Why Isolation Is One of the Biggest Risks for Entrepreneurs

Research & Sources / Mentorship & Sounding Boards

In the old days, lighthouse keepers lived alone on a rock in the sea. Their job was vital: keep the light burning so ships could find their way. But month after month alone took its toll. Many keepers became strange, anxious or bitter. Many entrepreneurs are lighthouse keepers: doing an important job, on their own rock.

Lonely at the top, and in the middle

Being an entrepreneur often means having no boss, no peers in the company and nobody who fully understands the pressure. Employees depend on you. Family worries about you. Friends with normal jobs don’t quite get it.

Thomas Saporito wrote in Harvard Business Review about survey results showing that about half of CEOs experience loneliness, and that most of them feel it hurts their performance.¹ Entrepreneurs, often without a board or a leadership team, are even more exposed.

Isolation is a health risk

Julianne Holt-Lunstad and colleagues analysed 148 studies on social relationships and health. People with stronger social relationships had a markedly higher chance of survival over the study periods.² Connection is not a nice extra. It is a basic human need.

Michael Freeman and colleagues found that entrepreneurs in their study reported mental-health conditions more often than a comparison group.³ The causes are many, but carrying high pressure alone is certainly one of them.

Isolation is a business risk

Blind spots grow. Without people who challenge you, mistakes stay invisible longer.

Decisions slow down. Big questions go round in circles in one head.

Energy drains. Pressure that is never shared becomes heavier over time.

Warning signs are missed. Exhaustion and burnout creep up slowly. The World Health Organization describes burnout as resulting from chronic workplace stress that has not been successfully managed.⁴

Building bridges to the shore

• A peer group of entrepreneurs at a similar stage.
• A regular sounding board or thinking partner, someone you see every few weeks.
• A mentor who has been where you are.
• Friendships outside business, protected even in busy times.
• Honest conversations at home about what is really going on.

None of these take the light out of your hands. They just make sure the keeper is not alone on the rock.

What this means for you this week

• Count the people you could call today about a serious business worry.
• If it is fewer than three, make building that list a priority.
• Book one conversation with someone who understands your situation.
• Protect one evening for friends or family without business talk.

Keep the light burning. But don’t stay alone on the rock.

Sources

1. Saporito, T. J. (2012). It’s Time to Acknowledge CEO Loneliness. Harvard Business Review. hbr.orgReports RHR International survey results: about half of CEOs experience loneliness in the role, and most of them say it hinders their performance.
2. Holt-Lunstad, J., Smith, T. B. & Layton, J. B. (2010). Social Relationships and Mortality Risk: A Meta-analytic Review. PLoS Medicine, 7(7), e1000316. doi.orgAcross 148 studies, people with stronger social relationships had a markedly higher likelihood of survival.
3. Freeman, M. A., Staudenmaier, P. J., Zisser, M. R. & Andresen, L. A. (2019). The prevalence and co-occurrence of psychiatric conditions among entrepreneurs and their families. Small Business Economics, 53(2), 323-342. doi.orgEntrepreneurs in the sample reported mental-health conditions more often than comparison participants.
4. World Health Organization (2019). Burn-out an “occupational phenomenon”. who.intBurnout defined as resulting from chronic workplace stress that has not been successfully managed: exhaustion, distance from one’s job and reduced efficacy.