April 7, 2024 • 9 mins
Have you ever found yourself at the end of a workday feeling more like a robot than a person? I've been there – literally attached to my desk, ignoring the toll it was taking on my health. But I've since learned the power of regular breaks and self-care, and I want to share these game-changing strategies with you. I’ll share my personal journey from burnout to balance and how a health-first perspective has supercharged my productivity.
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Alex (00:00):
Hey, it's Alex, once again from the Remote Work Life
podcast.
I hope this finds you well,wherever you may be in the world
, and thank you so much forjoining me on the podcast.
And today, once again if youhaven't tuned in to these
regular episodes that I'm doingto share a quick tip with you,
(00:27):
related this time toprioritizing self-care and
taking regular breaks to combatisolation and stress.
And these tips that I'm sharingare based on my own experiences
and based on experiences ofpeople that I've either
interviewed or met, and I hopethey can help you.
Some of these experiences, Iguess, have been the most
(00:49):
transformational things, or atleast the things that have been
transformational for me, inoptimising my own experience
whilst working on a remote basis, and more often than not, I'm
working from home.
So, although I've worked fromother locations as well, remote
work from home is the thepreferred option for me at this
(01:13):
particular point, um, although Ido, as I said, work at other
locations.
So let's let's talk aboutprioritizing self-care and
taking regular breaks to combatisolation and stress, and this
is something that's familiar tome because, again, I perhaps
used to be on the other side ofthings.
I certainly prioritised work.
(01:35):
You know work not to say thatwork is not important, but I
think if you don't have yourhealth and if you don't take
care of yourself, then youprobably are not going to be in
a position to be effective atwork or, in some cases, you may
not be in a position to work atall.
So looking after yourself is apriority.
(01:57):
Certainly, your health is yourpriority and prioritizing
self-care is something thatshould be at top of your list.
As I said, I wasn't very goodat it back in the day.
I'm by no means perfect now.
I need to still get better butI've taken steps and been
deliberate about my self-careand taking regular breaks to
(02:23):
combat isolation, and isolationwas something that I really
suffered with because I focusedso heavily on work.
I focused on getting thingsdone.
I would stay up till crazytimes, I'd get up at crazy times
and finish at crazy times inorder to get work done without
considering my own health, and Ieventually uh burnt out.
(02:46):
So, yeah, um, here are a fewthings that I would suggest, uh,
that you could consider atleast consider in implementing
into your, your lifestyle ifyou're working on a remote basis
, in order to improve thatscenario.
So taking breaks breaks are veryimportant.
(03:09):
They've been very important.
They are very important to meand I would recommend actually
scheduling, scheduling inregular breaks.
Put those breaks into yourcalendar so you can see them, so
your team can see them, sopeople who are close to you can
see when you, when you're on abreak.
It's not very nice when you'reon a break and somebody who can
(03:31):
see your calendar knows you'reon a break.
Then you know, calls you on.
It calls you while you're onyour break, but at least if it's
, if it's in the calendar, theycan see it and hopefully they
won't call you while you're onyour break.
So scheduling those regularbreaks in um, but also it can
remind you as well, it's a goodreminder for you just to get up
and do something that's notrelated to work.
(03:53):
That could be, I don't know,stretching, it could be taking a
brief walk, it could bereducing physical strain and
improve it.
Can it can help to reduce thatphysical strain and improve your
focus.
There was a point again whereyou know I wouldn't have, you
know I didn't necessarily havethe number of breaks that I
needed and affected, for example, my, my back, I, I don't have
(04:16):
the best back, but um, just putit mildly, but if, if I don't
walk around, if I, if I sit downthe whole day, I definitely
exacerbate any issues that Ihave with my back.
So taking wellness breaks isdefinitely something that I I do
and I need to do.
What other things?
So incorporating self-carethings into your daily routine
(04:41):
Again it's related to wellnessbreaks, but doing things like
exercise, doing things likeengaging in hobbies.
So there are times when, forexample, I'm on my break and I
might just play my electronicdrum kit, for example.
It just takes my mind away fromwork and when I come back to my
(05:01):
desk I'm refocused and ready togo again.
So you may have your hobbies aswell, that you've perhaps put
by the wayside.
Maybe it's time to reinvigorateor to reintroduce those hobbies
to your sort, your dailyroutines.
That's number two.
Number three social connection.
So the rumour is that remoteworkers, especially people who
(05:26):
work from home, don't speak toanybody outside of their house.
They stay in all day.
They don't have any interactionwith anyone apart from people
on those video calls.
That rumour is well, for mypart, it's a false allegation.
