It’s that time of year where suddenly everyone is little bit on edge, noticeably more frazzled, and increasingly overbooked and under-energized. No matter if you have children of your own or you share workspace with others that do, we are all impacted by the back-to-school (BTS) buzz. This buzz, while exciting, also brings with it added stressors such as additional obligations, changes to schedules, fluctuations in emotions, and less available space in your mental realty; all of which impacts our performance and relationships at work. It’s important to remember that we each need an adjustment period and to allow ourselves and others a little grace as we adjust to the children going back to school.
There are things that we can do to adjust to the sudden impact of the BTS buzz. First, be patient and recognize that our bodies and minds are capable of change and establishing a new routine, but it does take some time. Second, it’s crucial to allow yourself to be flexible during this period of flux so that you can make the adjustments you need in all arenas of your life to respond to the changes created by BTS. Next, equip each day with a moment to plan and a moment to reflect on the day— carving out this time, even if just 10 minutes, to identify the new needs of your new normal and effectuate the changes you need; allow yourself to be honest with yourself about the imbalance that BTS tends to create. Most importantly, give yourself the tools you need to be able to discern the differences of your BTS era- the most important of which is a moment of personal time.
In this moment, try to get outdoors, drink a full glass of water, meditate, do a word puzzle, create a gratitude practice, journal, take a short five-minute walk, or even better take a pause to breathe.
Something as simple as a four-count boxed breath can clear up the fog created by the BTS buzz. Try it for yourself—inhale fully counting to four, hold the breath in the body for the count of four, exhale completely for a count of four, and then suspend the breath for the same count. Do this practice for three to four minutes. This intentional breathing will signal your parasympathetic nervous system, which will then encourage the body to let go of the fight-or-flight reaction mode and allow you to be more responsive to the extra stimuli brought on by the BTS buzz.
Any of these steps will help you have a clearer lens to not only help your business but to also prioritize and discard the things that you no longer need. The sooner you start to integrate these tools into your daily lives, the easier it will be to transition back to a feeling of being more balanced.
(An informative health and wellness article from the Chamber’s Live Better St. Tammany Committee member Blue Williams.)