Supporting your mental health is essential to thriving personally and professionally. When you prioritize your mental health, you can improve your creativity, productivity, and relationships, boost your morale, and reduce stress. Here are some tips to help you promote your mental health so you can continue to excel in your career.
1. Break Down Your Goals
Boss babes have goals for days. If you set too many goals, it can hinder your process. Striving for continual growth and improvement is admirable, but you can overwork and overwhelm yourself to the point where you don’t accomplish anything.
Break your goals down into bite-sized pieces, so they’re easier to digest. Start small and work your way up to the finish line. Physically checking off your goals can give you a sense of accomplishment and satisfaction. Write out what you want to achieve step by step and do them in small increments.
Hustle culture glorifies long work hours and views self-care as selfish, which can lead to burnout, adversely affecting your mental health and well-being. You must take care of yourself to thrive in the workplace. Overworking yourself isn’t worth it–you might see success, but it will be short-term if you experience burnout. Take breaks and achieve your goals one step at a time instead of doing everything at once.
2. Get Some Fresh Air
Breathing fresh air into your lungs has myriad benefits for your physical and mental health. Spending time outdoors can boost your mood and immune system by reducing symptoms of stress and depression. Fresh air floods your brain with oxygen that can increase your productivity and fuel creativity, vastly improving your mental health.
You only need to spend 120 minutes outdoors a week to reap the benefits for your overall health. Consider taking an exercise class outdoors to get your blood pumping and experience all the wonders nature offers. Being outdoors is good for the soul regardless of your choice–it lowers your blood pressure, anxiety levels, and stress hormones.
Find ways that relax you and give your mind a break from the monotony of everyday life. Consider taking a leisurely stroll after dinner to help you relax or walk your dog every morning to boost your energy. Nature doesn’t discriminate and has various benefits for your body and mind.
3. Set Some Boundaries
Boundaries are vital to protecting and supporting your mental health. Some find it challenging to say no, especially regarding work, but a healthy work-life balance is essential if you want to thrive. Set boundaries that protect your mental health. Recognize when you’re overworked and need to take a break, regardless of how badly you want the extra project.
There’s nothing more important than your health, so you must do what you can to protect it. Saying no doesn’t make you look incompetent–it’s an act of self-preservation. Setting healthy boundaries can also preserve and strengthen your relationships. Know what your limits are and make them clear to your loved ones.
Boundaries help you carve out time to recharge and recenter, which is so important for career performance. Finding a healthy balance involves adequately allocating time for your personal, professional, and social calendar. Finding time for things you want to do can be challenging when you work full-time, but it’s also essential for your mental health.
Make the time to do things that bring you happiness. Effectively managing your time can boost your morale, increase your work performance and positively affect your mental health. Daily planners, desk calendars, spreadsheets, and your calendar on your smartphone can help you keep track of your work and personal activities and efficiently manage your time.
4. Practice Self-Care
Self-care can look different for everyone. Practicing self-care increases your self-awareness and boosts your well-being and your overall health. Self-care practices can range from getting your beauty sleep to practicing mindfulness and meditation to getting consistent exercise. Physical activity has various benefits for your mental and physical health and can decrease negative symptoms and prevent burnout.
Eating a balanced diet contributes to optimal mental health as it fuels your body and helps you get the nutrients you need. Getting the sleep you need is crucial to your success. An optimal bedtime routine can help you get the eight hours of sleep you need to perform and function at optimal capacity. A skincare routine and minimizing the use of blue light devices can help you drift off to sleep.
Fatigue can cause dangerous adverse effects on your body, from dizziness to exhaustion. Being mentally exhausted can cause you to experience decision fatigue, which can cause irrational thinking and lead to making poor decisions. Practicing self-care and sticking to your boundaries can help you prevent decision fatigue and improve your mental health.
Other ways to practice self-care include participating in activities that make you feel good. Something as simple as getting a manicure or taking your dog for a walk can be a form of self-care.
Nurturing Your Mental Health
Utilize these tips to optimize your mental health and maximize your health, work performance, and overall happiness. Caring for your mind and body will help you become the best version of yourself.
