Mother-of-three Dr Zayba Sheikh, CEO and founder of Ruh Dental, talks about the importance of setting boundaries in order to protect your wellbeing and prevent burnout.
I started my journey in 2006 when I enrolled at the University of Birmingham Dental School. After graduating in 2011, I became CEO of a group of prestigious dental practices in London. I quickly took two of them on as my own, thus founding Ruh Dental.
Since then, I’ve opened a third practice in Manchester and am due to open my fourth in Liverpool later on this year.
The journey to get to where I am today hasn’t always been easy, however. Outside of work, I’m a wife and a mother to three young children. As you can imagine, growing a business whilst raising three children inevitably led to a period of burnout.
I first experienced burnout between my second and third child when I was 31. Ruh was very much in its infancy and, as any business owner will be able to tell you, those first two years of business are crucial.
I needed to be present 100% of the time as CEO, and my team depended on me a lot during this time. It was almost like having an extra set of children trying to ensure that these brand new dental practices were going to be successful.
Protect against burnout
It was incredibly tough on my mental and physical wellbeing (which often go hand in hand). I felt exhausted 100% of the time. I’d be getting very little, if any, sleep and then when I did get a chance to sleep I couldn’t.
I’d end up getting up and working. My team would receive emails from me at 3am. Not that I ever expected anyone to reply at that time, but I just felt like, ‘well if you can’t sleep, you might as well work’.
My advice to other women who feel like they are juggling a million things at once would be to not be ashamed of it! Women tend to hold everything in until it becomes too much. Prioritise your own mental wellbeing so that you can be the best version of yourself, not only for your career and your family, but for you.
I’d also say set boundaries with yourself and others around you so that you can learn to be more present. I know that I used to be guilty of always checking my phone to see if there were any emails I needed to read or any Instagram messages to reply to.
Be present
Put your phone away or put it on do not disturb mode. Let people around you know what your boundaries are, and chances are they will respect them.
When I’m not working, my team know that they can send me a code red message if there’s an emergency and then, of course, I can respond to it. But otherwise, I am fully focused on my family.
Learn to be 100% present in that moment, whether it be with your family and friends or with your colleagues. Make sure you’re always giving your best. Quality over quantity is key.
Finally, I’d say practise gratitude. Have a journal or a list of things that you’re grateful for so that you can focus on the positivity in your life.
You don’t want to start becoming complacent, but by focusing on what you have achieved and taking stock of all your achievements, it helps you to take that step away from a stressful situation. You realise just how far you’ve come and all of the greatness that you have achieved.
I have three beautiful children and an incredibly successful and fast-growing business, with three luxury clinics across the UK, and a fourth one set to open soon in Liverpool. Sometimes I have to step back and realise ‘I did that’!
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Read more in our Celebrating Women in Dentistry series here:
- ‘I felt shame that my body didn’t work how I wanted it to’ – my struggles to conceive and making peace with it
- ‘That’s good for a girl’: facing sexism and homophobia as a same-sex couple
- Choosing to be child-free – ‘I was told I wasn’t fulfilling my purpose as a female’
- ‘Being a mother is the hardest job I will ever have’.
