Burnout, self-care and self-care tips were words I had heard many times before. But the level of importance I placed on them was low. I never thought I would find myself in that situation. After all, the remote/hybrid working scenario wasn’t new to me. I had done that type of work before and hacked it. Little did I know that this time was different. Things had changed and thriving in new circumstances was going to require a new way of thinking and a new set of skills. Or, at the very least, an upgrade of the old skills. 

Burnout is one of those things which creeps in, and you don’t even realize it is happening. I was on the brink of burnout, and I didn’t even know it. It wasn’t until a series of events woke me up to the reality that something needed to change, and fast. Otherwise, a complete shutdown was inevitable.

In the last 20 months, many organizations and professionals have embraced and adopted the fully remote/hybrid working model. While we cannot perform some jobs remotely, for the most part, organizations have gotten creative about who works from where and how. In the early days of the pandemic period, I still remember the questions on the minds of many HR professionals. Topping that list was, how will we support our teams with the infrastructure to work remotely and how will we know people are truly working?

Setting up infrastructure and measuring productivity was only one side of the coin. A few months in, it became clear there was another side to remote working that needed to be considered, and fast. That’s employee wellness and self-care. Because let’s be honest, we work longer hours when we’re working remotely. And if we aren’t careful, we are always “on.” And in the absence of clear guidelines, there seems to be an unspoken expectation to respond so you can justify you are working.

Another bit of reality is, if you don’t have cues to let you know it’s time to end your day, you’ll keep going until you drop. Or worse, convince yourself to take a quick break, then pick up because you were gaining momentum on that work assignment. It was poor working habits like those that led me down the burnout path without realizing it. Three events happening in rapid succession opened my eyes to the truth that had been staring me in the face for some time.

Burnout isn’t a new term. It has been around since the 1970s when psychologist Herbert Freudenberger coined it. Freudenberger describes the state of being burned out as “becoming exhausted by making excessive demands on energy, strength, or resources” in the workplace. 

The challenge with recognizing burnout is two-fold. Our thresholds for handling stress are different. And burnout manifests differently for each person, so you need to be aware of your triggers.

I learned the hard way that at work – we are all replaceable. But with our family and friends, we are not. If we want to continue serving others and doing meaningful work, shouldn’t we care for the very vessel that makes it all possible?

Here are the three signs that changed everything for me. 

#1 I was snapping at any and every little thing

On a typical day, I consider myself a rational human being who gets along with almost everyone. During my countdown to burning out, I was a nightmare to be around. Ironically, I thought I was okay, and everyone else was the problem. It is clear now that my self-awareness meter was way down.

#2 I was always on and not resting well

I remember working at all hours of the day. At 2 am, I was working because it was quiet. On another day at 6 am, I was working because it made sense to get a jump on the day. Soon it did not matter – 11 am, 3 pm, 8 pm, 10 pm. I was always working. While technology has made work more manageable, it has also added to the complexity in our professional lives. We reply to emails at 3 am, write WhatsApp messages at 11 pm and start our virtual calls as early as 7 am. There is an unspoken expectation to be ON all the time. 

The trend has become so prevalent, I’ve noticed an increase in email footnotes such as this one, “I work flexibly and am sending this message now because I am working, I don’t expect you to read, respond or action it outside of your regular working hours.” 

#3 I took a nap and what followed was chaos

This was the wake-up call for me. My family didn’t wake me up because they thought I was too tired and needed the rest. Instead of thanking them for their consideration, I blew up at them and started quoting all the work deadlines I had to meet. 

That last one was the eye-opener. The turning point for me. I needed to either change willingly or risk losing everything I had been working so hard to achieve.

From that experience, here are my self-care tips that will save your career when working remotely or in a hybrid environment:

Tip #1 Prioritize your health and well-being

Think of a garden. The natural state of a garden is weeds. If you do not tend to a garden, weeds will take over and spring up everywhere unhindered. So the same way you need to tend to a garden so it thrives is the same way you need to take care of yourself. Nurture yourself physically, emotionally, psychologically, spiritually and mentally.

