Getting Back on Track After a Bad Month
This month at Think Productive Australia we’re talking about being Human, not Superhero. This is a concept from “How to Be a Productivity Ninja” by Graham Allcott. It’s also one of the topics in our Time Management Training workshops. We all have bad days, bad weeks, even bad months. Sometimes it can feel like everything that can go wrong is going wrong. Whether that’s in your personal life or work life, it can have a real hit on your productivity. Even Productivity Ninjas have periods in life where it feels like forces are working against us.
Look After Yourself
When we’re feeling stressed out we don’t always tend to prioritize looking after ourselves. Sometimes this is all we need to start getting back on track. We can’t always control what’s going on in our lives that’s making us stressed. We can always try to make things a little easier for ourselves.
We’ve put together some self-care tips to help you start looking after yourself, and get back on track at work.
Get Enough Sleep
Easier said than done, am I right?
We all know that sleep is essential in keeping us sane, productive and happy. However, it seems to always be the first thing out the window when we’re stressed.
To try and get back into a better sleep routine. Stay away from screens an hour before bedtime. Avoid chocolate in the evenings and make sure your curtains are keeping the light out!
Drink Water
Studies have shown that increasing our water intake can improve our mood, energy and satisfaction levels. Studies have also shown that when people drink less, they suffered headaches, bad moods, tension and confusion.
Try and aim to drink 2.5 liters of water a day and see how this affects your mood and stress levels. Refilling your water bottle at work every hour or so also gives you the chance to take a break from your desk and screen.
Treat Yourself
Do something for yourself that you wouldn’t normally do and give yourself something to look forward to. Book yourself a massage, go see a gig or organize an evening out with your friends are just a few ideas of something you could do for yourself.
Review
To get back on track in your work life, the first thing you should do is book an afternoon with yourself away from your desk and get a big ol’ review out of the way. Brain dump, update your second brain tool, decide next actions and come away after a few hours of work feeling a lot more relaxed.
Be Ruthless
Take a look at your meetings calendar and your project lists and be ruthless. Try and make the upcoming month as gentle as possible for yourself to get back into the swing of things. Do you really need to be at that meeting? Can that project deadline be moved to next month?
Human, Not Superhero
Remember, you can’t do everything and nobody should expect you to. Be open with your Manager and let them know you’re struggling and they can help you prioritize your workload and take the pressure off.
By Jessica Scott
Jessica is Think Productive UK’s Account Manager and when she’s not off trying out new recipes and restaurants for her own blog, she also puts a voice behind some of our global blog content.
Before You Go…
Need to get a good review habit in place?
Read this blog post for more information or
contact us at hello@thinkproductive.com.au