Are you suffering from work burnout? Although this post is titled for bloggers, the techniques that I am going to share with you will help you to avoid work burnout whether you are a blogger, freelancer, online entrepreneur or simply tired and low on energy.
I feel that today I am writing this post to not only share these techniques with you but also to remind myself of them. Do you ever learn something, gain awareness of that lesson, know it, but then you do not practice and live by it?
“Sometimes our greatest lessons to learn, are the ones that we teach”.
And so I would like to share with you;
8 Wonderful Ways To Avoid Work Burnout
Please note: This blog post contains affiliate links.
1- 10 Minute Meditation
Some people may specify that meditating at a certain time is the “most effective way”, however, I have found that everybody is different. Whether you prefer a 10-minute meditation in the morning, at lunchtime or before bed, it doesn’t matter when. The important point is to set aside 10 minutes a day, (the equivalent of having a brew!) to gift your mind some stillness and peace. There are many types of meditation and more emerging like its become a fashion trend, but all forms of meditation have 1 underlying truth; a disciplined practice of clearing the mind and finding stillness within.
There are different paths available to assist you in achieving this fundamental truth of meditation. You can focus your attention on breathing to help clear your mind, you can visually focus on a candle, you can listen to some relaxing music or you can find a guided meditation. I don’t know about you but I benefit from having somebody to tell me what to do in a guided meditation, somehow that helps me to switch off.
There are many videos available on YouTube which can help get you started. By dedicating yourself to 10 minutes of meditation practice every day will reward you in so many ways. It will give your mind and brain peace and also relax your body. Helping you to stay strong, focused and mentally alert, which will only benefit your quality of work in the long run.
If you want to read more about meditation, check out this book Meditation For Beginners for some guidance.
2- Take a Short Break Every 2 Hours
Working in front of a screen can be demanding in many ways. For instance; extra tension on your neck & shoulders, strain on your eyes staring at an artificial screen for long periods of time. As well as mental strain on your active brain. In addition, as the rest of your body remains stationary, you can become stagnant and achy.
The best way to combat all of that is to allow yourself to take a break every couple of hours. It doesn’t have to be a long break, a simple 10-minute break will be sufficient. If you can, go for a short walk. Getting outside breathing in the air for 10 minutes will work wonders. Allowing you to rest your eyes whilst getting you moving. Furthermore, the oxygen will refresh your brain cells, giving you more energy for effective work.
If a walk is not possible for you, or if it’s raining, practice some Qigong or simply have a short stretch for 10 minutes. Stretching out those achy shoulders, and moving your limbs will get your blood and energy moving, which will help to re-energise you, helping you to produce a higher quality of work. Trust me it will make you feel better!
Again YouTube is a fantastic source to find a short guided video for this. I recommend the below video, which is a 7 minute QiGong practice. This is fantastic to avoid work burnout, as you can do it anywhere. Finally, after a few sessions you won’t need the video which will rest your eyes from the screen. As a result, it will benefit your body and mind in an incredible way, and its only 7 minutes!!
3- Switch Off
Learn to leave work at the office…
This is a very important point to avoid work burnout that I am often guilty of. It is especially important if you work from home. It is quite amusing because most people choose to work for themselves to achieve a better work/ life balance. However, usually, the end result is working longer hours without necessarily getting paid for it! That is a one-way ticket to work burnout. I know what your thinking though; I have so much to do, a have a lot on my mind etc.
By practising the above techniques, they will help you to find peace & stillness, which, by giving your mind and body that space, will re-energise you and result in you having more focus and productivity. Therefore you won’t need to bring your work home with you.
As I work from home, my personal technique to conclude my work day is to walk out the door, imagining walking out the office, and then re-enter my home. Being aware of the power of thoughts can really help you with this, as, if thoughts of work enter your conscious mind, simply observe the thought and then tell yourself mentally, “That is a thought for tomorrow, right now I don’t need that thought.” Thus allowing the thought to pass and continue on with your lovely evening.
4- Drink Plenty Of Water
You may be surprised to see this as a point to avoid work burnout, but don’t underestimate the power of water. We are all after all made up of 75% of water.
Drinking water regularly throughout your day benefits you in a number of ways including;
– Hydrating & refreshing your body and being.
