3 Daily Wellness Habits for the Remote Executive
How can remote executives build healthy daily boundaries?
Working from home seamlessly blurs the line between personal rest and professional obligation, drastically accelerating burnout. Remote executives can reclaim their mental health by implementing three daily habits: blocking 60 minutes of "no distraction" deep work, transitioning one meeting into a physical "walk and talk," and scheduling intentional connected check-ins.
In January, I urged you to take time off. Fast forward six months. Today, COVID-19 has directly or indirectly impacted not only our time but our mental and physical health as well. My message from January still stands, however; we still need an escape from work. Taking a physical and mental break from our work this summer has never been more important. As we have all learned, home does not = a break/vacation.
While on deadline writing this column, there was this cute, tiny distraction who kept getting in my way: my 10-month-old sweet puppy Molly!
As much as I love to hang out with her, when Molly wants my attention it’s tough to focus on work. Who says no to such a sweet puppy, even on deadline!
Throughout the pandemic, I have evolved my mindset for the times when she tries to get my attention during the day. When I take time out to play fetch, rub her belly, and give her all the attention she deserves, I have focused on the benefits, not the burden. Ultimately, she expends a lot of energy so she can nap, I enjoy playing with her and my mental and physical state is improved!
My advice? Get a dog! Problem solved!
Ok, not so fast. As easy as it might sound to simply tell all of you to get a pet, that’s not practical or realistic.
However, what I CAN tell you is that you are in more control of your wellness than you realize.
If you do these three things EVERY DAY, you will continue to thrive in your career and spend quality time with your family while prioritizing your health and wellness. It’s a win-win-win!
First, identify your daily “no distraction” time. Is your calendar “open” all day, every day? If so, you are sending two messages:
1) “I am always here to help!” I understand! We are in public relations, a service industry. We want to be available! However, it leads to:
2) “I will prioritize everyone and everything over myself.”
We need to evolve past this self-perception that we aren’t doing our jobs if we aren’t available all the time. Setting boundaries will not only improve your health and wellbeing, it will show others that you are creating a standard for them to follow.
I recommend blocking off at least 30-60 minutes every day that can’t be used for meetings. Find the best time that you can benefit from no distractions.
Second, identify your daily “walk and talk” time. I recommend auditing the next five days of meetings that are scheduled. Identify one meeting per day that you can take as a walk and talk meeting, vs. sitting at your desk or conference room. Some of my walk and talks are for business, however many of my walk and talks are family time with my wife Christine and Molly to get outside and enjoy the fresh air. Our walk and talks are scheduled during business hours, yet it is sacred to our family. We only cancel or postpone in case of an emergency.
Your walk and talk meeting – whether it’s virtual or in-person - should be planned for and scheduled during the day.
Finally, identify your “connection” time. As an extrovert throughout COVID-19, it has been TOUGH for me not to be around people – so I’ve had to find new ways to stay social! Even with today’s sophisticated communications technologies, I have dug DEEP to stay out of the doldrums.
Throughout quarantine, I check in every few days with a select group of people. I block off 30 minutes at least 2-3 days per week to send messages. Recipients are a mixture of friends, current and former clients, former colleagues, and trusted advisors.
I ask how they are doing. They push me, I push them. They empower me, I empower them.
This has helped me immensely to stay mentally healthy through this time, and I guarantee I will stay connected with them this summer and beyond.