Founders are reaching breaking point
During the first year of the pandemic, I lived with a founder. I saw first-hand just how relentlessly tough it is to run a company day in, day out: how you jump one hurdle just to whack right into another one; how the whole team’s problems become your problems; how fundraising runs your batteries all the way down; and how your mind never really switches off.
That was a brutal year. But, based on our recent survey of 156 founders’ mental health, it seems like last year was equally difficult, if not more so.
Founders told us about their experiences in the past year, with 85% suffering from high stress while 75% said they had anxiety. 45% told us they felt that their mental health was ‘bad’ or ‘very bad’ at the moment.
“I have been at extremely high levels of stress pretty much non-stop and I am tired and exhausted most of the time,” said one respondent.
“I’m not sure I can muster the energy to keep going,” said another.
Worryingly, they’re far from alone: 49% of founders said they’re considering quitting their startup this year.
“I cannot sustain this rhythm anymore. Solving problems seems the only purpose in my life and while doing it my mental and physical health is deteriorating,” one founder told us.
Another said: “My personal life suffering and cost of living/startup wages are not enough to support my family.” Several founders brought up “financial security” as a key reason for considering quitting for a “more stable job”.
The challenging fundraising environment, coming so shortly after the pandemic, coupled with investors’ focus on reaching profitability, is the number one reason founders are “broken”, our survey found.
But there are other concerns. Founders are worried about the toll it’s all having on their personal lives, with some telling us the stress had(or nearly) ended their marriage. That’s not surprising; 65% of founders told us they lean on their partner or spouse for support, while 64% also told us they’d started spending less time with friends and family over the past year. That’s a hard deal for any partner.
As for non-romantic partners, the strains of the current environment are also leading to cofounder break-ups. “I’m sick of arguing with my cofounder over the future,” said one respondent.
Not every founder, however, feels this way: 28% said if they left their current startup they’d want to start a new one.
But a far bigger group are considering leaving startup life for now. Of those wanting to depart their business, 39% said they’d take a break while 30% would look for a job.
For the investors among our readers, what do you think of these findings? For the founders’ partners out there, how tough has the last year been for you? And for the founders, my colleague Sadia Nowshin would like to hear more about how you’re feeling. If you’re happy to be interviewed by her (not anonymously, this time), please send her an email.
— Amy Lewin, editor
