How to focus as an HSP (Highly Sensitive Person) Entrepreneur
As a highly sensitive person (HSP) and entrepreneur, you might often feel like you need focus, especially when trying to build your online business.
This common struggle often arises from a lack of clarity about your target audience, niche, and the specific challenges your ideal clients face.
Without these foundational pieces in place, it’s easy to feel a lack of focus and even frustrated, particularly when investing in new courses or programs without the right guidance.
In this post, you’ll discover strategies on how to focus as an HSP (highly sensitive person) entrepreneur. I will also share my personal experience in my entrepreneurial journey as a highly sensitive person.
The Challenge of Finding the Right Support
In my journey, I’ve invested in many courses and programs, hoping to find the support I need to succeed. But when these programs didn’t offer the high-level, personalized support I needed—like hand-holding through the process—I ended up feeling lost, confused, and discouraged.
It was as if no one in the world understood my struggles or cared to help me get back on track.
This lack of support often led me to leave the program before finishing it, which meant I never saw the results I hoped for.
At the time, I didn’t realize I was a highly sensitive person. Now that I do, I see how much I needed guidance from another highly sensitive entrepreneur—someone who understood both the challenges of business and the unique needs of being highly sensitive.
The Impact of Feeling Isolated and Misunderstood
What frustrates me most about not being able to focus the way I'd like to (I call this feeling scatterbrained) as a highly sensitive entrepreneur is the loneliness and discouragement that come with it.
I often felt like no one was paying attention to me, I felt a little crazy if I'm being honest, and it seemed like those who were further along in their journeys seemed only focused on their success.
(I know now that this was me doing some deep thinking as a sensitive person.)
This left me feeling unsupported, isolated, and misunderstood. I questioned my worth and began to wonder if I was just a weirdo person wasting time trying to build a business that no one cared about.
But the truth is, I wasn’t being guided by the right person—the person who could truly understand my experience as an HSP entrepreneur.
The Importance of the Right Guidance
The right guide for someone like me is someone who has walked in my shoes, someone who understands what it’s like to be highly sensitive (or highly sensitive person) trying to navigate the online business world.
Finding a mentor who makes me feel heard and understood has been crucial in helping me stay focused and motivated. Because they know what it's like to work with sensitivity.
I’ve also realized that having different learning styles available—like written materials, audio, and video—helps me absorb the teachings better, preventing confusion and helping me stick with the program. Life changer when it comes to coaching!
Managing Burnout and High Expectations
Another challenge I’ve faced is dealing with programs that are too long or have an intense workload. When a program goes on for more than three months and has high expectations, I tend to get burned out.
This was especially true in programs that required me to wake up early for Zoom calls or had a heavy workload. What a bad idea for my high sensitivity because it does nothing to keep my nervous system calm.
As an HSP, I need a lot of encouragement, one-on-one support, and guidance to stay focused.
I'm not ashamed of that because it means my foundational work environment is set up well, which equals success in my book.
Overall, it's a bonus in the category of decision making don't you think?
The Pressure of Urgency from Online Influencers
I believe there are two main reasons why HSP entrepreneurs struggle with losing focus (and clarity). The first is the pressure created by online influencers who make us feel like we need to act immediately or risk missing out.
This sense of urgency leads to buying courses or joining programs we don’t need (at least not yet ), which then results in feeling scatterbrained, overwhelmed, and yes, dilutes our focus potential.
The second reason is not having a clear path or solid foundation. Without first working on foundation pieces like identifying our niche, understanding our audience, and knowing their struggles, it’s easy to lose focus and give up before seeing any real results.
I will always emphasize this point unapologetically because I genuinely believe this held me back: if I had received guidance to help me identify these foundational pieces, I believe I wouldn't have struggled for as long as I did.
Today, I think to myself: what more for other sensitive people to have to go through their journey as HSP entrepreneurs and not have those solid pieces in place?
My Personal Experience with FOMO and Clarity
In the past, I joined many courses and followed influencers without knowing who I was helping or what my niche was.