Tip #2 Focus on the things you can control

Can you control the weather, traffic, internet speed, your colleagues’, your family? In a word, NO. The only person you can control is you. Instead of focusing on who did what, might say what, and behave how, focus on your responses. Choose to respond rather than react. The difference lies in how prepared you are to face those questions or challenges. Pause. Think. Speak.

Tip #3 Be intentional

Self-care won’t happen unless you choose to make it a priority. In today’s hyper-fast, hyper-focused world, many of us are not naturally inclined to pause. Unless we do it for our own good, the temptation to keep going is high. Some ways you can be intentional: plan for breaks, decide when to stop working, and decide to be present in each life moment.

 What self-care tips would you add that have helped you stay sane in the new world of work? Let me know in the comments.

You’ve always known this day will come — the day when you must decide which career is right for you. You’ve been told you should become a banker like your mum or a teacher like your dad. Your best friend figured out long ago that they wanted to be a lawyer or a doctor and has been on that path ever since.

You, on the other hand, have no clue where to start.

You’ve heard that you should choose something you enjoy doing. The challenge is that you love to do many things, and you do them all well.

You’ve heard that loving what you do isn’t essential if it doesn’t pay well. So, choose what’s bound to never go out of style, like teaching – people will always need teachers.

Round and round the ideas go. All the opinions have left you feeling frazzled, stressed out and discouraged.

Everything I’ve described above happened to me.

After a few false starts, I finally figured out a few things. Stick with me, and I’ll show you four things that will take the heartache out of the process of choosing your career.

The thing you can do effortlessly at 2 a.m.

Suppose I came to your house at 2 a.m. and asked you for help with something which I know only you can do. What would that thing be?

I know. I know. You might be a night owl who is wide awake and rearing to go at 2 a.m. so the 2 a.m. test may not apply to you. But, here’s the thing. The point to the exercise is to figure out that one thing you can do even in your most tired moment.

You may be so gifted that:

• You can whip up a fantastic meal at a moment’s notice
• You can bake drool-worthy delights without thinking about it
• You can write such moving stories that compel people to action
• You can explain a process for the millionth time without losing your mind
• You can design amazing logos and websites that draw people in

The list is endless.

• If you can whip up a fantastic meal at a moment’s notice or bake drool-worthy delights without thinking about it, you may be destined for a career in hospitality.
• If you can write such moving stories that compel people to action, you may be destined for a career in writing or journalism.
• If you can explain a process for the millionth time, you may be destined for a career in teaching.
• If you can design an amazing logo and website, you may be destined for a career in graphic design.

These are some examples to guide you. But, you need to figure out your 2 a.m. test results. I say “may” because you still have a choice to make to walk down a specific road.

The results of your 2 a.m test hold one of the keys to unlocking your potential career.

The answers you always seem to have 

You must know that one friend who has the 4-1-1 on who is having a sale and when. You may know someone else who knows where to find the best local meals. You may be the one who knows all the Excel and Word hacks or social media hacks. Where I come from, we say “I know a guy”. Are you that guy?

If you look back over the last month, you will find instances where you solved a specific problem for someone or a group of people. It can be something as random as giving strangers directions or being mistaken for a supermarket attendant when doing your shopping (this happens to me all the time). I hear I look helpful. 😊

No matter how weird, the answers you always seem to provide is another key to unlocking your potential career.

The Books in your Library

Every year many of us promise to read more about business, parenting, success, or leadership. You may even have mapped out what you want to read. But, if you look carefully at the books you enjoy reading or end up reading, you will notice a common theme.

You may gravitate towards:

• Books which use facts and figures to explain a subject
• Books which tell a fictional tales to pass the message across
• Books based on someone’s life experience

Your book choices reveal something about you.

