3 WAYS TO ESCAPE BUSYNESS BURNOUT

Everyone knows that balance is good. When we have balance in our life, we feel content and collected. The trouble is that achieving – and retaining – that balance can be tricky. Typically, nowhere is this more true than when keeping the scales evenly set between work and life. Creating stronger boundaries is necessary in order to create this balance, something you can achieve by following these three key steps.

1. See the bigger picture

It’s easy to get bogged down in the minutiae of daily stress, but keeping an eye on your long-term goals is essential to working in a more strategic way. We all know that to be productive we need to start each day by figuring out our priorities, but instead of considering just deadlines – why not also think about the wider goal or project each task is attached to. This allows you to assess its relative value to your long term aims, and reshuffle accordingly. 

2. Communicate differently

In the modern work environment, communication is inherently reactive. We jump on emails and messages as they come in – but this is costly to our attention as it takes the average person 23 minutes to refocus after being distracted. To be more strategic in your communication, set aside times in the day when you answer any messages that might have come through – and outside of this time, keep focussed on what’s in front of you. That also means disconnecting from your email after the working day has ended!

3. Daydream more

It sounds bizarre at first, but research has shown that daydreaming is an important neurological function that not only boosts creativity and problem-solving skills – it can actually help restore mental resilience. The trouble is, we rarely make time for mind wandering as – whether at work or at home – there’s always some form of technology to occupy or entertain us. Changing that with regular daydreaming breaks can help to improve your work, and also your wellbeing.

Chris Griffiths and Caragh Medlicott are the authors of The Focus Fix: Finding clarity, creativity and resilience in an overwhelming world.