With burnout on the riseCNBC asked experts how you can make the best use of the holiday season to make sure you start the new year feeling refreshed.
As uncertainty surrounding the coronavirus pandemic continues, with the rapid spread of omicron variant, it’s no surprise that more people feel burned out than ever before.
Recently survey Of 1,000 U.S. workers at human analytics firm Visier, 89 percent of employees said they’ve experienced burnout in the past year, reaching what’s known as an “epidemic.”
For many people, the Christmas break often offers a chance to rest and reset, get ready to return to work feeling refreshed, and downtime is needed more than ever this year.
Experts shared with CNBC some top tips to restore your energy levels during the holidays.
Determine the type of rest you need
Saundra Dalton-Smith told CNBC via video call that it’s important for people to first identify “their type of fatigue,” as this can help them figure out the kind of rest they need. .
In his book, “Sacred Rest: Recover Your Life, Renew Your Energy, Restore Your Sanity,” Dalton-Smith identified seven types of rest: physical, mental, spiritual, emotional, sensory, social association and creativity.
Dalton-Smith told CNBC that if someone is suffering from a lack of mental rest, one restorative exercise might be doing a brainwash to write down your thoughts before bed. .
Similarly, she suggests that journaling can help people who are feeling emotionally exhausted. However, she says it’s not a “general exercise” and it can be as simple as noting your emotions on your phone.
Dalton-Smith says that creative breaks are an area that people often don’t realize. This, she explains, focuses on allowing us to “appreciate beauty,” by going for a walk in nature, or attending an art exhibition, theater or ballet, for example.
Research has shown that spending time in nature can be restorative. For example, a research published in 2015 showed that giving a group of students a break for even 40 seconds to look at a green space, can help maintain concentration.
Rebecca Zucker, a founding partner at executive coaching firm Next Step Partners, also recommends “engaging in creative pursuits” as a form of vacation respite. She gives a few examples like crafting, cooking or gardening.
Indeed, experts have said that crafting can help distract from feelings of anxiety, as well as keep the brain active and stimulate the release of “feel-good” neurotransmitters like dopamine.
Prioritize rest
However, Zucker said what people find “relaxing and rejuvenating” is different for everyone.
Additionally, Zucker suggests that people should resist feeling pressured to make vacation plans that they feel don’t contribute to their rest.
“I pay attention when you hear yourself using the word ‘should’ – ‘I should do this, I should do this’ – because, especially on vacation, when you want to feel rested and Relax, you want to do the things that you want to do,” she explains.
Dalton-Smith also recommends that people spend the rest of this year thinking about what rest factors they want to prioritize in 2022.
“Rest is an act of courage because most of our society fights against it, and so I think someone really possesses the fact that they understand that part of the good life is when we rest well, that’s a brave person,” she explained. .
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