(05:47):
And you know, for me socialconnection is one of the most
important elements of remotework, and that connection is not
just virtually, but it's alsomeeting people, uh, physically,
you know, being able to seepeople touch people as well.
(06:08):
So, and that can help to um to,to remedy and help you with
your self-care and, uh, help youwith if you are feeling, and
help you with if you are feelingisolated or stressed for any
reason.
Social connection is soimportant.
Stay connected with friends,with family, with colleagues, to
combat feelings of isolation.
It can be done through, as Isaid, virtual socialising or in
(06:33):
person meetups when possible.
You can even meet with yourteam as well.
You can even have those awaydays that so many other remote
teams have.
So that's number three.
Number four is, yeah, eating,because eating can, in a way,
force you to have a break.
It forces you to do somethingthat's different to work.
(06:57):
I mean, don't get into thehabit of taking your food with
you and sitting at your computerand trying to work while you're
eating, because that just sortof defeats the whole purpose of
prioritising self-care andtaking regular breaks, doesn't
it?
So don't take your food withyou to your desk, have it in a
separate place and enjoy it.
(07:18):
So that's number four.
And then number five, it'swellness resources, so utilising
wellness resources and supportservices to combat stress and
isolation.
You might tap into counselling,mental health resources.
You may have a mental healthbuddy on your team or within
(07:40):
your business.
There may be educationalmaterials that either you can
find online or the business thatyou work with can provide
things on stress management, onresilience, all those different
types of things.
So what I'm saying here is, whenyou talk about prioritising
self-care, what I'm saying hereis when you talk about
prioritizing self-care andtaking regular breaks to combat
(08:02):
isolation, think about all theresources at your disposal.
Think about all the things thatyou can do and use the resources
that you find most interestingand relevant to you and put them
, apply them to your schedule,apply them to your schedule,
apply them to your situation andhopefully I'm hoping that that
(08:22):
will help you to turn thingsaround, because prioritising
self-care and taking regularbreaks can combat isolation.
It can reduce stress, I believe, and significantly improve your
overall well-being.
Hope that's been helpful to youtoday.
If it has, please considersharing with somebody who you
(08:43):
feel may benefit from hearingthis, and I just want to say
thank you for tuning in today.
I'd encourage you to reflect onyour own circumstances where
prioritising self-care isconcerned and take action today.
By all means, reach out to meand on LinkedIn if you have any
questions about the podcast orif you have any suggestions for
(09:07):
guests or any podcast episodes,and I wish you all the best.
Hey, it's Alex, once again from the Remote Work Life
podcast.
I hope this finds you well,wherever you may be in the world
, and thank you so much forjoining me on the podcast.
And today, once again if youhaven't tuned in to these
regular episodes that I'm doingto share a quick tip with you,
(00:27):
related this time toprioritizing self-care and
taking regular breaks to combatisolation and stress.
And these tips that I'm sharingare based on my own experiences
and based on experiences ofpeople that I've either
interviewed or met, and I hopethey can help you.
Some of these experiences, Iguess, have been the most
(00:49):
transformational things, or atleast the things that have been
transformational for me, inoptimising my own experience
whilst working on a remote basis, and more often than not, I'm
working from home.
So, although I've worked fromother locations as well, remote
work from home is the thepreferred option for me at this
(01:13):
particular point, um, although Ido, as I said, work at other
locations.
So let's let's talk aboutprioritizing self-care and
taking regular breaks to combatisolation and stress, and this
is something that's familiar tome because, again, I perhaps
used to be on the other side ofthings.
I certainly prioritised work.
(01:35):
You know work not to say thatwork is not important, but I
think if you don't have yourhealth and if you don't take
care of yourself, then youprobably are not going to be in
a position to be effective atwork or, in some cases, you may
not be in a position to work atall.
So looking after yourself is apriority.
(01:57):
Certainly, your health is yourpriority and prioritizing
self-care is something thatshould be at top of your list.
As I said, I wasn't very goodat it back in the day.
I'm by no means perfect now.
I need to still get better butI've taken steps and been
deliberate about my self-careand taking regular breaks to
(02:23):
combat isolation, and isolationwas something that I really
suffered with because I focusedso heavily on work.
I focused on getting thingsdone.
I would stay up till crazytimes, I'd get up at crazy times
and finish at crazy times inorder to get work done without
considering my own health, and Ieventually uh burnt out.
(02:46):
So, yeah, um, here are a fewthings that I would suggest, uh,
that you could consider atleast consider in implementing
into your, your lifestyle ifyou're working on a remote basis
, in order to improve thatscenario.
