Learn To Push The No Button
It has been estimated that stress costs Australian business over $10 billion annually in lost productivity and sick days.
Stress and anxiety is the number one reason for sick leave with 1 in 3 corporate workers admitting to feeling stressed. “I am not stressed, I am just very busy!” Busyness can also be classified as invisible stress. It sucks your energy reserves, drains your enthusiasm and saps your creative flair and awesomeness!
Have you ever been in a situation where you have so much on the go at once that if one small aspect of life shifts, everything else appears to tumble down, almost in slow motion? Have you also noticed that the last small detail is not usually a huge life changing moment? More likely it is just the final straw to an already full stress bucket. The timing of the melt down is yet another raw nerve, as it is rarely at the most convenient time or place.
Everyone knows that if you have a job to get done, you give it to a busy person. Unfortunately, it is the busy people who are also the ones that often forget to say that little word: “No.” They feel compelled to take on more and more tasks until the overload becomes a burden. The busy person is also most likely to be a perfectionist or one who is unwilling to delegate, because, let’s face it, that is why they get the extra jobs in the first place.
It is important to nurture yourself to ensure that your stress load is manageable and does not cause you a debt that has to be repaid by compromised health. Have you ever been in an aeroplane and listened to the air hostess giving the safety talk? They stress the importance of giving yourself the oxygen mask first to ensure you have the capacity to then be able to help others. Self-care is not a selfish act, it is a primary survival mechanism to ensure that you can perform at your very best. The world will give you a constant source of extra stuff to do, however, like the tide, you must be attuned to the ebb and flow of your life.
“Self-care is not selfish. You cannot serve from an empty vessel.”― Eleanor Brown
A person who is happy and in tune with their health and well–being generally finds it easier to inspire and uplift others. A workplace that has its workforce continually performing under high stress does not operate at a sustainable and efficient level. A healthy, productive workplace has effective well–being policies and practices, encourages a culture of inclusion and values a staff self-care regime.
Here are ten top self-nurturing tips that can help you to hit the pause button and reenergise.
1. Learn to say no when no is appropriate.
2. Routinely enjoy a hot bath. Use candles and add a soothing essential oil. Totally relax and unwind. Maybe set this time for mediation.
3. Place a photo of your best holiday moment at your work station. When you are feeling overloaded, pause and look at that photo. Remember the fun time it was and reconnect with that feeling. Recommence your work.
4. When finding yourself feeling really angry or pent up, stop! Move one step backward and then one step to the side. Now count to ten and then consider the issue again.
5. Give yourself permission to not always be perfect. Do your best on the day.
6. Do yoga, have regular kinesiology sessions or a massage to reduce stress build up.
7. Enjoy a 10 minute stroll in the sunshine each day. Connecting with nature helps you to reground and stabilise yourself.
8. Allocate time to relax and unwind with friends and family.
9. Use colour to uplift and inspire.
10. Smell the roses, not just see the roses.
You must be 100% responsible for your own wellness. Learn to be aware of your body’s many signals to slow down and to take a breath. Use techniques and symbols that give you back the remote control of your life so that you can use the pause button and regain your life energy and health. Don’t let invisible stress become an energy vampire by limiting your capacity and affecting your health.
