Emma McIlroy
Title: Founder and CEO
Company: Wildfang
What it does: Gender fluid apparel company
Founded: 2012
Emma McIlroy's career at Nike and Barclays Bank isn’t what she draws upon on her entrepreneurial journey.
Instead, it’s her time as a middle-distance runner.
“When you stand on the line in 800 meters, it’s a very lonely place to be," said the Wildfang founder and CEO. "You also build incredible resilience because you know it’s gonna hurt, there’s no way to run a top class competitive 800 meter and not hurt.
"There’s no way to build a startup, particularly a first time founder, and avoid the pain points. You’re going to go through them and the question is how quickly you’re gonna go through them.”
See also:
For McIlroy, burnout manifests in many ways: sadness, depression, low energy, defeatism or a negative attitude, struggle in personal relationships.
It happened after her co-founder left, which, while deemed the right decision, was nonetheless difficult in that McIlroy lost someone so important to the business. Soon, sales and cash struggles arrived, and McIlroy missed some milestones.
McIlroy began turning to a small group of trusted advisers and loved ones for emotional support. The group listens, gives her space and doesn't second-guess her. Many in the circle are other founders who understand what she goes through, which leads to a less lonely feeling, she said.
After hitting burnout a couple of times, McIlroy realizes that taking better care of herself s important to the business.
Sure, her job as CEO is to raise money, grow sales, build a team. But, she must also energize the organization.
“When I start to get feedback from my team that they are not feeling good about our interactions, or I’m dropping more balls than normal or I observe that I am not feeling good about the work, those are the times I step back,” she said.
For her, it’s working out, an easy task to skip when she gets busy. Subsequently, she now protects that routine. She uses music to help set her mood and pick herself up. She has also cut back on alcohol and makes sure to spend time outside.
“Be observational about your energy,” she said. “Once you get really clear on the things that drive your energy up and the things that remove your energy you start to have the data to shape your energy.”