So taking breaks breaks are veryimportant.
(03:09):
They've been very important.
They are very important to meand I would recommend actually
scheduling, scheduling inregular breaks.
Put those breaks into yourcalendar so you can see them, so
your team can see them, sopeople who are close to you can
see when you, when you're on abreak.
It's not very nice when you'reon a break and somebody who can
(03:31):
see your calendar knows you'reon a break.
Then you know, calls you on.
It calls you while you're onyour break, but at least if it's
, if it's in the calendar, theycan see it and hopefully they
won't call you while you're onyour break.
So scheduling those regularbreaks in um, but also it can
remind you as well, it's a goodreminder for you just to get up
and do something that's notrelated to work.
(03:53):
That could be, I don't know,stretching, it could be taking a
brief walk, it could bereducing physical strain and
improve it.
Can it can help to reduce thatphysical strain and improve your
focus.
There was a point again whereyou know I wouldn't have, you
know I didn't necessarily havethe number of breaks that I
needed and affected, for example, my, my back, I, I don't have
(04:16):
the best back, but um, just putit mildly, but if, if I don't
walk around, if I, if I sit downthe whole day, I definitely
exacerbate any issues that Ihave with my back.
So taking wellness breaks isdefinitely something that I I do
and I need to do.
What other things?
So incorporating self-carethings into your daily routine
(04:41):
Again it's related to wellnessbreaks, but doing things like
exercise, doing things likeengaging in hobbies.
So there are times when, forexample, I'm on my break and I
might just play my electronicdrum kit, for example.
It just takes my mind away fromwork and when I come back to my
(05:01):
desk I'm refocused and ready togo again.
So you may have your hobbies aswell, that you've perhaps put
by the wayside.
Maybe it's time to reinvigorateor to reintroduce those hobbies
to your sort, your dailyroutines.
That's number two.
Number three social connection.
So the rumour is that remoteworkers, especially people who
(05:26):
work from home, don't speak toanybody outside of their house.
They stay in all day.
They don't have any interactionwith anyone apart from people
on those video calls.
That rumour is well, for mypart, it's a false allegation.
(05:47):
And you know, for me socialconnection is one of the most
important elements of remotework, and that connection is not
just virtually, but it's alsomeeting people, uh, physically,
you know, being able to seepeople touch people as well.
(06:08):
So, and that can help to um to,to remedy and help you with
your self-care and, uh, help youwith if you are feeling, and
help you with if you are feelingisolated or stressed for any
reason.
Social connection is soimportant.
Stay connected with friends,with family, with colleagues, to
combat feelings of isolation.
It can be done through, as Isaid, virtual socialising or in
(06:33):
person meetups when possible.
You can even meet with yourteam as well.
You can even have those awaydays that so many other remote
teams have.
So that's number three.
Number four is, yeah, eating,because eating can, in a way,
force you to have a break.
It forces you to do somethingthat's different to work.
(06:57):
I mean, don't get into thehabit of taking your food with
you and sitting at your computerand trying to work while you're
eating, because that just sortof defeats the whole purpose of
prioritising self-care andtaking regular breaks, doesn't
it?
So don't take your food withyou to your desk, have it in a
separate place and enjoy it.
(07:18):
So that's number four.
And then number five, it'swellness resources, so utilising
wellness resources and supportservices to combat stress and
isolation.
You might tap into counselling,mental health resources.
You may have a mental healthbuddy on your team or within
(07:40):
your business.
There may be educationalmaterials that either you can
find online or the business thatyou work with can provide
things on stress management, onresilience, all those different
types of things.
So what I'm saying here is, whenyou talk about prioritising
self-care, what I'm saying hereis when you talk about
prioritizing self-care andtaking regular breaks to combat
(08:02):
isolation, think about all theresources at your disposal.
Think about all the things thatyou can do and use the resources
that you find most interestingand relevant to you and put them
, apply them to your schedule,apply them to your schedule,
apply them to your situation andhopefully I'm hoping that that
(08:22):
will help you to turn thingsaround, because prioritising
self-care and taking regularbreaks can combat isolation.
It can reduce stress, I believe, and significantly improve your
overall well-being.
Hope that's been helpful to youtoday.
If it has, please considersharing with somebody who you
(08:43):
feel may benefit from hearingthis, and I just want to say
thank you for tuning in today.
I'd encourage you to reflect onyour own circumstances where
prioritising self-care isconcerned and take action today.
By all means, reach out to meand on LinkedIn if you have any
questions about the podcast orif you have any suggestions for
(09:07):
guests or any podcast episodes,and I wish you all the best.
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