As we continue fighting this pandemic, it’s normal to experience some sort of burnout. The legal community is navigating this unprecedented time the best we can; however, many of us are still experiencing high levels of stress, leading to burnout: the feeling of mental, physical and/or emotional exhaustion.
How do you know if you’re experiencing symptoms of a work burnout? The first phase typically starts when a person puts in more time, work and energy into their tasks as a way to deal with the added stress in their lives. Yet, when you work until you’re exhausted, that “hard work” mentality slowly turns into frustration. You become so exhausted and stressed that you aren’t able to distinguish your feelings, which eventually leads you to detaching from everything around you.
If you’ve experienced this in the past six months or are currently experiencing it, the good news is that you can overcome it! Our team at Elite Court Reporting has put together five tips to help you avoid and recover from the pandemic burnout.
1. Prioritize Your Time and Set Realistic Deadlines.
During this pandemic and working from home, you might have noticed that certain tasks are taking much longer to complete than they normally would. Whether you’re facing new at-home distractions or working with a smaller workforce, prioritizing your time is essential. We recommend organizing your daily tasks into two categories:
1. Things That Must Be Done Today
2. Things I’d Like To Finish Today
From there, tackle the items on List #1 first and then move on to List #2. Creating these task lists will help you take a step back and organize your day so you don’t feel overwhelmed all week long.
2. Create Time for Yourself.
Whether it’s a 10-minute break to walk around the block or taking a calming bath at night, it’s vital to make sure you’re carving out some time for yourself. “If you don’t have your oxygen mask on, you can’t help others.” The same idea applies here.
3. Switch Things Up.
Many have described this time as feeling like “Groundhog’s Day” – doing the same thing every day. If you feel like you’re getting stuck in a rut, try switching things up. While you can’t change everything you have scheduled during the day, pick one or two things to do at different times of the day or, if you’re able to, switch up your environment. If you always work in the same spot while working from home, try working outside for a little bit or moving to another part of the house. Implementing these shifts are easy and stress-free ways to bring something new into your day.
4. Move!
Incorporating light exercise into your daily routine can do wonders for your stress levels and help avoid burnout. It gets your endorphins flowing and helps you feel energized. Having a hard time finding the time? This article has some great tips on ways you can exercise while working from home.
5. Ask for help.
The phrase “it takes a village” couldn’t be more accurate than during the pandemic. If you’re feeling stressed out, it’s okay to rely on friends, family and colleagues to help you out. Oftentimes, when help is extended, we’ll decline and instead let that stress continue to build, typically resulting in burnout. To avoid this, accept help from others and ask for it when needed.
At Elite Court Reporting, we’re here to help our clients with all of their court reporting needs. For instance, something that has caused a lot of stress for our clients is having to adapt to the virtual technology required for remote depositions. To avoid the burnout that could come with trying to understand the technology, we created a free 15-minute masterclass that walks you through the virtual deposition process from start to finish. We’ll show you how to share exhibits, optimize video and audio settings and more.