Do you ever get the work blues?
A working life is a complicated one and like relationships requires nurturing. It is easy to take our working lives for granted, to get up every day and do the same thing without thinking about how much energy and time we put into this part of our life.
We focus on personal relationships and making those the best we can and yet our work, where we devote much of our mental energy, oftentimes gets neglected and becomes routine. I don’t mean that we should prioritise our work over our personal life but I am coming to the realisation that work blues are an inevitable state from time to time.
I don’t see the work blues as a negative. The trick is to run with them, make the most out of them and use them to our advantage.
The work blues can be beneficial because they allow us the time to re-think the way we spend our days and how we can work in the most efficient manner. A little mental downtime can foster creativity and help us figure out how to be the best we can.
When I am behind the game or suffering from the “blues” and we all have those days, I have a few practical ways to get a jump-start.
5 Ways To Wash Away the Work Blues
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1. Find the trigger that sets the right mood.
- When I have a “quiet” period I have one way that gets the creative moving. I pretend I am writing a newsy letter to a girlfriend and invariably the story telling stimulates ideas and gets the words flowing.
- Little rituals like an organised desk and a delicious jasmine tea will put me in the mind-set to be more productive.
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2. Changing venue
- Some days we need to get outside or change location if possible. My girls and I have decided this year to walk and talk; brainstorm on the move. If this isn’t possible then walking to work or taking an exercise class at lunch will help. It is about breaking routine in whatever way works for you.
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3. Teach Yourself Something New
- Whatever your field there is always the opportunity to learn something new. Take the challenge.
- For me the challenge is the technical side of what I do, working in the backend. I try and learn some tech and a little bit of coding every week.
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4. Start A New Project
- Put that learning to good work and start a side project that enhances what you do. Creating is good for the soul and can only make the everyday better.
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5. Share Your Knowledge
- Teaching someone in your field not only helps them but also makes what we do feel more exciting.
- Whenever I have my lovely interns in I find I am so much more enthusiastic and re-invigorated. So much becomes remote control when we don’t mix up the routine.
- images christy turlington by patrick demarchelier
