Last week I was encouraging participants at my workshop on Wellbeing in Practice to consider this question. “Why is tending to our own wellbeing our work lives so hard yet so important?” There were some amazing creative ideas from this group of Social Service Providers which I will discuss in future blog posts. Some of the themes explored might ring true for you.
There will always be busy patches in our work, and good and bad days, but I absolutely believe that through learning skills to maintain our wellbeing in our work life we can achieve a balance of productivity, job satisfaction and health that is sustainable most of the time.
Sometimes that goal requires us to look closely at what is getting in our way. Is it the inherent nature of our work place that values and remunerates based on high client case turnover? Is it our own high expectations of what we feel we must get done? Do we have difficulty setting boundaries or saying “No”, for fear of disappointing people? Have we created a separation between work and life? Is living what we do when we are not at work? Do we resist putting physical or mental breaks into our day with the plan that we will rest when we finish work? That thinking can escalate to waiting until we have a holiday to rest – how often have you come down sick during your holiday?
If some of these scenarios ring true for you, my challenge is to notice what is getting in the way of you tending to your own wellbeing in your work life. Sometimes increasing our awareness can be enough to help us re-frame our thinking, and get out of our own way. If you would like to explore some of these “blocks” or “boulders” further these are great topics to explore in your next supervision session.
