For too many entrepreneurs, burnout has become the default setting.
But the real danger is the weeks (or even months) before the big crash.
When the signs are there, but you plough on regardless.
The cost isn't just productivity.
Chronic stress:
⚠️ Increases stroke risk by 50%
⚠️ Raises heart disease risk by 40%
⚠️ Weakens your immune system, disrupts your gut, and even shrinks your brain’s memory centres
So look out for these 8 signs you're pushing too far:
1. Short fuse over minor things
↳ Your emotional bandwidth is thinning, even if your energy seems fine.
2. Skipping meals or running on caffeine
↳ One of the first signs your body's in survival mode.
3. Mental fog makes basic tasks harder
↳ Stress is disrupting focus and memory.
4. Losing joy in things that used to recharge you
↳ It's not boredom. It's emotional fatigue.
5. Small tasks feel disproportionately huge
↳ Decision fatigue makes easy things feel hard.
6. Important work keeps getting delayed
↳ It's not laziness. Your nervous system is overloaded.
7. Emotions feel flat or hard to access
↳ Numbness = your brain protecting you from overstimulation.
8. Headaches and gut issues start appearing
↳ Stress the brain ignores shows up in the body.
If any of these feel familiar, start small:
✅ Move your body gently (walking counts)
✅ Eat one proper meal without multitasking
✅ 15 mins a day with no phone and no people
✅ Say no to one thing that drains you this week)
Instead of waiting until burnout forces you to stop...
Learn to pause before the crash.
A calm body and clear mind will outperform 'hustle' every time.