That the powerful play goes on, and you may contribute a verse.
What verse will you contribute?
NOTE
1 1. M. ten Have, B. W. J. H. Penninx, M. Tuithof, S. van Dorsselaer, M. Kleinjan, J. Spijker, and R. de Graaf, “Duration of Major and Minor Depressive Episodes and Associated Risk Indicators in a Psychiatric Epidemiological Cohort Study of the General Population,” Acta Psychiatrica Scandinavica, May 16, 2017, https://doi.org/10.1111/acps.12753
3 How External Events Trigger Negative Feelings
What brings misery to a founder? Competition? Lack of financing? Market acceptance of product? Or the inability to do a hundred small things required each day?
Stressful life events have a substantial relationship with the onset of episodes of major depression, researchers proclaim, as seen in Table 3.1. A start-up life includes a generous dose of depressive triggers; loss of job occurs by design or default. There is neither a financial cushion nor a predictable drip of a salary each month. All founders have faced financial problems, be it personal or be it payroll. Or legal hassles. Marital challenges are not too far behind.
But here is the counterintuitive part: about one-third of the association between stressful life events and onsets of depression is noncausal, since “individuals predisposed to major depression select themselves into high-risk environments.”1 Put differently, we throw ourselves into high-risk environments to feed our innate tendencies. Is it the start-up life that leads us to a depressive episode, or is it our predisposition that puts us in such a situation?
Table 3-1 External Events and Depression Triggers
| Life Events | Odds that such events trigger depression | |
|---|---|---|
| Month of event | Three months after the event | |
| Job loss | 3.95 | N/A |
| Legal problems | 3.81 | 10.81 |
| Work problems | 2.44 | 2.74 |
| Financial problems | 5.85 | 2.36 |
| Divorce | 5.22 | N/A |
| Marital problems | 8.39 | 4.29 |
| Assault | 25.36 | N/A |
(Source: K. S. Kendler, J. Kuhn, and C. A. Prescott, “The Interrelationship of Neuroticism, Sex, and Stressful Life Events in the Prediction of Episodes of Major Depression,” American Journal of Psychiatry 161, no. 4 (2004): 631–636.)
PERSISTENCE: THE DOUBLE-EDGED SWORD
In The Theory of Moral Sentiments, economist Adam Smith writes, “The great source of both the misery and disorders of human life, seems to arise from overrating the difference between one permanent situation and another.”
Adam Smith is asking us to take another look at our own situations and probably saying, maybe it's not that bad. Maybe we are overrating it. Maybe this hopelessness, maybe this terrible situation should be perceived differently. He reminds us that a founder has to disturb the peace of society to achieve their outcomes. ”The person under the influence of any extravagant passions, is not only miserable in his actual situation, but is often disposed to disturb the peace of society, in order to arrive at that which he so foolishly admires.”
And he adds that “none of them can deserve to be pursued with that passionate ardor which drives us to violate the rules either of prudence or of justice; or to corrupt the future tranquillity of our minds …” In the quest of innovation and pursuit of extravagant passions, entrepreneurs can make themselves and others miserable. The mantra of persistence is often chanted at the expense of immense sacrifices. Persistence – a noble virtue – can even become a source of misery.
Persistence was my superpower. But now I've come to understand that persistence is a double-edged sword, and my decision not to take a break, to not take more off my plate, hurt me, my family, and the company. That was the biggest mistake of my career.
– Ryan Caldbeck, CEO, CircleUp 2
FOUR TYPES OF STRESSORS
In a survey on emotional resilience conducted by Jonny Miller and Jan Chipchase, the authors found that four types of stressors play out in a founder's life (see Figure 3.1): those driven by external and very precise events (losing a client, shortage of cash), and others driven by internal and ambient triggers (such as imposter syndrome).
Figure 3-1 Four types of stressors.
Source: Modified from Miller and chipchase 2020
Source: Twitter, Inc.
Although it may not always be easy to identify the source of our misery, such a framework can be a good starting point.
The external ambient stressors, such as noise, lighting, or air quality may be addressed somewhat easily, but ones that rise on the inside – the internal ambient ones – might be much harder to tackle.
In other situations, our feelings give us a glimpse of our deeper challenges. A feeling of prolonged sadness might be interpreted differently. It could be a symptom of current external circumstances, circumstances in which you have abandoned your own well-being, productivity, or self-worth. Or you may find yourself unable to navigate the demanding routine of work. See Table 3.2.
HOW IS THIS THOUGHT HELPING ME?
External stressors will shake us up, for sure. Even going to a social event for founders can create inane conversational pressures. They will
