We are three months into 2024, Christmas is a distant memory, and the clocks are soon going forward, with the days getting a little longer and lighter.
Now that we’re at the end of the first quarter, it might be a good time to assess your mental well-being, consider where you are now, and consider what you could do to support yourself. If you are an employer, consider helping give your team’s well-being a boost.
Here are some ideas of ways to help your mental health while still maintaining a busy working life.
1. Set Boundaries
Technology has brought many gains in productivity and efficiency, but it has also meant we are more connected to work than ever. Being constantly available can make it difficult to switch off and may lead to feelings of burnout.
Setting boundaries so that work doesn’t invade your home life can give you proper rest and help you to feel more energised.
What those boundaries look like is up to you. You may want to switch off completely or keep some out-of-hours links with work.
Once you have decided what best suits you, then make sure you let others know so you can stick, as much as possible, to the parameters you have set for yourself.
For example, you could change your status to ‘out of office’ on Teams. You could have an ‘out of office’ reply to emails. Similarly, on WhatsApp, change your availability to ‘busy’.
Another tip is to use separate means of communication for your work and home life. For example, while your work email is clearly for business, you might limit messaging apps (like Messenger or WhatsApp) to private use.
When you are working from home (and many of our clients at Rombourne have a hybrid working arrangement), treat this in the same way as you would if you were in the office. At the end of the day, shut the door on your work station, and mentally return home.
Diarise your days off and downtime, and make sure you treat these in the same way as you would a work appointment, as they are equally important.
2. Talk It Through
If can sometimes feel that what we are going through – such as stress and work overwhelm – is unique and has never happened to anyone.
In fact, this is rarely the case. Often, there are others in our network, whether professional or personal, who have undergone or are undergoing something similar.
Tapping into this resource can help us to find successful coping strategies. Simply talking through our problems, particularly with someone who has ‘been there, got the t-shirt’ can be very helpful. As the saying goes, a problem shared is a problem halved.
Rather than isolating and trying to work even harder when under stress, why not try reaching out to others?
Why not take time out regularly for a coffee break or lunch with someone you have not seen for a while? Do you belong to (or could you join) a professional organisation that has networking opportunities?
Building up in-person connections can help you gain a greater sense of community and a feeling of being connected that will make a noticeable difference to your well-being.
And, if you are an employer, encourage this among your team and facilitate times for them to talk to one another. Perhaps arrange events, team-building activities or just a visit to a pub or coffee shop after work.
3. Givers Gain
Giving back brings enormous benefits in terms of well-being and benefits the person or organisation on the receiving end. Whether it is a small, random act of kindness or a big fundraiser, it really is a win-win.
There may be opportunities to give back through work or ones that you – as an employer – can facilitate.
Why not try:
- Offering to help a colleague or business contact with something?
- Making a coffee for colleagues?
- Giving a card or small gift to a colleague who has been through a life event?
- Volunteering to mentor or coach someone, whether in the workplace or via a voluntary role in a membership organisation you belong to?
As a business, you may support a charity or not-for-profit, which will give opportunities for team-building. These will get people out of the office, help foster a sense of camaraderie and bring positive benefits to all taking part.
Similarly, you could run in-work fundraising events for local charities or national days, such as Red Nose Day (taking place this year on March 15) or BBC Children In Need. This concept of helping yourself while helping others is a well-known way to improve mental health and well-being.
Final Words
Caring for wellbeing is a constant balancing act, but setting boundaries that allow you to get proper rest, staying connected with others, and finding opportunities to give back can all help.
And finally, having a welcoming, comfortable office environment to work in, such as those we offer at our serviced offices, will do much to boost morale and wellbeing. If you’d like to visit our centres in Bristol, Cardiff, Newport or Swindon, please get in touch and we would be delighted to hear from you.