This led to a lot of FOMO (fear of missing out) and let's be real… impulsive purchases of courses I didn’t really need (at least not yet).
You guys, because I didn’t establish the foundational pieces of my business, I ended up feeling confused and unclear.
But now that I’ve identified my niche and focused on understanding my audience’s struggles, I feel more focused and clearer than ever. Don't miss that last sentence.
This clarity comes from recognizing and respecting my unique needs as an HSP and building my business in a way that aligns with my wiring.
So, taking time to match your business with your unique needs as a highly sensitive person can give you the clarity and focus you need to succeed. (That’s whatever your definition of success looks like.)
A Practical Mindset Shift for HSP Entrepreneurs
If you’re an HSP entrepreneur (yeah, you can unashamedly call yourself a business owner if you want to), one of the most important shifts you can make is to acknowledge your nature and seek out coaching, a guide, or a mentor who understands your unique challenges.
Ideally, this should be someone who has been in your shoes and also obviously speaks about sensitive entrepreneurs.
Having this kind of support can help you stay focused, accountable, and motivated, allowing you to build your business in a way that feels right for YOU.
I am telling you from personal experience how to focus as an HSP (highly sensitive person) entrepreneur that this little tweak aka mindset shift was actually a big one in disguise that allowed me to truly hone in as a highly sensitive business owner and be able to focus the way that felt so, so good to me.
And man does it feel so much more organized in my head. Did you hear that? A big sigh of relief (relieved face emoji).
Moving Forward with Clarity and Support
Building an online business as an HSP (highly sensitive person) doesn’t have to be so non-focusy or feel overwhelming. And you don't need a business miracle.
There's nothing wrong with you. It's just the advice that you've been following isn't meant for a highly sensitive person. That is all.
By recognizing your unique needs and finding the right support, you can overcome feelings of loneliness, confusion, and discouragement.
Focus on creating a solid foundation for your business by clearly identifying your niche and understanding your audience.
And remember, the right coach can make all the difference in helping you stay on track and achieve your goals.
As you move forward, take the time to choose the programs and courses that truly align with your goals and needs.
Don’t let the pressure from online influencers push you into decisions that don’t serve you.
With the right guidance and a clear path, you can build a successful business that honors who you are as an HSP entrepreneur so you can get your focus on track.
Reflection Questions to Help You Focus as an Entrepreneur
How do you currently feel about your level of clarity regarding your niche and audience? What steps can you take to deepen this understanding and reduce overwhelm?
Have you found a coach or support system that truly understands your needs as a highly sensitive entrepreneur? If not, what qualities are you looking for in the right guide?
In what ways can you shift your mindset to prioritize building a solid business foundation before investing in new courses or programs? How might this change your focus and reduce feelings of FOMO (fear of missing out)?
Strategies to Help You Focus
Identify and Clarify Your Niche and Audience: Spend dedicated time clarifying who your target audience is, what specific niche you serve, and the struggles you audience faces.
By establishing these foundational elements, you can reduce feelings of confusion and focus more effectively on creating content and products that resonate with your ideal clients. (head exploding emoji)!Just typing that out makes me so excited because that was a total game changer as sensitive entrepreneur! (clapping emoji)
Choose Programs and Mentors Carefully: Be selective about the courses, programs, and coaches (or mentors and influencers) you choose to follow when it cones to building your business online. Prioritize those that align with your values, learning styles, and business goals.
It’s okay to step away from programs that don’t offer the personalized support you need, as this will help you stay focused on what truly matters for your business growth.Set Realistic Workload and Boundaries: Recognize the importance of pacing yourself and setting boundaries, especially when engaging in long-term programs or dealing with high expectations.
Here’s my encouragement to you: set realistic work schedules that include ample time for rest and reflection, so you can make sure to maintain focus without burning out. (I love me some deep thinking just laying in bed with my eyes closed - double pink heart emoji)
Did you find something relatable in this article?
Tell me in the comments.
Jaclyn Castro
HSP Business Coach for Online Entrepreneurs
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