{"id":15805,"date":"2020-07-23T20:08:20","date_gmt":"2020-07-23T14:38:20","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/yourdost.com\/blog\/?p=15805"},"modified":"2020-07-23T20:08:20","modified_gmt":"2020-07-23T14:38:20","slug":"entrepreneurs-top-questions","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/yourdost.com\/blog\/2020\/07\/entrepreneurs-top-questions.html","title":{"rendered":"Top 3 Questions That Entrepreneurs Wrestle With"},"content":{"rendered":"

The entrepreneur\u2019s journey often appears smooth and simple from the outside. However, this notion seems to ignore one very important fact, that <\/span>startup founders are human too<\/b><\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"A<\/p>\n

In reality, The journey is a rollercoaster ride. When Elon Musk was asked about the ups and downs in his own life on Twitter, this was his reply –<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Elon<\/p>\n

Clearly there\u2019s more to the entrepreneurial journey than meets the eye, right?<\/span><\/p>\n

With the purpose of smoothening this rollercoaster journey, YourDOST designed the <\/span>Founders Program<\/b><\/a>. Each founder who signs up for this program is paired with a Coach (a professional psychologist trained in handling high-performing entrepreneurs), who helps them identify their core issues or areas to work, breaks the problem down into immediate goal(s) and works with them.<\/span><\/p>\n

In the past 18 months, 250+ Indian founders have signed up for and benefited from this program. Would you like to know what their top queries were? Here goes:<\/p>\n

Q – How do I deal with negative thoughts?\u00a0<\/span><\/h2>\n

\"How<\/p>\n

According to the \u2018<\/span>Encyclopedia of Behavioral Medicine<\/span>\u2019,\u00a0n<\/span>egative thoughts are cognitions about the self, others, or the world in general that are characterized by negative perceptions, expectations, and attributions and are associated with unpleasant emotions and adverse behavioral, physiological, and health outcomes.<\/span><\/p>\n

According to a 2018 study, thoughts and beliefs that are grounded in negativity also impact our feelings, emotions, and mental health negatively. <\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

These harmful perceptions commonly contribute to the symptoms of mood and anxiety disorders. Entrepreneurs are quite vulnerable to these effects. <\/span><\/p>\n

According to a 2019 study, 55% of Indian entrepreneurs aged 20-40 years report anxiety as the dominant feeling they experience.<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Experts suggest the following tools and strategies to overcome negative thoughts:<\/span><\/p>\n

Catch your cognitive distortions<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Negative thoughts, over an extended time, tend to develop into cognitive distortions. You\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The following illustration sheds some light on the different types of cognitive distortions we may fall victim to:<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Unhelpful<\/p>\n

One very effective method to overcome cognitive distortions is Socratic Questioning<\/strong>, a very effective cognitive restructuring technique. <\/span><\/p>\n

\"Socratic<\/p>\n

All you need to do is whenever you catch yourself preoccupied with a particularly negative ask yourself the following questions:<\/span><\/p>\n

1. Is this thought realistic?<\/span><\/p>\n

2. Am I basing my thoughts on facts or on feelings?<\/span><\/p>\n

3. What is the evidence for this thought?<\/span><\/p>\n

4. Could I be misinterpreting the evidence?<\/span><\/p>\n

5. Am I viewing the situation as black and white, when it\u2019s really more complicated?<\/span><\/p>\n

6. Am I having this thought out of habit, or do facts support it?<\/span><\/p>\n

Write your answers down if that helps. Overtime, you won\u2019t need to consciously ask yourself these questions to overcome your negative thoughts. You\u2019ll be able to catch them way before they spiral out of control.<\/span><\/p>\n

Mindfulness<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Mindfulness is a psychological process in which the individual purposely brings their attention to experiences occurring in the present moment without judgment. Think of it as exercise to develop a muscle which helps you become more aware of your feelings, emotions, sensations, etc. without judging them. As you practice mindfulness more and more, you develop this muscle so that you don\u2019t have to put much effort into being more aware of your experiences in the present. <\/span><\/p>\n

According to a <\/span>2015 study<\/span> at Carnegie Mellon University, mindfulness can help us become more attentive to our own emotions. <\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

With this improved awareness, we\u2019re able to catch our negative feelings as soon as they arise, and accordingly engage in positive remediation rather than dwelling on the negative thought.<\/span><\/p>\n

Here\u2019s a simple companion guide to practice a mindfulness technique called body scan meditation, to practice along with:<\/strong><\/p>\n