Prioritize Yourself in 2022
Something is refreshing about Januarys and the mentality of experiencing a ‘new beginning.’ As you’re reevaluating your priorities for the year, it’s a great time to make sure you’re intentionally creating balance. We’ve all heard that too much of anything can be dangerous - that includes work! So I encourage you to try and combat feelings of burnout by creating sustainable routines that prioritize YOU.
Have you seen Shawn Achor’s TED Talk about happiness? He says that 90% of our long-term happiness depends on how we process the world. If we come to situations with a positive mindset, we are more likely to perform well. This statistic made me question when I feel most optimistic. I tend to have a positive attitude when I feel organized and equipped with resources to tackle new challenges.
These are my three recommendations for combating burnout + prioritizing myself in 2022:
Organize Your Calendar
Schedule EVERYTHING. Block off time for work and play. Assigning time for everything will help prevent feelings of guilt or shame that you should be doing something else.
Designate a specific time for reflection. Life moves fast, but reflection helps us find meaning and set intentions.
Schedule personal check-ins to evaluate your goals and progress. We do regular performance reviews with our supervisors, and we should do them ourselves too.
Set Boundaries
Turn off work notifications outside of working hours. At Choice, we encourage employees to update their account preferences so that Slack notifications automatically pause between 5 pm-8 am.
Let people know you’ll respond to emails within X amount of time. Setting an expectation will help ease your felt sense of obligation to react when you first receive a message.
Don’t be afraid to say “NO.” Acknowledge when you don’t have the bandwidth to complete a task and politely decline invitations to take on more.
Seek Fun
Engage in activities that energize you! Read, hike, watch movies, or whatever brings you joy.
Spend quality time with your friends and family that make you laugh. You can even create a fun environment by hosting meetings at a local coffee show during the workday. Find ways to inject fun into otherwise ordinary activities.
Celebrate all accomplishments (no matter how small). Share the success with your team and supporters!
Focusing on these 3 tasks helps me prioritize myself and increase my happiness. What practices are you using to prioritize yourself in 2022?