– The ability to perform mental arithmetic is compromised when your fluids are low.
– Drinking a sip of water every 45 minutes will help to increase concentration.
– Your memory will improve if you drink water in the day.
– Water increases the blood flow to your brain. This increases your brains oxygenation and hydration. It also calms your brain.
I won’t go too much into the topic as this is not a blog about health, but drinking lots of caffeine throughout the day won’t aid you to avoid burnout. Caffeine is unnaturally stimulating and, as a drug, messes with your body giving you that cold turkey effect, usually resulting in you ‘needing’ another tea (or coffee!). Try to reduce the amount of caffeine to take, perhaps begin by substituting 1 caffeine drink a day with a herbal tea, or a glass of water… that’s achievable right?
5- Practice Yoga
Yoga is another brilliant beneficial way to avoid work burnout. There are different types of yoga, Hathor yoga is a good place to start for beginners. If you struggle to meditate, practising yoga will help you, as it is a very meditative practice, similar to a moving meditation.
With Yoga, there are a series of positions for stretching, breath is also used when carrying them out. Essentially you stretch into a posture, breath into it to push your body further into the stretch. The stretch is usually held for about 5 breaths and then the body can relax.
This type of practice is great for stretching out those achy tense shoulders. It will help you to clear your mind as your mind is occupied on stretching & breathing. This mental break will help to boost your productivity for work.
6- Exercise
If yoga is not for you, there are many types of exercise to choose from to stimulate and workout your body. As exercise occupies your mind, it will give it a break from thinking about what’s on your to-do list, what email needs sending etc.
What form of exercise to carry out is really up to you. There are the obvious ones; jogging, walking and cycling. If you prefer to go to a gym or place to exercise, you can consider; gym equipment, swimming, martial arts and climbing. Or perhaps competitive sports are more for you such as tennis and squash.
Personally, I believe that you are more likely to get into a routine of exercise if you make it quick and easy to do. Rather than driving, spending money and time to go to a gym, I prefer to workout at home. I find that a combination of pilates, yoga and running, is sufficient to keep in a great shape and avoiding burnout.
The desired routine for exercise is about 30 minutes a day, however, if you don’t currently do that, don’t pressure yourself to achieve that straight away. Set an initial goal of twice a week, slowly increase that to three times a week.
The benefits of exercise, along with the obvious of good health, endurance, strength, better shape, increased confidence, more energy etc. Will help you to balance your mind and body, and good balance means no burnout!
7- Get a Holistic Treatment
As a trained holistic therapist, I can tell you that getting a holistic treatment every other month, (or monthly if you prefer), will greatly assist you to avoid burnout.
There are many treatments available depending on what you would prefer, and more importantly, what you would enjoy.
Here are a few;
– Back massage – perfect for relieving those achy tense muscles from being hunched over the computer
– Reflexology- If you can bear your feet to be massaged, reflexology is a wonderfully relaxing treatment.
– Reiki- A more spiritually inclined treatment, Reiki is powerful for clearing away mental debris and its super relaxing too!
-Acupuncture- This works to balance the flow of energy and Qi in our bodies. The needles aren’t as scary as they look!
How will getting a treatment help me long term? If you imagine yourself as a car. With your car, you drive it around and use it a lot. It gets an MOT check yearly to make sure it can keep going but if you take it for a service, this helps to maintain its use.
Getting a regular holistic treatment is the equivalent of giving yourself a service. In a nutshell, it will help to get rid of your crap, give you some TLC and revitalise you to keep going!
8- Smile
Last but not least remember to smile!
Try not to take yourself so seriously and remember to have fun with your daily life. At the end of the day, we are not here to work, we are here to experience. Do you want your experience to be serious or enjoyable?
Be mindful to smile along the way and invite joy into your experience.
Share a smile with someone and more often than not, they will share a smile back. There have been enough studies carried out to show the positive effect of smiling & laughter for a person.
Smile and enjoy your journey.
How did you find these tips for avoiding work burnout?
These are my 8 techniques to avoid work burnout for bloggers, freelancers and online entrepreneurs. Do you currently practise any of these techniques? What helps you to avoid work burnout?
Looking for further reading? Check out these great articles below;
Leave a message in the comments below!
Relax & enjoy
Emily x
Trackbacks/Pingbacks