Entrepreneurs have lower burnout levels than employees, reveals research by Aalto University School of Business.
The study, conducted by Professor Ewald Kibler, analysed the common beliefs about entrepreneurship and found that entrepreneurial work produces significantly fewer daily work stressors than employed work.
It also offers more beneficial job autonomy since entrepreneurs enjoy more freedom to design and execute the work however they want.
“Entrepreneurs may be better protected from burnout because they experience fewer demands, such as administrative tasks, linked to burnout. This contradicts previous research that states entrepreneurs experience stressful work demands,” says Professor Kibler.
He adds: “Employees have no opportunity to turn strong work engagement into protection from burnout. The researcher advises organisations to consider more entrepreneurial job arrangements to reduce high burnout risks and stress spirals.”
The research also revealed that serial entrepreneurs are not necessarily better equipped to cope with stress than entrepreneurs running a business for the first time.
“There are several explanations for this. Every business venture comes with unique challenges and obstacles, regardless of whether the entrepreneur is a novice or a serial entrepreneur.”
“Novice entrepreneurs face difficulties navigating a new industry, building networks, and understanding the regulatory environment, while serial entrepreneurs may face challenges from managing multiple ventures, scaling businesses, and dealing with more complex organizational issues,” says Professor Kibler.
Furthermore, the researcher says that solo entrepreneurs are less stressed than entrepreneurs who employ people. They both have high work engagement levels, but employer entrepreneurs don’t have the same positive demand-resource pattern.
As a result, they are more likely to burn out than solo entrepreneurs.
