Burnout - a Curse or a second Chance?
You may have experienced burnout yourself or know someone who experienced burnout. I believe we can all agree that burnout is real and can be severe condition that impacts all parts of life - and not just work.
Burnout has different faces and may vary from person to person in regards to source, symptoms and behaviours associated with burnout. However, people who experience burnout report the same feeling of overwhelming exhaustion and loss of joy and the increased feeling of helplessness which seems to be very similar to clinical depression (see also Burnout or Depression?). It is a very dire situation but not hopeless. Burnout is not a one way street where there is no hope for return.
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Master Distractions and Interruptions at Home
When you work from home, there may be some distractions and interruptions that you wouldn’t have at work. There is also no-one who will point them out to you and help them to manage.
To stay productive, motivated and focused when working home, you need to eliminate and manage distractions and interruptions appropriately.
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Be a Role Model and Inspire Others to Do the Right Thing
Be a Role Model by Doing the Right Thing. If you want to live in a better world it starts with you and your own actions…
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Mindfull vs. Mindful (infographic)
Many of us experience a busy mind and mental overload when we are stressed – something that you could call “mind full” state. It feels like there are so many thoughts competing for our attention at the same time without any breaks which has tremendous affects on our (mental and physical) health and wellbeing. We feel exhausted and foggy. We are unable to focus and often feel distracted. Our sleep quality is poor (if we get any sleep at all). Our cognition is impaired (we tend to make more irritational and bad decisions), our performance drops and our relationships suffer. Change your “mind full” state through mindfulness.
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Stress, Sleep and Health (infographic)
We all do it and we cannot live without it. Sleep. Sleep is such an underestimated superpower for our physical and mental health. A lot of magic is happening when we sleep. And when we don’t get enough of it, it can have not only short-term but also permanent negative consequences. This infographic provides a visual summary of research and tips to get better sleep in stressful periods of your life.
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Under Pressure: Diamond vs Coal
Diamonds are made from carbon and are formed under extreme conditions of intense heat and pressure that cause carbon atoms to crystallise. That does not mean that pressure always create diamonds. In fact, coal is also created from carbon under pressure and heat. However, chemical structures and qualities of diamonds vs coal are significantly different. So how do you become a diamond and how can you prevent to become coal?
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The Power of Humor, Laughter and Smiling (PLUS infographic)
Humor and Laughter are the best medicine. When you smile or laugh, happy hormones are released – such as endorphins, dopamine and serotonin. Laughing is medically proven good for your physical and mental health; and is a mood booster not only for yourself but also for others.
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Selflessness through Self-Care, Self-Compassion and Self-Development
Selflessness is “caring more about what other people need and want than about what you yourself need and want“. I believe selflessness is a noble act. However, too much of a good thing is bad. How can you “pour from an empty cup.” Let’s rethink our beliefs about selflessness. Self-care, self-compassion and self-development are forms of selflessness.
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SELF-CARE: Do you look after yourself like you do after your Car? (PLUS infographic)
Maybe it is the German in me - I like to use the analogy of looking after your high-performing sports car when explaining the importance of self-care. It is a great feeling to drive a high-performing sports car. You may be tempted to test its limits at times regarding speed and performance. However, when we drive our Porsche everyday to its maximum, and never take any breaks, never re-fuel and never regular service your car, you won’t have a fun ride long-term. To reach your full potential and ensuring that you can “enjoy the ride” you need to look after yourself.
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The Elephant that peeks behind the Curtain
“It feels like there is a big elephant peeking behind the curtain trying to get my attention. It is impossible to ignore him or even stop him!” Everyone’s elephant is different. It can be a thought or belief (also linked to imposter syndrome); an emotion (e.g. anxious) or a behaviour in response (e.g. anger) to a situation. So how to deal with your elephant?
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Name it. Claim it. Tame it. (PLUS infographic)
In my role as resilience coach, I work with various clients with different backgrounds, personalities, challenges and goals. No matter how different their stories are, stress and adversity does not discriminate and they all show similar stress patterns in their symptoms, response and challenges. A technique I use with my clients, I call “Name it. Claim it. Tame it.“.
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Resilience and Personal Growth - go together like a horse and carriage...
A humankind we experienced many challenges, adversity and high levels of stress in a short period of time. Two concepts that are popping up social media these says are “resilience” and “personal growth”. Are these two exclusive concepts? Are they intertwined? Or are they even the same?
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The Power of Social Support: Resilience through People (PLUS infographic)
No doubt, we are living in very challenging and stressful times where our resilience, values, beliefs and (mental and physical) health are challenged. No matter how difficult these times are, they bring an opportunity for growth and even thrive by being resilient. One of the most powerful resilience tools is social support and connectedness, especially in the fight against loneliness and social isolation.
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Coping with COVID-19: Current Trends and A Possible Way Out
COVID-19 created a global health and economic crisis that changed and is changing many lives. It is a major life event that will impact this and many generations after. Coping strategies help us to deal with stress as response to these challenging times. However, not every coping strategy is effective and good for you. Lately, we are seeing some concerning trends regarding maladaptive personal coping strategies in response to the consequences of COVID-19...
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The Soundtrack of your Life: Beneficial Effects of Music
Music is good for your heart, body and soul. In her guest blog, Dr Nadine Skoluda discusses the benefits of listening to and making music.
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Resilience for Life
Currently, we all are facing very difficult times on a personal and global level. The world is in shock and facing a global crisis that we can only overcome as a community starting with the actions of the individual. Being resilient in these times is more important than ever. I firmly believe that resilience can help us as individuals and as community to overcome these difficult times, move forward and even thrive.
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Climb to the Top of your Mental Health
In her guest blog, Dr Jana Strahler discusses the effects of therapeutic climbing and bouldering on mental health.
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Switch off: Turning off your Work Brain (PLUS infographic)
We all go through periods when work is on our mind. However, if you think about work all the time this can damage your mental and emotional well-being, your effectiveness, your relationships and health.
The good news is you can learn to switch off. It is all about finding what strategies twork for you and making them a new habit.
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Coffee vs Exercising: Replace your Morning Coffee with your Running Shoes (PLUS infographic)
Do you need your coffee in the morning? Maybe an extra shot this morning? Do you feel that you need your caffeine fix in the morning to function and start the day? Before coffee you are an absolute mess, feel foggy and tired, cannot think clearly and are grumpy? A recent study shows that 20 minutes of (moderate intensity aerobic) exercising has the same positive effects on your cognition (i.e. working memory) as coffee. Furthermore, the study also suggests that 20 minutes of exercising can reduce the symptoms of coffee withdrawal.
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The Power of Gratitude (PLUS infographic)
Gratitude is a powerful tool for becoming putting things into perspective, be more resilient, improve your mental and physical health, strengthen your relationships and much more. The infographic is a quick gratitude guide.
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