This is the time of year when the gray days and cold weather seem never to end. It’s also a popular time for career restlessness. Cabin fever gives rise to workplace conflict, boredom or may even encourage you to rethink your career altogether. But before you jump ship, it’s wise to determine the source of your restlessness to ensure the best solution.
One of the most common forms of winter blues is Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD). This is a mood disorder that occurs annually during fall and winter with symptoms as mild as lack of concentration or more severe including periods of full on depression. If this is the underlying cause, it’s important to seek expert guidance before jumping into a major change. But if your despondency is simply career restlessness, then here are a few remedies that may help you beat the winter work blues.
Make Someone’s Day. Did you know that science has proven vast physical and psychological health benefits come from giving to others? Doing a good deed for someone else not only makes you feel better, but can help you see things more clearly. When you’re giving back or paying forward, your disposition changes and your problems shrink. By actively channeling your energies away from yourself and onto others, you’ll build bridges, attract opportunities and be happier in the long run.
Try Something New. One of the best ways you can shake up the winter doldrums is by trying something new. Attend a professional development program, invite a new colleague to lunch or listen to a motivational speaker on your drive to work. Making even the slightest change in your routine will minimize career restlessness and increase enlightenment. Change fosters clarity, which helps you make sound decisions about what’s needed to reignite your work day.
Revisit Your Goals. Now is the perfect time to check in on your resolutions. If you are off track, or feeling bored with your efforts, it’s time to enlist a coach or consider rewriting them altogether. Your goals are only good goals if they are true to your career dreams. Coaching helps you define and achieve your most important goals, and we can all agree that realizing your dreams is the best antidote for winter work blues.
Kim Monaghan, PCC, RYT, CPBS is the owner of KBM Coaching & Consulting LLC, a boutique Human Resources Consulting and Career Coaching Firm serving a national clientele.