Sarah Wilson's anti-sugar message has helped her top Australia's book selling lists and build an I Quit Sugar empire that employs 20 people and turns over $4 million a year.
Throughout all of this Wilson has struggled with anxiety.
![Sarah Wilson's latest book deals with anxiety.](/web/20170424212743im_/http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/content/dam/images/g/v/h/s/5/1/image.related.articleLeadwide.620x349.gvlezh.png/1493025335564.jpg)
In her recently published book on the topic, First We Make the Beast Beautiful, Wilson describes her anxiety as: "That gut-twisting, grip-from-behind, heart-sinky feeling that winds me in tighter spirals and makes everything go faster and with so much urgency and soon enough I'm running down a steep hill faster than my poor spinning legs can carry me."
The benefit of anxiety
At times Wilson's anxiety has been debilitating but she also says every major step forward in her career has been driven by anxiety.
"Anxiety is forward orientated all about the fear of what might lie ahead," she tells MySmallBusiness. "For me this kind of forward thrust that anxiety has placed me in means I constantly go out on a limb, I take risks and I need to discover new things … anxious people we give a shit, we take it too hard at times. You are particular, you are meticulous."
Wilson says her perfectionism means she did not launch I Quit Sugar until it was faultless. She ran her eight-week program for two years for free on her own, working 17-hour days to ensure it was perfect.
"My intensity is what built the business," she says.
Wilson believes her experience is similar to that of many business owners.
"It's the chicken and the egg, but there's a whole range of correlations between being an entrepreneur and outgoing and always reaching and the flipside is anxiety," Wilson says. "What I am saying is even if you didn't start out anxious, some of the behaviour to operate in an entrepreneurial world can actually rewire your brain to become anxious. It is very hard for anyone."
Anxiety rising
Anxiety is on the increase in Australia with anxiety-related problems increasing from 3.8 per cent of the total population in 2011-12 to 11.2 per cent in 2014-2015, according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics.
Nick Arvanitis, head of workplace research and resources at beyondblue, says there are no statistics on the prevalence of anxiety amongst small business owners and entrepreneurs.
Even if you didn't start out anxious, some of the behaviour to operate in an entrepreneurial world can actually rewire your brain to become anxious.
Sarah Wilson
"Both anxiety and depression we know anecdotally are big issues amongst the small business owners community," Arvanitis says. "Because small business owners are in such highly demanding roles it's very difficult to reach them through research so there's not a lot of research out there. We need to understand this issue better."
Arvanitis distinguishes between general anxiety and anxious feelings, which are not mental health issues and anxiety, which is a diagnosable issue.
"Broadly we know small business owners are under a huge amount of stress in terms of long working hours, particularly during the start-up phase of starting a small business and blurring boundaries between work and home when a business owner can unwind," he says. "We know small business owners don't have HR departments, they need to manage staffing issues and often issues such as uncertainty over ongoing cashflow."
Leanne Faulkner, founder of Fortitude at Work, says payment times and cashflow concerns can place added pressure on business owners.
The entrepreneur has championed mental health in small business owners since tackling depression while heading her company Billie Goat Soap, which she sold in 2012.
"Cash flow truly is king and cash is a primary trigger for the state of your mental health in small business," she says. "The big end of town and government bodies need to think about how their policies and procedures impact on the mental health of small business owners and entrepreneurs."
Managing anxiety
Wilson says she is learning to live with her anxiety.
"I don't want to let go of my anxious behaviours because I associate them with my success," she says. "The hindrance is that I don't know when to stop. I haven't been great at modulating and ensuring my anxiety doesn't take over my life and throughout my career I have had these almighty crashes. I crash in a mental and physical heap in spectacular fashion."
Wilson has structured her business so it can operate smoothly in her absence.
"I installed quite early on a chief executive who actually manages the staff on a day to day level," she says. "I realised I was better at being a leader who could inspire and educate and not manage. That works for everybody involved. I can freak people out with my intensity."
Wilson now aims for the "sweet spot" of appreciating both the advantages and disadvantages that come with anxiety.
"The problem we have today is we do see anxiety as a disorder … we work hard at getting rid of it which is where it can get tortuous for an entrepreneur as you think, 'hang on this is what built me up'."
Wilson says you can side with anxiety if you take responsibility for it.
"You can then put your energy into modulating it and making sure it doesn't swing out of control and you don't burn your staff, burn your clients and make decisions that nobody wants."
Three strategies for dealing with anxiety
1. Have a morning routine.
Wilson exercises every morning and recommends all entrepreneurs have a morning routine.
"lf you are anxious you find it really hard to make decisions," she says. "Barack Obama wore the same suit in office every day, Mark Zuckerberg and Steve Jobs were the same. Wearing the same thing every day minimises decisions in the morning and ditto they eat the same breakfast every day. It really is just to ensure you don't get anxious by midday and can no longer make decisions."
2. Go for a walk (preferably outdoors)
Wilson advocates walking as much as possible, preferably outdoors.
"It's immediate, it's faster than any drug out there and it shuts down the anxious part of the brain immediately," she says. "Walking in nature will really really dampen the anxious part of the brain. Entrepreneurs whenever possible if you have to do a phone chat put your earpiece in and go for a walk around the block."
3. Meditate
Wilson mediates every day.
"I would not be able to run my business without mediating," she says. "It gets my head clear."
First, We Make the Beast Beautiful is published by Pan Macmillan. Lifeline 131 114 beyondblue 1300 224 636. Follow MySmallBusiness on Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn.
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