You must have seen new mothers, fathers even -- feet rarely off the ground, eyes greedy for some sleep, but mind and heart, relentless slave drivers, driving the body to breaking point.

Entrepreneurs, especially freshly minted ones, are no different. After pulling off the incredible feat of getting an idea off the ground, they pour heart and soul into making it stay afloat and prosper, and in the process invite the inevitable -- premature burnout. 

“These days a mechanical lifestyle, over-commitment, lack of meaningful time for self, work pressures, no time to fulfill even basic needs of one’s life, can all lead to burnout. It may present as easy irritability, low mood, fatigue, low concentration, disturbed sleep and appetite, loss of interest, body aches and pains, disturbed digestion and lowered immunity,” opines Dr Sameer Malhotra, Senior Consultant Psychiatrist, Psychotherapist & Drug De-addiction Specialist, Director Mental Health & Behavioral Sciences, Max Hospitals.

Here are 5 tell-tale signs with recommended steps for entrepreneurial burnout:

• Sign 1: Overwhelming sense of negativity, resentment against colleagues, anger issues, pessimistic & dull outlook
  
  Advice: Stop awhile. Draw up a list of everything that is bothering you. Once it is all out of your mind and on paper you will be able to review more objectively a lot of the stuff your heightened emotions had magnified. Having a negative outlook towards your business can be very harmful to it. Keeping a positive mindset about all your tasks is essential for making your business flourish.
  
  
  
• Sign 2: Inability to focus, start any new assignment or complete pending ones and excessive net surfing
  
  Advice: If stress has taken the fun out of your work, try and take a break, recharge before tackling all that work. Try making your work tasks as interesting as you can. The motivation of the benefits of completing an assignment should inspire you to start it.
  
  
  

• Sign 3: Full inbox, call logs, voicemails, etc.
  
  Advice: A burgeoning inbox and voice mails are indicators that you’re avoiding anything work related. Taking some time to clear out your inbox and logs by responding to or organising them will take this burden off your mind and it won’t nag you constantly, leaving you with a clearer mind afterwards.
  
  
  

• Sign 4: Insomnia and exhaustion
  
  Advice: Chronic insomnia or fatigue may indicate that you are worried, need to reboot and rethink your priorities. Take time to do things that help you relax and unwind. Activities like yoga and taking walks help alleviate and manage stress situations. Listen to the warning signs of your body.
  
  
  

• Sign 5: Pursuing an unhealthy lifestyle
  
  Advice: A definite sign of burnout is when you are not paying any attention to your health because of the work overload which occupies your mind. In the long run, ignoring your health can play havoc with your system. Remember that paying attention to your health is an important ingredient for your long-term happiness and success. Here are some health and wellness tips for busy entrepreneurs

Dr Malhotra shares the approach to combat burnout, “It’s important to maintain work-life balance. On one hand, healthy lifestyle includes proper sleep-wake schedule; some exercise; some time for relaxation and pursuing one’s interests; some time off for holidays and time for family and friends. On the other hand, it helps to have one’s priorities right; practicing time management; developing a positive outlook; having realistic expectations; maintaining passion towards work; avoiding excessive multi-tasking and ensuring that one takes short breaks at work.”

Being cognizant of the signs of burnout and following the above points of advice can go a long way in keeping burnout at bay. Above all, the entrepreneurial passion and drive for work helps encounter any hiccups along the way.