Despite being some of the most talented, adventurous, and resilient individuals, startup founders are found to be susceptible to mental stress and depression. This is often due to the high-risk, fast-paced, and demanding nature of the tech startup world. Such environments often require founders to lead extreme lifestyles with few hours of sleep, isolation from non-work related peers resulting from long hours spent at work, and loss of control over personal life.
According to a survey, 72% of startup founders revealed that their work had detrimental impacts on their mental health, with the most common symptoms including stress (44%), anxiety (37%), burnout (36%), depression (13%), and panic attacks (10%). In some severe situations, some even considered suicide.
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Consequently, before finding themselves under the global spotlights for creating the next “unicorns” in the startup ecosystem, many entrepreneurs reported living through devastating moments of despair and self-doubt which can greatly impede their decision-making process and business acumen, further exacerbating the situation. For instance, a decision made by a startup founder under extreme stress can yield adverse consequences for the company, causing their business to lose profit or face legal action from investors or regulators. This also creates deeper damage to the psychological, emotional, and mental well-being of the said founder.
As a result, it is therefore essential for entrepreneurs to not only take care when making business-related decisions but also look out for themselves mentally — taking regular breaks and seeking professional support when necessary.
How Anapi tackles the mental toll on startup founders
To help address issues with the mental well-being of startup founders, there exist several products and services including mindfulness classes and professional counselling to counter burnout and other mental health issues.
Anapi, one of the pioneering insurance brokers for startups based in Singapore understands the needs of founders. They offer a unique proposition by including mental wellness counselling for startup founders as an added value service under their new Startup Director & Officers (D&O) Insurance.
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D&O is a liability policy that covers founders, directors and management staff from any legal actions taken against them for errors resulting from their management decisions. “As it is primarily taken out by founders to protect themselves from their individual liabilities, it makes sense to provide founders with a more rounded offering. After all, mistakes occur more often due to stress and pressure”, says Andrew Lai, COO of Anapi. “Anapi helps Singapore’s startup and entrepreneurial ecosystem by enabling companies to protect themselves through insurance. We believe this protection should extend to the individual founders themselves as they are the ones driving innovation and change in the market”.
What is included in the new D&O offering by Anapi
The policy protects founders, directors and other high-level officers of a company from any legal actions taken against them for errors resulting from their management decisions by covering the legal defence, settlement and investigation costs. Common sources of risk come from other shareholders, employees or regulators and include claims arising from employment disputes, errors in statements to shareholders, breach of regulation and alleged fraud claims. This type of coverage has become increasingly important for businesses as it helps mitigate legal risks faced by their key persons as they scale their business and manage multiple stakeholders, thereby giving them more peace of mind and empowering them to try more daring and innovative solutions.
On top of the insurance coverage, Anapi provides three sessions of counselling for the startup founders. This is extremely helpful for first-time founders or even serial entrepreneurs. Having an outlet to speak with an impartial professional is necessary during times of stress. Knowing that you have the channel to access professional help so easily will be a game changer for many founders, especially because stressful events can happen unexpectedly.
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This special D&O offering is aimed at new startups incorporated in Singapore. Anapi’s solution is backed by a specialist Lloyds of London insurer which provides extended coverage compared to other Singapore policies. An example is that the policy also covers the entity itself which is needed in cases of lawsuits from vendors or breaches of contract.
Anapi’s new startup D&O Insurance is very easy to sign up for Singapore-incorporated startups. You just need to complete a simple form to provide some basic information about the company. There is no need to provide financial statements for review. Coverage can start within a matter of days, meaning that founders get protected quicker and get access to mental health benefits sooner. Anapi has also reduced the barrier for startups to get insurance by offering monthly payment options. This brings insurance more in line with how startups are used to paying for other services, making it easier for them to manage their cash flow.
Who is Anapi
Founded in 2018 in Singapore, Anapi strives to be the pioneering insurance broker for new and emerging businesses based in Singapore. They work mainly with startups and entrepreneurs in the finance, technology or medical space, providing deep yet concise advice and helping clients to obtain specialised insurance coverage all over Asia from Anapi’s wide network of general and specialist insurers.
To learn more about Anapi’s all-inclusive insurance products, please visit: https://www.anapi.co
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This article is produced by the e27 team, sponsored by Anapi
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