We live in a fast-paced culture that rewards ‘busyness’.
We set high professional and personal goals for ourselves as we create a life that we want. We tend to be constantly striving, improving, reaching, but this can and does come at a cost – many of us take better care of our cars than our health.
Burnout is a state of emotional, physical and mental exhaustion. It is something that creeps in and can take over if you are not aware of the signs.
Emma Goldstraw from Total Health explains and provides some quick top tips to help you prevent burning out!
If you or your team are experiencing burnout then productivity, creative thought, business development and the team environment will all be negatively impacted.
As a leader, having to manage both your own, and being aware of your teams, mental and physical health is a challenge.
Signs that you, or a team member, are experiencing burnout:
- You are unmotivated to go into work or to stick with commitments
- Feeling exhausted and bone tired
- Not being in control of your emotions and moods, affecting work/personal relationships
- Feelings of chronic overwhelm
- Not wanting to do tasks that you used to enjoy.
As a leader, you will be aware that taking care of yourself benefits you and the people you work with, allowing for high performance. For your business to be healthy and thriving it helps if you and your people are also thriving.
As a leader, be aware that different people have varying levels of resilience and can cope with more or less than their next colleague, acknowledge that this isn’t a sign of weakness. Knowing your own ceiling for stress and pressure is a positive, as is knowing when to say no and of being aware of your boundaries, all of which prevent burnout.
“What you do has far greater impact than what you say”. —Stephen Covey
Take a look at your business: Do you reward over working? Are team members regularly sacrificing family time? Are you asking them to do more than their role? Are you neglecting to reemploy and maintain the number of people you need to get the job done? Are you expecting too much of yourself, trying to be a super leader, parent, friend, partner, family member?
As a leader, your behaviour trickles down; the good and the not so good. On a personal level prioritise your own self-care, which consists of more than eating a few more vegetables and getting a bit of exercise (though do include these). Schedule in time during your workday for your own self care practises and encourage your team to do the same.
Tips to help prevent burnout:
- Get some time outdoors. The Bay of Plenty is beautiful, get exploring.
- Have gratitude practise.
- Have a way of demarcating your workday.
- Finding a purpose or pleasure in your role.
- Schedule free time and take regular mini breaks – yes, you can have that day off.
- Have or create an out of work hobby.
- Prioritise sleep.
- Create a great culture around work communication outside of work hours.
As a healthy leader who enjoys their life and their work, you are creating the foundations and the framework for a healthy and thriving business.
Start today, one action creates the momentum to create a healthy, resilient and successful team.
This article is part of a blog series called ‘Your Health is Your Business’, a new approach to thinking about your health and wellbeing as a business owner.
Established by two local health coaches and Chamber members, Dahl from Nrgized Health & Nutrition, and Emma from Emma G Total Health, this collaborative project is focusing on five key aspects associated with healthy living: sleep, movement, nutrition, stress, and emotional resilience. The pair will also be promoting the importance of prioritising self-care, to ensure your health really is your business.
You can read their previous articles here:
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