WORK LIFE BLUES: HERE’S HOW TO DEAL WITH IT
A growing number of employees are burning out at work. Experts tell us how to achieve work life balance and keep stress at bay
In today’s era, stress has become an
inevitable part of our lives. Competitiveness and a fast-paced environment
require one to devote themselves wholeheartedly to work. So much so that apart
from your job, everything else takes a back seat. Working for long hours
becomes normal, and our work life begins to take a toll on our well-being. It
leads to burnout.
WORKPLACE BURNOUT AND ITS OUTCOME
Interestingly, the term, ‘burnout’ was first
portended by English novelist Graham Greene in his 1961 novel, A Burn-out Case.
The novel narrates the story of a once famous, downcast and spiritually-lost
architect who abandons his profession and heads for the African jungles.
Nowadays, workplace burnout has become
common, with many employees showing symptoms, which in turn is compelling
organisations to hire happiness and wellness coaches to help their employees
deal with the crisis. Burnout is a phase wherein an individual undergoes
excessive emotional exhaustion. If you are one of those whose performance has
witnessed a drastic dip in the past few months and have been persistently
making mistakes in work, then chances are you are experiencing burnout.
WORKAHOLISM IS UNHEALTHY
Though employees earn praise from their
bosses for working hard, taking on extra work and meeting near-impossible
deadlines, it ends up creating a pressure cooker situation for stress. And if
the situation gets prolonged, anxiety and stress creep in. Work-related stress
makes employees angry and agitated.
In his book — Rest: Why You Get More Done
When You Work Less, author Alex Soojung-Kim Pang points out, “With a few
notable exceptions, today’s leaders treat stress and overwork as a badge of
honour.” Pang, who is a consultant in Silicon Valley, US, calls for limited
working hours at workplaces as opposed to the 80 hours-aweek schedule followed
by most organisations. He also emphasises on taking “active rest” in order to
increase productivity and creativity. He says that the biggest names in the
realm of science, literature, philosophy and mathematics were all slackers and
used to work merely three to six hours every day. “Even in today’s 24/7,
alwayson world, we can blend work and rest together in ways that make us
smarter, more creative, and happier,” Pang writes.
MANAGING STRESS
Sakshi Mandhyan, psychologist, says work-life
imbalance occurs when you don’t do things in proportion and things begin to
fall apart. Factors such as impossible bosses, ill behaviour on the part of
colleagues, bad relationships at work, dissatisfaction with job responsibility
and appraisals also contribute to stress.
While exercising regularly can help a person
deal with stress, Mandhyan believes guidance is the key. “In such situations,
the person requires a mentor or someone they can trust to discuss work-related
problems,” she says.
Diet
plays an important role in the well-being of an individual, so it is important
to eat healthy to be able to think like a healthy person. “A balanced diet is
what one should go for. Start the day by eating seasonal fruits or drinking
juices. Also, one must keep oneself hydrated throughout the day by drinking
about three litres of water,” says nutritionist Kanchan Patwardhan.
Source | Hindustan Times | 10th October 2017
Regards
Pralhad Jadhav
Senior Manager @ Knowledge
Repository
Khaitan & Co
No comments:
Post a Comment