

We can all develop resilience

A common misconception is that being resilient is the same as being tough. Actually, it is about being able to respond to life’s pressures and learning from challenging experiences. Toughing it out limits our ability to learn and grow so that we can respond well when life gets tough again.

You may think you are either resilient or you are not, or perhaps you are unsure how to become more resilient. But resilience, which goes hand in hand with self-awareness, is a skill.

You and those you work with can learn resilience. We all have different tipping points, and it is important to be non-judgemental and understanding about this. If a situation is affecting someone’s mental health negatively, that impact needs to be taken seriously. Smaller companies are often thought of as tight-knit and nurturing, but they may also feel the pinch of understaffing and are sometimes guilty of pressuring people to come into work, or back to work, before they should.

There is a growing expectation around wellbeing in the workplace. This requires leaders and business owners to be more emotionally intelligent: self-aware and socially aware. Emotional intelligence is about having the capacity to notice, control and express our emotions, as well as being able to handle interpersonal relationships fairly and empathetically. These skills are an increasingly valuable asset in business. They can also help you with your clients and others outside your business.

Embracing a positive mental health agenda is a shrewd investment

This is not nice-to-have stuff. Applying this agenda and committing to a mentally healthy workspace will allow you to make better decisions and help you with the day-to-day running, operation and performance of your business. Try to note the following:

• Knowing what keeps you mentally well and being disciplined about your self-care management strategy is key to allowing your business to thrive.
• The ability to spot when others are struggling, which may not be obvious, will help you retain and grow a productive, innovative and resilient workforce able to sustain change.
• Resilience and emotional intelligence will help you in your external business relationships, including with clients and suppliers. Around one in four of them are likely to experience a mental health problem in any given year, after all.

How to truly be your own boss

Being your own boss is a key driver for why people like you break out on their own. So be your own boss in your personal life too. Take active control of your wellbeing and be disciplined about anything that may compromise it. It starts with you, the boss, leading from the top.

• Get to know yourself. Actively think about what makes you personally flow. You may find it useful to create a personal wellbeing plan to help you work on your own strategy. A stress bucket exercise can help you think about what affects your stress levels and resilience and how you can address this. This can include addressing negative thoughts that impact our feelings and behaviour.
• Start as you mean to go on. This starts with the obvious: taking more time off, reducing weekly hours, setting reasonable personal deadlines and delegating more. Even seemingly unimportant things can help, such as having office quiet spaces, reducing noise and increasing light levels.
• Reach out. If you work alone, you do not necessarily have colleagues to notice changes in your mood. Tell friends and family about what stress and poor mental health looks like for you, so they can spot any warning signs. Encourage healthy dialogue with your colleagues or business partners.
• Be authentic. You are embarking on a challenging task. It is okay to be open about the pressures and challenges you face. It tells people you are approachable and that it is acceptable for them to not be okay as well.
• Continue to learn. Understanding yourself and having the tools to keep yourself well is an ongoing journey, so make it an item on your daily to-do list to check in with yourself and to get clued up on new ideas and resources that will help you and others around you get better at managing your wellbeing.

Have a plan for the people you work with

Consider the type of organisation you want to build and how a wellbeing foundation can help you achieve it. You may not employ anyone right now, but picture what you want your workplace to look and feel like. For more ideas, read our guide to 7 Ways to Improve Wellness in Your Workplace.

• Get to know your staff. We can spot changes in others and help them reach their potential when we know them better. Incorporate regular check-ins and reviews to address wellbeing.
• Model good self-care practice. Staff will take this agenda seriously if you do.
• Share what you know. Support your colleagues with tools that can help them maintain and boost their own resilience.
• Encourage a supportive and open culture. Encourage staff to look out for each other and share how they are doing. Asking “how are you?” and meaning it is a natural opener. If someone says they are fine, ask again. Some companies have specific volunteer wellbeing champions who are taught to do this within a clear framework.
• Consider training and other outside support. Business owners do not usually have access to the kind of HR support an average line manager would, so think about how you can use external resources. ACAS provides guidance on managing mental health at work, and the HSE offers a stress management standards approach. You can also explore Access to Work for practical and mental health support for employees.
• Create an inclusive culture. Look at how you can offer flexible working practices, including flexible start and finish times and the option to work from home. Under current UK rules, eligible employees can request flexible working from day one. Our Flexible Working Rights UK 2026 guide explains what women-led businesses need to know.
• Incentivise and provide training on physical and mental health and the link between them. This could include cycle-to-work schemes or mindfulness training.

Be proud about taking mental health seriously

There is a good chance this agenda will resonate with your suppliers, stakeholders, clients and customers. Around one in four of them is likely to experience a mental health issue in any given year, so tell them about what you are doing and why. Use digital platforms and other channels to share how you and your company are focusing on mental health.

One of the best investments you will ever make

Consider managing your mental health and creating a positive mental health working environment as an investment. Ask yourself: at what cost are you prepared to pursue your entrepreneurial journey? Are you really your own boss when it comes to your wellbeing? Spend time now to think about what you want for yourself and others when it comes to quality of life. Think of it as an invest-to-save approach. And remember: a resilient you will help you create a resilient business. Taking wellbeing in your small business seriously is not a luxury. It is one of the smartest commercial decisions you can make.