By Tricia Compas-Markman
I still remember the moment clearly: I was standing in the lab with my thesis advisor, staring at a failed prototype. It was supposed to be the foundation of my startup, and we had spent months developing the technology.
But it didn’t work.
Defeated, I stepped away for a few days to regroup. When I returned, rested and clear-eyed, a shockingly simple solution emerged: duct tape. This simple fix opened up a new direction for my thesis and innovation.
But it wasn’t just the duct tape that saved us. It was the space to breathe. Taking time to disconnect, reflect, and rest provided renewed clarity. And that’s one of the most important lessons I’ve learned as a founder: Stepping back isn’t a luxury. It’s a necessity.
Resist the Grind
Startup culture glamorizes sleepless nights and nonstop hustle. Pushing through burnout is a badge of honor. Exhaustion isn’t a red flag, but proof of commitment. Founders come by this mentality honestly. They carry an extraordinary load, juggling product development, fundraising, managing a team, communicating with stakeholders, and more—all while navigating deep uncertainty.
Especially in early-stage startups, the path forward is rarely clear. Because a founder’s personal identity is often intertwined with their company, setbacks don’t just feel like business failures. They feel like personal failures.
That’s why founder mental health isn’t a peripheral issue. It’s a critical factor in startup outcomes. Ignoring it risks not only the health of the founder but also the health of the venture. Burnout clouds judgment, stifles creativity, and slows momentum. Resilient startups need resilient leaders, and that means treating mental well-being as essential, not optional.
Take a Walk: Why Rest Is Productive
I ran my company for 10 years. Like many founders, I poured everything into it. I skipped vacations, turned down social events, and sacrificed downtime. I believed those trade-offs were the cost of building something meaningful.
But over time, I realized the opposite was true. Stepping away—whether for a short hike or a weekend off—gave me more clarity, not less. Rest made me sharper, more effective. It felt counterintuitive at first, but I came to see that taking breaks wasn’t a waste of time. It was a productive investment in my well-being—and, by extension, my performance.
Creating Healthier Startup Cultures: Six Practical Steps
Whether you’re a founder, mentor, or ecosystem leader, here are six ways you can foster healthier startup cultures:
- Build strong support systems. Entrepreneurship can be lonely. Peer connections, mentorship, and coaching relationships are essential. Having a village of people to encourage, advise, and offer feedback can help founders stay grounded and supported. Within your team, learn each other’s working styles and communication preferences. These connections are a powerful antidote to stress and isolation.
- Redefine success. We’re conditioned to think that “success” means building a unicorn. But not every startup needs to scale at all costs or chase venture capital financing. Normalizing diverse trajectories allows for more sustainable growth and healthier ecosystems. Recognizing that every founder’s path is unique opens space for innovative and lasting solutions.
- Don’t wait for a crisis. At VentureWell, we train founders to run “stress tests.” It’s common to face moments where it feels like everything’s about to implode. That’s why we build in opportunities for founders to pause, identify challenges, and think through possible worst-case scenarios. Strengthening the critical thinking muscle before a real crisis hits can protect mental well-being and improve response.
- Celebrate the wins. Startup life can swing from highs to lows and back again in a matter of hours. It’s easy to focus on failures, but celebrating progress matters. I once got feedback from my team that I wasn’t showing enough appreciation. It was a wake-up call. Whether it’s a simple thank-you, public shoutout, or—when possible—a performance bonus, timely acknowledgement builds trust, motivation, and resilience.
- Model and encourage balance. Startup culture is marked by a sense of urgency and the relentless pursuit of results. Time never seems to be on your side. But leaders set the tone and should prioritize balance through small but intentional actions. Encourage walking meetings. Organize off-site retreats. Take vacations. When leaders model these behaviors, it creates space for others to do the same. The result? A healthier, more stable workplace.
- Give yourself grace. To the founders reading this: You’re doing something incredibly challenging—building from nothing. We’re often hardest on ourselves. While that drive is a gift, it’s not if it costs your well-being. Show yourself grace, in both words and actions. Exercise. Prioritize sleep. Have conversations unrelated to your startup. These aren’t distractions. They’re investments in your clarity, creativity, and long-term success.
Mental Well-Being Isn’t a Detour—It’s the Way Forward
Eventually, I faced one of the hardest moments of my professional career: shutting down my company. I felt like I had failed—my team, my investors, myself. But I was fortunate to have a board member, part of my support system, who reminded me: “You can do hard things. You’ll figure out your next step.” And eventually, I did.
It wasn’t just determination that got me through. It was the space I gave myself to rest, the grace I offered myself in the process, and the people who supported me along the way. Like the simple duct tape fix all those years earlier, the answers didn’t come from pushing harder. They came from pausing and regrouping.
The entrepreneurial journey isn’t linear. It’s messy and complicated, a pathway through the unknown. Prioritizing your mental well-being along the way is never a detour; it’s essential for navigating the path.
And sometimes, the way forward starts by stepping back.