Did you know that “Superwoman Syndrome” is a real thing?

Do you take pride in juggling work, family, and personal life? The temptation is to overwork in order to be an ideal boss, an ideal mother, or just to keep everything together. As a first-generation entrepreneur, does overworking make you feel needed, helpful, and important? Do you often see yourself as the driving force in your company, or at least an equally powerful force as your partners or coworkers? You might have Superwoman Syndrome.

What is a Super Woman Syndrome?

The Super Woman Syndrome (SWS) is a condition affecting over 70% of women in the workforce, where the mind and body are overwhelmed by the constant juggling and balancing of family and career. Sixty percent of all working women with school-aged children suffer from SWS. Superwoman Syndrome affects the majority of entrepreneurs, high-achieving professionals, and most stay-at-home moms. According to a study by the Stanford Graduate School of Business, over 70% of women feel guilty when they ask for help. The stats behind “Superwoman Syndrome” show that two-thirds of women are spending too much time on things that aren’t essential to their goals.

The True Cost of Being a Superwoman

Every time you sacrifice one part of your life to cater to another, you lose a piece of yourself. The cost of being a Superwoman is your happiness, balance, and fulfillment. It is extremely common to get stuck in a negative way of thinking and start doubting yourself by overworking in an attempt to prove your worth.

Superwoman Syndrome is rooted in being programmed to be ultra-independent, which is a stress response. Somewhere in your life, you learned that you can’t rely on others to ask for help and that you are better off figuring everything out on your own.

Back in the day, I used to take pride in doing so many things. It made me feel needed, helpful, and important. I would spend the whole day wholeheartedly giving to my patients, working through lunch, and still answering phone calls from friends or work to volunteer more of what little time and energy I had left. I’d experience micro-aggressions, but hide my emotions and keep going. I’d only go to the bathroom about 2 times a day, because, you know how it is, always on the go! I kept a stash of sweets in my purse to keep me going. Then I’d come home to take care of my kids. And I did it all with a smile on my face.

But the reality was that being superwoman was costing me my wellbeing. I was exhausted all of the time. I barely made time to see my friends. There was no time in my schedule for hobbies, relaxation time to unwind or read a book or just have unscheduled fun. I didn’t realize I was living in survival mode. This way of living had been my norm my entire life. I watched my mom work 12-hour shifts, host family get-togethers barely complaining. It was just expected. It was just a fact that our worth is tied to our productivity. I’d watch my aunts overwork at family functions! Finding the time to cook all the main meals for the entire family, serving everyone, and not once asking for help. Superwoman syndrome is encouraged in Caribbean, African, African-American, and Afro-Latin cultures!

But you’re so much more than how busy you can be!

Being a real woman is hard work, no doubt about it, but running on empty isn’t the answer. Can you really afford to be a superwoman? When you try to keep everything together and spread yourself too thin, you can end up feeling unappreciated, exhausted, and burned out.

Work smarter, Not harder to prevent Superwoman Syndrome

While being a superwoman is admirable, it doesn’t make you a successful person. One of the best ways to avoid overworking yourself is to delegate work to others. I’m talking about tasks that you can’t do yourself, that is time-consuming, and that don’t require a lot of skill or training. Establish a routine that includes getting help from others. Empowering the right people to do these tasks will free up your time, allowing you to focus on your personal wellbeing and the growth of your business (e.g. income-generations tasks). Wouldn’t you finally love spending time with your family and friends or doing hobbies you enjoy?

When you delegate work to others, you make yourself more productive. Here are some ways to do this:

1. Delegating tasks to others can help your complete projects faster than if you completed them on your own.
2. Delegate work to those who can perform the task best. If you’re delegating a marketing project, choose an individual with a proven marketing track record.
3. Consider having employees work together on projects when they have complementary skills and work well together. They can share their strengths and help each other accomplish more than they could individually.
4. Whenever you are stuck, let go of your pride and ask for help from employees’, friends or family members. Sometimes all you need is an extra set of eyes or a different perspective.
5. Be patient and take the time to ensure that employees understand what’s expected from them before delegating a task. If they don’t know exactly what’s required of them, they may not be able to complete the task correctly and on time.  No more doing things because it will be faster if you do it.
6. Set deadlines for delegated tasks. Establishing deadlines for delegated tasks gives employees a clear understanding of your expectations.

Conclusion

As we get older and know better, we must intentionally choose better for our health and wellbeing. Making downtime on your schedule allows your brain and body to slow down to feel safe and know you are not in survival, reduces the number of stress hormones in your body to allow you to relax, reduce overthinking, and that urgency in your body to constantly be doing something.