For example,

• A facts-only book lover tends to be precise and exact. They may enjoy a career in accounting, architecture, or engineering. In short, fields which need high levels of precision.
• A fiction-only book lover tends to be creative. They may enjoy a career in writing or design or creative arts.

Books open a whole new world, and point you in the direction of your potential career.

The Strengths You Demonstrate

When growing up, I remember having to answer for the low scores on my report card. It didn’t matter that I had scored an A in English. Instead, it mattered that I’d scored a B- in Sciences. I would then struggle to bring up the B- to a B. What an uphill task! Many of us were raised to believe that you should focus on your weaknesses instead of your strengths. This is flawed thinking. If for no other reason other than the fact that it’s discouraging to keep working on weaknesses and never seem to improve.

Here’s the funny thing about strengths. They are such an integral part of you that you never think of it as a strength. For example, I’m a natural planner. I see the big picture and the mini actions along the way. I can marshal different kinds of resources and rally people to get it done. I can almost plan in my sleep. For the longest time, I didn’t consider it a strength. Yet my friends, family and colleagues were always in awe of my planning skills. Is it a wonder that I ended up in project management?

It’s your turn. What strengths do you demonstrate – naturally?

I heard the story of a guy who struggled for a few years to pass the bar exam. Throughout law school, he enjoyed the research process. Not only that, he thrived when he was in research mode. Then one day it hit him, why was he struggling to become an advocate when he had no interest in going to court? He’s since opened a law research practice where he’s living the dream.

When you find your area of strength, you will have more pointers towards your potential career.

The Four Questions to Ask Yourself

You can have a thriving career in an area you love. You don’t have to follow in your parents’ footsteps. It’s also not too late to rethink the road you are on.

Want to find a career you’ll love, ask yourself these four simple questions:

• What can I do effortlessly at 2 a.m.?
• What answers do I always seem to have?
• What books are in my library?
• What strengths do I demonstrate?

I promise that if you are honest with your answers, you’ll be a step closer to unlocking the career of your dreams.

Every professional wants to advance in their career and reach the top. As a result, many try to climb the career ladder, many try to rise higher in their career…but few succeed. Does it mean only a few are destined for the top? The answer is no, as you are in full control of your destiny. You decide what your destiny is. 

There are many reasons people fail to reach the top of the career ladder. It could be because of being focused on the ultimate prize and neglecting things like personal growth and skills development, which are important in reaching the top. It could also be because of acting aggressively and focusing only on opportunities they believe could get them promoted. 

 Climbing the career success ladder to the top requires you to have certain qualities. You may already possess some of these qualities, while some may require a conscious effort on your part. Below you’ll find 5 essential qualities that will help you climb the career success ladder to the top:

1. Start with a blueprint in your mind

 You have to know what your goals are to know what to do to achieve them. Take some time to think about what your goals are and don’t be intimidated or overwhelmed by how large some of your goals might be. You won’t achieve all your goals in a single day, as they are a work in progress. You can break down big goals into milestones or small components to motivate yourself. 

The benefit of having a blueprint of your goals in your mind is that it gives you a sense of direction, motivates, and keeps you focused. You can even write your goals for more clarity and review them periodically to check if you are making real progress towards achieving them. 

2. Meet your basic physiological needs

Achieving your goals and climbing the career success ladder to the top requires both your physical and mental well-being. Are you eating well? Are you getting enough restorative sleep? What are your current stress levels? These are questions you need to answer, and it’s important to meet your basic physiological needs wherever they are lacking. Otherwise, how can you work under pressure or be productive when you aren’t getting enough sleep, are hungry or exhausted?

 Self-care is the foundation of career success and something many people don’t take seriously or as seriously as they should. You should make efforts to eat healthily, get enough rest, and throw a healthy dose of exercise in the mix. Prioritize your mental health, and know when to take breaks or a vacation. 

 The benefits of self-care are long term as you’ll always be in good physical and mental condition, allowing you to come up with creative ideas and function to your full potential. 

