Well if I’m honest, I’m not sure that I am working responsibly all of the time. I mean look at me – I’m writing this blog post at 2am because my mind just won’t switch off!

The mental health of founders is no laughing matter; it’s very real. The long days, lying awake at night thinking, problem solving every minute of the day, never taking proper downtime even on holiday. It’s not good.

As a business owner there are times when you wonder if you have the strength and energy to go on. There are days when you get up and think about chucking it in. We know – we’ve been there!

There’s a University of California Medical School study from 2015 that is often quoted when talking about the mental health of startup founders. It discovered that 49% of founders had self-reported mental health conditions. A history of depression was reported from 30% of founders, which is almost twice as high as for the general population in Australia.

I reckon I’ve spoken to around 500 founders since starting this business. I’ve listened to them all. I’ve heard the challenges, I’ve felt the pain and I’ve understood the desperation. I’ve celebrated the wins with a lot and felt a sense of pride when our users get themselves in the media time and time again. I don’t know about them, but it certainly boosts my morale seeing them in the press.

It takes guts to back yourself. It’s a bumpy and nerve-wracking road but I know I wouldn’t swap back to the one most travelled.

What helps us on our journey is taking a few sanity checks now and again. It’s what’s inspired us to start what we’re calling a ‘work responsibly initiative’.