Boosting your energy and avoiding burnout

Boosting your energy and avoiding burnout

If you are like many of our workshop participants, you might be feeling low of energy right now or even completely burnt out.   

And it’s no wonder many of us are feeling this way! We’ve backed up years of uncertainty, with a challenging economic climate, and a world that seems to be increasingly volatile. All of this, on top of our usual life challenges is enough to make any super energetic person feel a little pooped!

So, what can we do about it? There are plenty of science-based ways to boost our energy and vitality, while also reducing the likelihood of stress and burnout. We’ve included a few of our favourite.  

Create healthier routines and rituals

Our brains love routines and rituals. Especially when there’s a lot of change and uncertainty around us. There’s a good chance you already have several positive routines in your life that set you up for success. The good news is, they often become positive reinforcement loops. Every noticed when you exercise more you want to eat healthier too? Many people experience this positive flow on effect. So, starting one new habit can have a positive impact on your general lifestyle bit by bit!

Here’s a few routines that can help you along the way:

• Exercise at the same time each day – even just 20 minutes of brisk walking has been shown to boost your mood for up to 12 hours
• While working from home get dressed in your ‘work clothes’, rather than your trackpants and ugg boots. Signal to your brain ‘it’s work time’ .
• Also consider adding a fake commute – driving or walking to work at the start and end of your day to signal pause between work and home life. This is known as the Third Space.  
• Take a planned lunch break and connect with nature, even if it’s just 5 minutes. Our brains need a break too!
• Update your default meeting times from 30 minutes to 25 minutes and 60 minutes to 50 minutes. Not only will you be more concise during the meeting, it gives you space for a break, especially during days where there are lots of ‘back-to-backs’.
• Do walking meetings wherever possible, this can include over the phone.
• Get up and stretch and look out the window at least once an hour.
• Have tech-free time at least 1 hour before bed.
• Call a friend or family member on your way too/from the office to connect.
• Commit to eating a least one meal a week that doesn’t include highly processed foods.  
• Get sunlight early in the morning! It helps kickstart the process of awakeness and will benefit your sleep that night.
• Take a mindful breath every time you press send of an email.
• Block out your diary to ‘batch work’, for instance blocking out time to check emails, or write a report or do data entry.

Find a new perspective

Sometimes our emotions can get the best of us. Especially when there’s a lot going on in our lives. To help with this, start reflecting on the beliefs or perspectives you have about things throughout the day. Ask yourself – is my perspective, or belief about this thing helpful or unhelpful for me?  

For instance, if you’re having a challenging conversation with someone instead of thinking ‘they are being a pain’, can you change your perspective and ask ‘I wonder what’s going on for them?’ This can shift your energy from one of resistance towards one of compassion.

Reflecting on our beliefs or perspectives about things can help us feel more empowered to make change and even grateful for the things we have. The good news is - practising gratitude has been shown to support our mental health and wellbeing.

Reduce the problem space

When thinking about the future, it can be overwhelming to grasp all the things we can’t achieve or do right now. It’s a good idea to consider what is in your control – the problems that you can solve. This might include what you can achieve at work today, or how much exercise you can do between now and next week.

It can be helpful to mentally break down what’s ahead of you into parts and create achievable short-term goals. This is otherwise known as reducing the problem space which consists of the initial (current) state, the goal state, and all possible states in between. When we feel a huge gap between where we are and where we’d like to be, or a large problem space, our anxiety increases and our motivation levels dip. You might like to focus on your goals for today, this week or the month ahead, and find satisfaction as you reach them.

If you are feeling consistently exhausted, it’s a good idea to visit your GP for a check-up. You may be experiencing a medical issue that goes beyond your general wellbeing and mental health.  

When it comes to managing your mental health or the health of those around you, there is a lot of support all around. You may be able to access counselling support through your Employee Assistance Program (EAP) at work, or free call:

• Lifeline – 131 114
• Beyond Blue – 1800 512 348

#mentalhealthmatters

*This blog post is written for the general population and if you are concerned and need medical support, you should seek out professional advice.

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