RWL209:How to avoid isolation and stress

Alex
0:00

Hey , it's Alex , once again from the Remote Work Life podcast . I hope this finds you well , wherever you may be in the world , and thank you so much for joining me on the podcast . And today , once again if you haven't tuned in to these regular episodes that I'm doing to share a quick tip with you , related this time to prioritizing self-care and taking regular breaks to combat isolation and stress . And these tips that I'm sharing are based on my own experiences and based on experiences of people that I've either interviewed or met , and I hope they can help you . Some of these experiences , I guess , have been the most transformational things , or at least the things that have been transformational for me , in optimising my own experience whilst working on a remote basis , and more often than not , I'm working from home . So , although I've worked from other locations as well , remote work from home is the the preferred option for me at this particular point , um , although I do , as I said , work at other locations . So let's let's talk about prioritizing self-care and taking regular breaks to combat isolation and stress , and this is something that's familiar to me because , again , I perhaps used to be on the other side of things . I certainly prioritised work . You know work not to say that work is not important , but I think if you don't have your health and if you don't take care of yourself , then you probably are not going to be in a position to be effective at work or , in some cases , you may not be in a position to work at all . So looking after yourself is a priority . Certainly , your health is your priority and prioritizing self-care is something that should be at top of your list . As I said , I wasn't very good at it back in the day . I'm by no means perfect now . I need to still get better but I've taken steps and been deliberate about my self-care and taking regular breaks to combat isolation , and isolation was something that I really suffered with because I focused so heavily on work . I focused on getting things done . I would stay up till crazy times , I'd get up at crazy times and finish at crazy times in order to get work done without considering my own health , and I eventually uh burnt out . So , yeah , um , here are a few things that I would suggest , uh , that you could consider at least consider in implementing into your , your lifestyle if you're working on a remote basis , in order to improve that scenario .

Alex
3:05

So taking breaks breaks are very important . They've been very important . They are very important to me and I would recommend actually scheduling , scheduling in regular breaks . Put those breaks into your calendar so you can see them , so your team can see them , so people who are close to you can see when you , when you're on a break . It's not very nice when you're on a break and somebody who can see your calendar knows you're on a break . Then you know , calls you on . It calls you while you're on your break , but at least if it's , if it's in the calendar , they can see it and hopefully they won't call you while you're on your break . So scheduling those regular breaks in um , but also it can remind you as well , it's a good reminder for you just to get up and do something that's not related to work . That could be , I don't know , stretching , it could be taking a brief walk , it could be reducing physical strain and improve it . Can it can help to reduce that physical strain and improve your focus .

Alex
4:06

There was a point again where you know I wouldn't have , you know I didn't necessarily have the number of breaks that I needed and affected , for example , my , my back , I , I don't have the best back , but um , just put it mildly , but if , if I don't walk around , if I , if I sit down the whole day , I definitely exacerbate any issues that I have with my back . So taking wellness breaks is definitely something that I I do and I need to do . What other things ? So incorporating self-care things into your daily routine Again it's related to wellness breaks , but doing things like exercise , doing things like engaging in hobbies . So there are times when , for example , I'm on my break and I might just play my electronic drum kit , for example . It just takes my mind away from work and when I come back to my desk I'm refocused and ready to go again . So you may have your hobbies as well , that you've perhaps put by the wayside . Maybe it's time to reinvigorate or to reintroduce those hobbies to your sort , your daily routines .

Alex
5:18

That's number two . Number three social connection . So the rumour is that remote workers , especially people who work from home , don't speak to anybody outside of their house . They stay in all day . They don't have any interaction with anyone apart from people on those video calls . That rumour is well , for my part , it's a false allegation . And you know , for me social connection is one of the most important elements of remote work , and that connection is not just virtually , but it's also meeting people , uh , physically , you know , being able to see people touch people as well . So , and that can help to um to , to remedy and help you with your self-care and , uh , help you with if you are feeling , and help you with if you are feeling isolated or stressed for any reason . Social connection is so important . Stay connected with friends , with family , with colleagues , to combat feelings of isolation . It can be done through , as I said , virtual socialising or in person meetups when possible . You can even meet with your team as well . You can even have those away days that so many other remote teams have . So that's number three .

Alex
6:44

Number four is , yeah , eating , because eating can , in a way , force you to have a break . It forces you to do something that's different to work . I mean , don't get into the habit of taking your food with you and sitting at your computer and trying to work while you're eating , because that just sort of defeats the whole purpose of prioritising self-care and taking regular breaks , doesn't it ? So don't take your food with you to your desk , have it in a separate place and enjoy it . So that's number four . And then number five , it's wellness resources , so utilising wellness resources and support services to combat stress and isolation . You might tap into counselling , mental health resources . You may have a mental health buddy on your team or within your business . There may be educational materials that either you can find online or the business that you work with can provide things on stress management , on resilience , all those different types of things .

Alex
7:53

So what I'm saying here is , when you talk about prioritising self-care , what I'm saying here is when you talk about prioritizing self-care and taking regular breaks to combat isolation , think about all the resources at your disposal .

Alex
8:05

Think about all the things that you can do and use the resources that you find most interesting and relevant to you and put them , apply them to your schedule , apply them to your schedule , apply them to your situation and hopefully I'm hoping that that will help you to turn things around , because prioritising self-care and taking regular breaks can combat isolation . It can reduce stress , I believe , and significantly improve your overall well-being . Hope that's been helpful to you today . If it has , please consider sharing with somebody who you feel may benefit from hearing this , and I just want to say thank you for tuning in today . I'd encourage you to reflect on your own circumstances where prioritising self-care is concerned and take action today . By all means , reach out to me and on LinkedIn if you have any questions about the podcast or if you have any suggestions for guests or any podcast episodes , and I wish you all the best .