Mastering Mental Health for Founders: Advanced Strategies for Lasting Well-Being

Our expert, a founder himself, outlines timeless strategies for founders to strengthen mental health and sustain growth.

As a founder, I understand the relentless pressures that come with entrepreneurship. Obstacles are inevitable — success depends on how you navigate around them. Managing teams, raising capital and navigating uncertainty often push mental health to the back seat. Yet after years of experience in high-stress environments, I’ve learned that mental resilience is more than just a skill. It is the foundation upon which long-term success is built.

20 Best Practices for Mental Well-Being

Be purposeful and committed.
Prioritize self care.
Get optimal sleep and rest.
Ensure proper nutrition.
Exercise consistently.
Practice realistic positivity.
Meditate regularly.
Unplug occasionally.
Connect with others.
Seek mentorship.
Track and understand your mental health patterns.
Stay grounded and present.
Set clear work-home boundaries.
Stay on track with a routine.
Learn to say no and prioritize relentlessly.
Develop healthy coping mechanisms.
Don’t neglect your personal growth.
Leverage technology.
Celebrate small wins.
Set aside time for personal reflection.

In my previous articles, I explored 20 essential practices like having purpose, prioritizing self care, getting proper rest and connecting with others along with advanced techniques like mental health tracking, grounding exercises and healthy coping mechanisms. These insights have helped many founders manage stress more effectively, but there’s more to the journey than just survival. This article explores how to thrive.

Inspiration From the Greats

Throughout my journey, I’ve relied on a blend of personal strategies and timeless wisdom to stay resilient. Alongside the 20 strategies from my previous articles, here are a few key principles, inspired by some of the greats, that have worked for me.

“Whether you think you can or you can’t, either way, you’re right.” – Henry Ford

The power of positive thinking is undeniable. Years ago, when I learned to ride a motorcycle, one lesson stuck with me: “Where you look is where you will go.” This became a powerful metaphor for life. Obstacles will always arise. If you fixate on them, you’re bound to collide with them. The key is to acknowledge them but focus on the clear path ahead. This focus on positivity has been essential for me. Don’t dwell on what could go wrong — rewire your brain for positivity to find the way forward and charge ahead with full confidence.

“Someday is a disease that will take your dreams to the grave with you.” – Tim Ferriss

The journey of 1,000 miles begins with a single step, and this applies to mental health as much as anything else. The hardest part is often just getting started. But once you begin, momentum builds. An object in motion stays in motion, and small, consistent steps lead to substantial progress over time. I’ve found that once you’re in motion, the process of iteration becomes natural. Everyone’s mental health journey is unique, so experiment with what works best for you. Don’t wait for the perfect moment — just start.

“Experience is the best teacher.” – Julius Caesar

Being a founder can feel like putting out fires constantly. I treat it like a game: If you can’t beat a level, figure out what went wrong, learn the tricks and keep trying. By transforming setbacks into learning opportunities, you build resilience and become stronger with each challenge.

“When life gives me [MF] lemons, I eat the [MF] lemon.” – David Goggins

Sometimes, you can’t escape life’s challenges. In those moments, the only option is to use stress as fuel. One of the greatest lessons I’ve learned is that no matter how bad things feel in the moment, “this too shall pass.” Time and experience have shown me that what seems insurmountable today usually becomes nothing more than a small bump in the road when viewed in hindsight. When you’re in the thick of it, remember that perseverance and time will eventually smooth things out.

“It is not the strongest of the species that survives, nor the most intelligent. It is the one that is most adaptable to change.” – Charles Darwin

Every founder needs a personalized resilience toolkit to rely upon when times get tough. What worked in one phase of your life might need adjusting as you evolve. Regularly assess your mental health practices and fine tune them based on your current challenges.

How Your Experience Builds Resilience

I didn’t arrive at these insights without facing my own set of challenges. Growing up with a single mother in Boston who worked tirelessly to support us, I quickly learned the importance of grit, creativity and mental resilience. These lessons served me well during the Great Financial Crisis, when I managed billions in media, telecommunications and technology loans for Scotia Bank amid a collapsing economy. Mental strategies, not just financial ones, helped me successfully push through.

Later, I became one of the world’s top-recruited bond traders from Chicago Booth’s MBA program, joining Deutsche Bank, the world’s largest bank at the time. I’ve worked at five publicly traded financial firms, including three with more than $1 trillion in assets, executing hundreds of transactions worth tens of billions of dollars. Along the way, I earned both the CFA and CAIA designations, served on their boards concurrently, earned a master’s degree in risk management from NYU Stern and completed all coursework for a doctorate in business administration (DBA) from the University of Florida.

The greatest challenge came during the Covid pandemic, when I built Applied Real Intelligence (A.R.I.) as the sole founder. Many doubted that funding startups with low-risk, minimally dilutive venture debt would work, but A.R.I. has proven its value. Startups today are staying private longer, seeking debt funding and finding themselves in need of precisely the kind of support that A.R.I. offers.

These experiences taught me the critical role of mental health in sustaining high performance. In high-stress finance and entrepreneurship, I’ve seen what works and what doesn’t in myself and others. Through it all, I’ve relied on the same mental health strategies I now advocate for founders.

Being a founder is about more than building a business — it’s about building yourself. The journey is full of obstacles, setbacks and tests of resolve. But by focusing on your mental health, staying resilient and adapting, you’ll do more than survive. You’ll thrive.

Remember, the real victory lies not just in what you achieve but in how you grow. Stay grounded, keep moving and you will find the path forward.

Zack Ellison, MBA, MS, CFA, CAIA is the founder and managing general partner of Applied Real Intelligence (A.R.I.) and the chief investment officer of the A.R.I. Senior Secured Growth Credit Fund, which provides debt financing solutions to premier VC-backed companies. He previously worked as a loan underwriter, investment banker, corporate bond trader, and fixed income portfolio manager at three firms with over $1 trillion in assets – Scotia Bank, Deutsche Bank, and Sun Life. Ellison holds an MBA from the University of Chicago, an MS in Risk Management from NYU, and is completing his Doctorate in Business Administration at the University of Florida.