3. Good working conditions

 You need a secure and safe workspace to perform optimally. Noise, poor lighting, and extremes of temperature are factors that can affect productivity. Imagine trying to meet a tight deadline or knocking out a project in an office that’s too cold or too hot. It will be extremely difficult for you to function at your full capacity. 

Apart from the environment of the workplace, you should also feel physically and psychologically safe at your workplace. Threats and intimidation, especially from superiors, are the biggest sources of psychological stress in the workplace. If you are a leader, be an ardent advocate for psychological safety, which is important for employees’ productivity and overall success. 

4. Show empathy and align your efforts with your company’s goal

Your success in your workplace and your leadership effectiveness depends on being compassionate and expressing empathy to your coworkers. This requires an awareness of your own emotional intelligence and understanding that showing empathy to your coworkers will be key to building a successful team. This is especially important for team leaders and research has shown that expressing empathy can ramp up motivation and productivity. 

It’s important to know the company’s strategies and goals may change occasionally. And aligning your efforts with these goals will pay dividends to your career success. 

5. Develop executive presence

Executive presence can simply be defined as a set of learned behaviour or personality traits that convey confidence and leadership competence. And anyone hoping to be at the top of the career success ladder will do well to develop this crucial skill. The good thing about executive presence is that you can develop it and it is not as vague as you may think. 

Any role in the upper echelons of your company requires you to demonstrate leadership skills and developing an executive presence will allow you to exude confidence, command attention, and inspire others. 

Can you become the next CEO of your current organization? Absolutely. The key is to remember nothing comes by wishing, but by visualizing, planning and doing. If you have dreams of stepping into the C-Suite in 2022, design your career blueprint, get your environment right, develop executive presence and take daily steps to get you closer to your career blueprint vision.

“They didn’t look managerial enough” that’s what one of the interview panellists in the room said after we had just completed an interview. I was still learning the HR ropes and until that time, I had never heard of or considered such a thing.

I would later come to learn that what the panellist was referring to was: Executive Presence.

Yes! It is a real thing. And getting promoted may all come down to you possessing this essential skill. While there are different definitions of executive presence, one can simplify this way, 

Executive presence is a set of learned behaviour or personality traits that convey confidence and leadership competence.

In our world, perception is reality. What this means is if your boss doesn’t think you’re ready for the next level of your career, whether or not you agree with them, that perception sticks and influences them and their actions towards you.

How then do you develop executive presence?

1. Your mindset

The foundation to developing executive presence is your mindset. Your opinion of yourself reflects when you interact with others, and it’s easy to detect self-doubt, insecurity, or lack of confidence. Identify your strengths/assets and believe in them. Believing in yourself makes you more confident and gives you leadership presence.

2. Your Communication Skills

Develop your communication skills and learn how to present information concisely. Don’t be that person who goes on and on without getting to the point. Also, learn how to move a conversation forward by asking the right questions. This is achievable if you are knowledgeable about the subject and by preparing ahead of important meetings or development discussions with your boss.

3. Ask others how you come across

Find out how others perceive you by asking them a simple question, “how would you describe me to someone who has never met me?” Their answers will give you a good idea of people’s perceptions of you and your abilities. Don’t take the responses personally. Instead, take that feedback to change the narrative about you, your abilities and your readiness for your promotion.

4. Your body language

Have you ever walked into a roomful of people and immediately known who the boss was. Ever wondered why? Most likely, they presented themselves with the right body language. You would have noticed they seemed relaxed, comfortable, and confident. You likely noticed they spoke to people while maintaining eye contact, displaying the right facial expression (calm) and posture.

What’s next for you?

Executive presence isn’t as vague or evasive as many people may lead you to believe. And a conscious effort on your part to develop this skill will bring you a step closer to being considered and recommended for that position you have been working towards.

Have been wondering why you are not getting that promotion and think you need help to develop an executive presence? We would love to hear from you.