Stress is an inevitable consequence of running a small business, not least due to the sheer volume of things you have to worry about. Research from Florida State University suggests that while this can appear debilitating, if framed in the right way it can also be helpful.

The researchers explored whether a stress-related mindset could help small business owners cope with the challenges they face more effectively. Indeed, in some cases, it could even lead to personal growth and greater engagement in their business if they’re able to frame stress as enhancing rather than debilitating.

Reframing stress

The researchers wanted to challenge the bad reputation stress often has, and while this has been effective in one-off events, such as giving a speech or preparing for a sports event, it has been less effective for ongoing events, such as running a small business.

“We were really pleased to find something that was theoretically relevant and also practically relevant for small business owners during COVID,” the researchers explain. “And for anyone who’s stressed out, if they can reframe their mindset to think about stress as potentially helpful, then they’re more likely to respond to stress in ways that are actually very helpful.”

They recruited small business owners from across the US to explore how our mindset about stress affects our personal growth, health, and engagement. Half of the participants were asked to watch a number of short videos on the Stanford website that aim to manipulate how we think about stress. The remaining half did not.

For instance, one of the videos explains how anxiety can boost our cognitive performance, while another shows how it can produce hormones that enhance our immunity and help to rebuild cells. Another highlights how it can help to release cortisol into the brain and heighten our attention.

Coping behaviors

The team then measured the coping behaviors of the participants, and the results revealed that those who had watched the videos were able to gain a “stress-is-good” mindset, and were therefore more likely to engage in various coping behaviors, while also reducing their use of avoidance coping compared to their peers in the control group.

Such coping behaviors might include seeking our social support or additional information, or trying to plan ahead, and actively trying to solve the problems caused by the stressor. The alternative is to try and wish the stressor away by ignoring it.

“Avoidance can be really harmful, because you’re just kind of ignoring the stress as opposed to trying to deal with it,” the researchers explain. “These small business owners who engaged in more effective coping were more engaged with their small businesses, had lower burnout and had better personal growth because of the experience they were going through.”