How to take care of your own mental health – and set an example to your team

Mental health, wellbeing, work-life balance: these are topics to which people have recently been paying more attention (also in connection with the Covid-19 pandemic). Although team managers often confidently state they actively support these principles within their team, they often forget about themselves, thus demotivating their employees and showing them that in reality these issues are not so important. Here are some tips on how managers should take care of their own mental health and serve as a role model to their subordinates.

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Maintain healthy eating habits

According to Entrepreneur.com, you should eat regularly to give your body sufficient fuel. Do not skip lunch, do not snack on a sweet chocolate bar at your computer, and motivate your employees to eat healthily.

Give sleep priority

You should also follow a healthy sleeping schedule. Do not brag to your team that you slept only three hours last night because you were busy working on an important work-related project well into the small hours.

Keep work and personal life separate

While some overlap of work and personal life is healthy, it has its limits. If your employees see, for instance, that you are neglecting your family because of work, you are sending them the wrong signal.

Serve as a role model and use the benefits that support wellbeing

If your company offers benefits that support mental wellbeing – such as home office, massages, recovery time, relaxation room – you should use them. Otherwise, you are telling your employees (possibly unknowingly) that you do not see these benefits as important and in fact do not even want your subordinates to use them either.

Be positive and be social

Put simply: do not be constantly stressed out. Keep a positive mindset, take time occasionally to have an informal chat with colleagues, and be sociable towards subordinates and other people at your company.

 

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Article source Entrepreneur.com - website of a leading U.S. magazine for entrepreneurs
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