- Your relationships at home begin to suffer. You become more and more snappy and tend to isolate yourself, either physically in a den or office, or inwardly behind a device. Usually, you can still hold yourself together at work but as soon as you let your guard down at home your inner bitch/jerk sneaks out.
- Your sleep quality deteriorates, you wake up feeling tired but wired. Other behaviours that often accompany this are staying up late staring vacantly at a screen and indulging in late night snacking or drinking, none of which is good for your health.
- You lose your edge at work. Your ability to focus, and the creativity you need for the intellectual agility to find solutions fast, is impeded. Your self-esteem and confidence take a knock and it becomes more difficult to put yourself out there for promotion.
Stress-busting strategies :
- Find a way to debrief and decompress before you get home. (for example, go for a walk, to yoga, gym, or have a coffee with a friend or spouse)
- Practice good sleep hygiene and aim for 7-8 hours of sleep per night. Find out how this could fit in with your lifestyle.
- Reset your goals to include compelling achievable targets and then reward yourself after each one is achieved. Clarify boundaries especially in areas where you give away your power.