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Education

With lingering pandemic fallout,

SMBs face new worries

third stated they couldn't get enough sleep.
• Work/life imbalance: More than a quarter (26
percent) of company owners said their work-life
balance is much worse now than it was before the
outbreak of the virus.

The Capital One Business survey was carried out among
small business owners in the United States. Small firms
are those with yearly revenues of less than $20 million.
The poll gathered feedback from 1,000 company owners.
Morning Consult polled an internet panel from Nov. 17 to
Nov. 21, 2021. For company owners, the accuracy margin
By Chad Otar is +/-3 percent.
Lending Valley Some hope for the future

s the news has constantly reminded us over the Many small company owners, on the other hand, are
last two years, COVID has had a severe effect nothing if not hopeful. Based on the poll, more than half
on many small businesses, driving a large (52 percent) of company owners anticipate their work/
A number of them to close. But only recently has life balance to improve within the next six months, and
come word of how the virus has affected small business 63 percent expect economic conditions to improve in their
owners. According to a survey by Capital One Business, region in 2022.
small business owners across the country are experienc-
ing a damaging effect on their psychological well-being Given the importance of small enterprises in the U.S.
and capacity to preserve work/ life balance as a conse- economy, a lot depends on their owners' capacity to
quence of handling pandemic-related interruptions for recover from COVID's impact on their well-being. As per
over two years. the Small Business Administration, the United States has
31.7 million small businesses. Well over 80 percent, or 25.7
The World Health Organization defines burnout as million, have no workers;19 percent, or 6 million, have
"chronic stress that is not properly handled." Burnout can paid staff.
trigger a disaster in any company, especially if owners
are unable to seek assistance. As per the Small Business What should small business owners do?
Administration, 81 percent of small businesses, or 25.7
million people, have no staff. Because small business owners are generally deeply
dedicated to and enthusiastic about their occupation,
The state of small businesses burnout can develop without them realizing it. But how
can someone know if they are burning out?
Following are further findings in the Capital One Business
survey, which provide a sense of how small businesses are To answer this, search for tiny signals like negative
still infected by the virus. thoughts such as, I'm feeling overwhelmed with all my
• Fatigue and burnout: Burnout is disproportionately emails. However, a dead giveaway of burnout is avoidance
harming minority company owners in the United cues. They include statements such as, I wish I could stay
States. In addition, 42 percent of small business asleep till noon today. A furious outburst against a loved
owners have reportedly experienced recent fatigue, one is the most evident sign. That is a clear indication that
and over a quarter had experienced near-constant there is something else upsetting you.
mental tiredness.
• No time off: More than 52 percent of company Note: I referred to the following in researching this story:
owners have not taken a vacation in the last year. In • https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/small-business-owners-
addition to people reporting feeling run down and exhausted-optimistic-heading-/
psychologically fatigued, 62 percent of company • h t t ps : //c d n . a d v o c a c y . s b a .g o v/ w p - c o n te n t /
owners revealed working longer hours to keep their uploads/2020/11/05122043/Small-Business-FAQ-2020.
businesses from closing. pdf
• Mental health issues: 45 percent of small business Chad Otar is CEO of Lending Valley Inc. For information about the com-
owners said that conducting a business during pany, please visit www.lendingvalley.com. To reach Chad, send an email
COVID has harmed their mental health. While a to chad@lendingvalley.com.
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