What is your work Emergen-C?

Lead by example: prioritize self care and have the awareness to integrate what you need.

When you start to feel sick, do you actively try to drink more water, rest up and take an Emergen-C? What if you added preventative care into your work routine when you started to see burnout on the horizon?

As a manager, I try to lead by example. When I take good care of myself and my mental health, I set an example to my team that it is okay to take time for wellness. That said, we’re all human and not perfect. I try my best, and definitely don’t always get it right. One thing that has helped me is shifting my perspective from work-life balance to work-life integration. Instead of constantly deciding which part of my life I should put 100% of my attention to, I think about my personal and professional life holistically.

When checking in on how I’m doing, I imagine a gas tank, and look out for when I’m getting close to empty. Just like a regular vehicle, your metaphorical “car” will perform much better for longer if you keep it above empty at all times.

Taking time to stave off burnout and illness is more than okay, it is essential to your team’s success and the productivity of your business. If your people are overworked, tired and sick, they will not be performing at the level you need them to be at. Of course, most people will be eager to make a good impression and can misinterpret how to do that as taking on too many projects at once. Make it clear that taking care of yourself will ultimately make a good impression because the quality of your work will show.

How do you integrate your personal well-being into your work life?

My mentor taught me that sleep is your biggest weapon. I’ve started tracking my sleep with Sleep Cycle. This app highlights my sleep trends; seeing the data on my sleep app gives me a good read on my gas tank because if I’m not sleeping well, I know that the rest of my wellbeing will suffer. If I see that my sleep cycle is off, I will turn on one of the modules within the Happier app called “Sleep Deep & Dream Sweet”. This sleep meditation helps me reset my thoughts and turn down the volume on the day’s chatter.

Develop the self awareness to recognize warning signs that you’re heading towards an empty gas tank.

Find out what your personal self care Emergen-C is, and utilize it to become a more effective leader.

Until next time -

Cheers, “Q”