As hard working employees, it’s easy to experience burnout when we don’t take time off to take care of ourselves. In today’s article, we’re going to explore practical ways to make sure that you’re taking advantage of your paid time off and avoiding burnout.
Thankfully, there are many holidays that most employees receive throughout the year. Add on a couple days to the front or tail end of the holiday and enjoy some time with family or just relaxing time at home.
Big projects and assignments often make us extremely stressed and as deadlines approach, we find ourselves working tirelessly to produce a perfect end product. We get to work early, work extra hours and even bring work home just to make sure that our projects turn out successful. One way to make sure that you’re able to recover from the stress of a big assignment is taking time off. If you have a big project due on a Friday, take the following Monday off and give yourself the much needed rest from work. Whichever day you have a big assignment due on, make the conscious effort to take a day or two off once it’s done for your mental health. Take those days off to enjoy your hobbies, watch movies or simply kick back and catch some ZZZs. After those days out of the office, I guarantee you’ll feel refreshed and ready to give your very best at work and at home.
Planning ahead is also a big factor when taking time off. If you know there are certain dates that you absolutely need to be off from work, submit those leave requests as soon as possible. I would suggest submitting leave for all annual vacations, family gatherings, etc. at the beginning of the new year to avoid any scheduling conflicts later on.
COVID-19 gave many of us the opportunity to work from home for an extended period of time. For many people, the workload has remained the same, while for others, the workload has more than doubled. While working remotely has its benefits, it’s also very possible to blur the line between work and life. For some, the two have somehow blended together. People are not taking proper lunch breaks, others are working during family dinner time and hardly anyone has taken days off from work simply because we’re working from home. Just because we’re working from home doesn’t mean we are not experiencing the stress of work. Many people are working, hopping on conference calls, taking care of young children or elderly parents, helping kids with e-learning, all while trying to also take care of themselves. It is absolutely necessary to take a day off and give yourself a break from work.
The past year was very trying for many people. Some are worn out from the stress of their workload. We don’t know what the year 2021 holds for us, but we know that time is something that we cannot get back. Make a conscious effort to take time off and relax so that you can be the best version of yourself!
Ecclesiastes 3:1(MSG): “There’s an opportune time to do things, a right time for everything on the earth.”