The DARK SIDE of Entrepreneurship: Mental Health ANALYSIS and STUDIES
In the United States, 72% of our entrepreneurs face mental health problem like ADHD, bipolar disorder, addiction, depression, or anxiety. In concrete terms, that’s 22,320,000 people. Despite the overwhelming amount of company, so many entrepreneurs often feel isolated and worn down from a constant cycle of highs and lows. Unfortunately, it’s part of our biology. Our nervous system drives and motivates us, opening us to take risks. Then, in the heat of high stress, we carry the burden of those risks – only now, we blame ourselves for feeling burdened. We can’t admit our weaknesses. Depression rates among entrepreneurs are double the general population, and it’s easy to see why.
This trend hasn’t gone unnoticed. The effects of our high-stress environments are always snowballing, creeping into your personal well-being to your business, and the larger economy. The United States Congress allocated nearly $12,386,000,000 for mental health programs because mental health’s economic costs exceed more than $280,000,000,000 annually. Strangely, there’s very little information for specialized health for entrepreneurs, which is odd, given how much our financial backbone relies on them.
So, we have a budget:
General Health: $ 2 trillion: for health services and research.
Mental Health: $12 billion, with additional funds for specific mental health initiatives.
Entrepreneurial Mental Health: Minimal direct funding, no measurable data.
You’re an entrepreneur. Stress has infected every aspect of your life. You may be feeling disconnected from your business, struggling to find joy in what you do, or even get out of bed in the morning. You may have achieved your goals, but something’s not right. There’s resentment where satisfaction and fulfillment should be. Achieving your goals was supposed to give you that, but it didn’t. It just feels like another of life’s broken promises.
Feeling this way doesn’t mean that you’re weak. It doesn’t mean that your family, your team, or your clients can’t rely on you. The courage, innovation, and empathy that drives you to do what others can’t carries unintended consequences. You have half of the equation already, and professional support is the other.
Statistics on Entrepreneurial Health Problems
Entrepreneurs face a higher risk of various mental health issues compared to the general population:
Depression: 30% of entrepreneurs experience depression, compared to 15% of the general population.
ADHD: 29% of entrepreneurs have ADHD, compared to 5% of the general population.
Bipolar Disorder: 11% of entrepreneurs are diagnosed with bipolar disorder, compared to 1% of the general population. Addiction: entrepreneurs are 3 times more likely to experience substance abuse compared to the general population.
Suicide: Entrepreneurs are twice as likely to harbor suicidal thoughts and are at a higher risk of suicide compared to the general population.
The high incidence of these conditions among entrepreneurs can be attributed to the unique pressures and demands of entrepreneurial life. The feeling of being trapped, social isolation, and the constant risk of failure can exacerbate these mental health issues.
Some agencies are making headway with research initiatives aimed at understanding and supporting entrepreneurs like the Kauffman Foundation. Academic institutions and business schools are studying entrepreneurial psychology, as well as how to enjoy life despite the pressure. Key concepts, such as psychological resilience, coping with stress, failure, social support, networks, work-life balance, motivation, drive, and team dynamics are meaningful to the population at large, but absolutely critical to the entrepreneur, and it’s past time they’re given the priority research they deserve. When entrepreneurs are suffering from depression at double the average rate, and nearly three quarters of all entrepreneurs face mental health issues, entrepreneurs are demonstrably the most vulnerable group and no one puts their struggle in the spotlight.
Ultimately, it’s your health that matters most in this world. Health isn’t limited to your own personal well-being, it’s about creating a healthy environment, fostering growth and prosperity in your team, driving innovation, and being the cornerstone of our economy. That’s an enormous responsibility! Politicians and media have been painting a target on your back for decades, decrying you and calling you the enemy. That’s not helping. You can’t even remember how long it’s been since you’ve put in just 40 hours of work in a week. You put bread on the table of everyone that calls you their boss.
You’re not villains. We need you. Your family needs you. We need you to be healthy and happy, because our economy doesn’t work without you. My entire mission is making that brain of yours the best it can be. Our next episode, we’re delving into recent research about the unique features of the entrepreneurial brain and nervous system. Are you wired differently? Can that create disconnections between you and your team? And does it mean that everyone can, or can’t, become an entrepreneur?
Supporting articles
Entrepreneurship as an auspicious context for mental health research
Maintaining Mental Health Amidst The Hustle Of Entrepreneurship
Institutions and Funding Sources
National Science Foundation (NSF): Provides funding for entrepreneurial research through programs like America's Seed Fund and the Convergence Accelerator.
Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA): Supports mental health initiatives that indirectly benefit entrepreneurs.
Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation: Partners with organizations like the Association for Psychological Science (APS) to fund research at the intersection of psychological science and entrepreneurship.
Society for Industrial and Organizational Psychology (SIOP): Offers grants to support research in industrial-organizational psychology, which includes studies on entrepreneurial behavior.
