Is Your Cup Empty?

You’re probably familiar with the phrase “you can’t pour from an empty cup”, and I think it’s an important reminder for professionals to pause and check in. Are you making time for yourself? Do you have what you need to thrive? Is everything else coming before your own needs? Maybe you’re a leader who is always thinking about their team, maybe you’re a parent balancing work and family, or maybe simply the blurring of personal and professional is draining you. Whatever the case, if you’re feeling depleted, you’re not going to be able to put your best foot forward in any realm. That’s why it’s so important for professionals to ask themselves this question from time to time. And if you find that your cup is empty, that you’re feeling exhausted, stressed, and burnt out, it’s important to take the steps to fill it back up so you can get back to an optimal state for yourself and those around you. Here are some strategies professionals can use to get back on track:

Review Your Calendar

We often feel drained as a result of jam-packed days. If you use a calendar to organize your schedule, it’s a great practice to go back and review the past few weeks. In this way, you can see where things got out of balance and try to correct them going forward. Maybe it’s feeling like you don’t have five minutes of peace and quiet to yourself. See if you can schedule that in. Block off a window in your calendar where you can decompress, even if it’s just a short chunk of time. Using your calendar both as a way to assess the structure of your days and as a tool to carve out time for yourself is a smart way to fill your cup.

Establish Boundaries

Another reason we may be feeling low on fuel is because we have no boundaries. Especially for professionals working from home, it can feel like all the lines have blurred. Perhaps in your normal routine, you’re at the office for the day, the kids are at school, and everyone reunites at home in the evening. For many families, this fall looks different. Many parents are balancing being professionals, parents, and teachers. Though it’s not always easy, striving to establish some boundaries between these different aspects of your life is key. Since physical boundaries of different locations may not be in place, things like ‘no work emails after 6pm’ or ‘no phones in the living room’ can help you try to maintain some separation.

Value Your Needs

Many professionals are operating on empty because they put everyone else’s needs before their own. It’s essential to realize that meeting your own needs not only helps you to feel better in your day to day, but it also allows you to better help those around you. Whether that’s coworkers, clients, family, or friends, you’ll have more to give if you invest in yourself first. Some professionals feel guilty taking time for themselves. Once you can flip that mindset and see that tending to your own needs is a strategy for success, it often becomes a bit easier to make time for it.

Know How to Refill

When you start to feel burnt out with nothing left to give, what helps you to refill? It can be difficult once you’re in that position to take the steps you need to get back on track, and that can land some professionals in a rut. If possible, try to come up with some strategies when you’re feeling good. This way, when things get challenging, you’ll have go-to solutions at the ready. Maybe it’s spending quality time with your family, curling up with a book, or going for a run. We all refill in different ways. What matters is finding what works for you.

There’s no doubt that things are challenging right now, and so many professionals feel like they’re operating on empty. While there may not be an instant fix, these strategies above may help you start to refill your cup and get back to a place where you have more to give to yourself and to those around you. What are your thoughts? Do you have any strategies to recharge? I’d love to hear what you think!