For many of us who lead busy professional and personal lives, self-care can be put on the back burner and seen as a lower priority than it should be. With so much to do each day, it can be difficult to find time to focus solely on ourselves.
Unfortunately, self-care seems to be harder for women, who naturally tend to focus on looking after everyone else, leaving little time and energy for themselves. Holding down multiple responsibilities and consistently putting work, family, and friends before ourselves, without taking a moment for ourselves, can be a recipe for disaster.
However, self-care is important for enabling us to properly manage every aspect of our well-being and give our best in every area of our busy lives. After all, you can’t give from an empty cup. The same is true in our professional lives: feeling burnt out and overwhelmed will not enable you to be productive or efficient in your job.
Here is why you should start prioritising self-care and how doing so can actually boost your work productivity.
You’ll be calmer and more focused
Working yourself to the bone will only make it harder to cope with unexpected stress and manage difficult situations positively. If you consistently feel overwhelmed and frustrated, there is no shame in taking a mental health day to truly focus on yourself, recentre and destress.
By spending just a short time truly focusing on yourself, you’ll find you can return to work with a more positive outlook and a fresh perspective. For those in leadership roles, this will benefit your team as they will feel the shift in your energy and reap the rewards of your increased patience and focus.
You’ll react faster and be more efficient
When we’re overwhelmed and overworked, our brains can struggle to keep up. Without spending enough time looking after ourselves, either through a healthy diet, regular exercise, or just taking some time to breathe and relax, we naturally fall into a ‘fight or flight’ stress response. This instinctive reaction to excess stress causes us to live in a state of anxiety, which makes it harder for us to react and think clearly. Being responsive – rather than stepping back to see the most effective response – will not do you any favours within your team.
Research proves that people who practise self-care have better cognitive ability, which means they are more efficient during working hours.
You’ll feel happier and more motivated
Self-care looks different for everybody, and ultimately, it’s up to you to decide what it looks like for you. Whilst some may find taking an hour of their day to relax with a bath bomb in the tub does the job, others may enjoy going for a run. There are no rules about the best way to look after yourself, beyond the basics of enjoying a healthy, nutritious diet and getting enough regular exercise.
However you choose to destress and reward yourself for being absolutely fantastic, doing so regularly will increase your well-being and make you a happier person in general. This positivity will shine through in your working life, and you’ll also find yourself more motivated.
Do it your way
Whether you choose to take a day off to focus on yourself, sit down with a good book for an hour, or visit the salon for a well-deserved pamper, be sure to add a good dose of self-care to your busy schedule. Looking after yourself and allowing yourself the time you deserve to destress and unwind will leave you feeling happier, more productive, and far more motivated, both personally and professionally.
For more expert self-care tips, watch our LinkedIn Live replay: The Secret to Achieving Self-Love to Transform Your Life, here.