By IMAGE
24th Sep 2017
24th Sep 2017
Long working weeks coupled with side hustles and busy family and social lives are par for the course. Working hard and playing hard also go hand in hand. Not to mention the pressure to have the ?perfect life?. The epidemic of busy has swept through our lives and affects every aspect of it. In a bid to cope you (like all of us) put your career and professional life ahead of your health and wellness. You do this knowing that to perform at your best, to escape burnout and to grow professionally that your health and wellbeing must come first – but striking the ?balance? is super hard to achieve.
What wellbeing depletion does to you
To keep up with the ?epidemic of busy? you stopped taking lunch, you rarely meet friends, you struggle to exercise and your hobbies and interests have fallen by the wayside. You feel exhausted pretty much all the time. Physical symptoms like headaches, teeth grinding, back pain and shoulder tension show up. The side effects of your wellbeing reserves slowly depleting are followed by non-physical symptoms – forgetfulness, confusion and a short temper. You often overreact, have difficulty in concentrating and find it hard to make decisions. Not to mention the tears come easily. As your wellbeing reserves dwindle you struggle to find the energy to get through the day. You both want and need to regain control but you don’t know where to start.
Sound familiar? This is a story replayed time and again in A Career to Love HQ by countless clients.
Mindset Shift
Consider your wellbeing as the fuel that gives you the energy to live life not as an extra thing on your ?to-do-list?. With that in mind stop and take a second.
Ask yourself – ?Would I expect my phone to work if I didn’t charge it?? Or my car to go if I didn’t fill it with fuel? The simple answer is no!
Now ask yourself ?How do I charge/fuel myself every day??
With that question in mind consider the following steps that take NO extra time (or energy) but that help to fill rather than empty your wellbeing reserves.
Practical Changes
There are some things that you can do to begin the process of recalibrating and rebuilding your wellbeing reserves again in order to flourish in your career. Pick one or two and commit to putting it into practice over the next 3 weeks. Keep an eye out for any positive changes.
- Get out of the office for lunch.
- Go for a brisk walk on your break.
- Eat lunch away from your desk every day.
- Read on your commute.
- Go to bed 15 minutes earlier each night.
- Get off the bus or train one stop earlier and walk to work.
- Take the stairs instead of the lift.
- Listen to a podcast.
- Join a class in the gym.
- Drink more water.
- Choose fruit as a snack.
- Turn the TV off and call somebody you haven’t spoken to in ages.
- Ask a colleague if you can do something to help them.
- Spend time with somebody who makes you smile.
- Spend 60 seconds per day reflecting on what you achieved.
- Listen to some music that calms or uplifts you.
- Prep a meal the evening before and cook fresh the following day.
After the basics of eating well, getting 7 hours sleep and adding movement to your routine everybody has different wellbeing needs. Be kind to yourself by giving yourself the permission you need to recharge and refuel yourself.
While putting your wellbeing first may not seem connected to growing your career, doing so, in fact, is the foundation stone upon which your future success is built. Finding time and then making time to build and tend to your wellbeing is not easy, selfish or indulgent. You are entitled to take a breather. Start by shifting your mindset in relation to wellbeing, and then implement practical changes. Doing so in the first instance makes you happier but also more creative, productive, focused and calm and these are the seeds for both professional and personal growth.
Remember, if you don’t create your version of success, someone will and you might not like their version.
Good luck!
By?Sinead Brady
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