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Writer's pictureVictoria Scott

Managing Work Stress Part 8: Self-Care and Balance

Victoria Scott here to talk to you about managing work stress. Today we're talking about self-care and balance.

Let's take a look at the Wheel of Life. These are all the things that make up your life and when things are in balance the wheel looks something like this.

Wheel of Life showing the following areas in equal segments of the wheel: Health, Intimacy, Fun & Enjoyment, Finance, Personal Growth, Family & Friends, Career, and Connection to Purpose

But when you're stressed about work and it's taking up a lot of your time and a lot of your mental and emotional energy, the wheel can get out of whack and unbalanced. It may even start to feel like this.

The Unbalanced Wheel of Life shows the same areas as before, but shows Career taking up over 70% of the wheel.

This unbalanced version of the wheel is why we need self-care and work-life balance. Ideally, we don't want to let our careers take over as our identity and take time, space, and energy away from other important aspects that lead to a more fulfilled and complete life.


But it's so easy to get out of balance when you think about it! Look at how much time we spend working, how much time we spend just finishing up a task, the time that we spend at home decompressing, the time we spend at home preparing for the next day.


Doesn't it make sense that self-care and balance are more essential than ever?


People look at self-care as some kind of over-the-top luxurious indulgence that means that we're shoving away and neglecting all of our responsibilities.


Self-care really is taking care of your needs beyond the basics of food and shelter so that you can have the mental, emotional, and physical energy for everything else.


Self-care can involve any area of the wheel and any of the energy levels.


Let's take a look at Health. Everyone knows about physical health, that you should be going to your doctors' appointments. How many of us neglect that because we feel like we can't take the time away from work? How many of us are neglecting exercise, healthy eating, sleep – things that make us function better?


If you can relate, you now have some ideas of things that you can do for your self-care. Keep going through the wheel and think about what else you could do for yourself.


Some people get overwhelmed by the wheel (a Level 1 response) because they see all the things they could or should be doing. That is not the purpose. The wheel is a tool you can use to health check your own life just like we health checked your work environment. You get to decide what's healthy for you.


What you're experiencing at the various energy levels can also give you ideas for self-care and balance. At level 4, self-care could look like setting boundaries for ourselves.


I'm curious, what's one thing that you can do for your self-care this week?


Comment below or message me privately to share.


If you're experiencing stress at work, it might be time to reach out to me for your free consult.


Take care.

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