Mental Health (Just Like The World) Is On Fire: Here's How It Can Be Put Out

For the last couple of years, instability has been the most stable thing in the world. This has been affecting almost every aspect of our well-being — mental health in particular. Talks about burnout, anxiety, panic, and the ways to deal with them have become more frequent in our professional and personal lives.

Keeping our heads clear and our mental health minty fresh (as opposed to being on fire) is one of the keys to going through these times intact. Here are the steps that I take to remain focused and keep my mental health… well, healthy.

Setting goals

I am a firm believer that there should be a clear goal for every action.

For a long time, I have been writing down and tracking almost every task I have. And I have passed this approach to the entire SupportYourApp team. For years, we have been using Kanban-style systems and boards like Asana and Jira. They allow us to track every little detail and progress on any major project and minute task. It is also a good tool to assess the productivity of every team member and adjust their schedule. This allows them to have enough time to be productive and successful at everything they do without burning or rusting out.

I am also a big advocate of creating timelines and roadmaps. Our team uses them to assess the amount of steps and time required to complete complex tasks. We know exactly who we need to cooperate and collaborate with to achieve a desired result in a timely manner and what to do in case of roadblocks.

Talking, talking, talking

The culture of all-embracing communication came to SupportYourApp together with the COVID-19 pandemic. Of course, we had meetings before that, but they were nowhere nearly as numerous as they are now. The fact that SupportYourApp started looking for new teammates all over the world only served as a catalyst. We needed to constantly be connected with new members of our team, especially during the first several months when they were only getting started.

We utilized the same approach after Russia launched its unjustified attack against our country. When our teammates were scattered all over, we constantly remained in touch. We wanted to make informed decisions and make sure everyone stayed in the loop. In the most uncertain of times, open and frequent communication was the key to staying stable.

Today, my team and I discuss every step SupportYourApp needs to take to keep on growing and remain successful. We talk about every idea and brainstorm whenever we have the opportunity. We do everything we can to support each other, which helps us remain calm even in the most uncertain situations.

Making sport a part of life

Sport and physical activities have been my companions for a long time. Playing squash, running, wakeboarding (whenever I can), going to the gym, and even walking are all part of my regular schedule. Sport grounds me and gives me time and opportunity to be with my thoughts, come up with new ideas, and relax after a long day.

It is a long-proven fact that sport plays a crucial part in relieving stress. It helps with the release of endorphins and helps the mind switch from our daily routines to something completely different. Regular exercise is also a good way to improve the mood. And I am not even going to say anything about the feeling of accomplishment people have after a workout. It’s just fabulous.

For me, physical activity is a near-perfect way to put my mind at ease when it is going a hundred miles an hour. As ironic as it may seem, a treadmill that is going fast seems to be the best way to feel as if the world stops spinning and gives you time to unwind.

Maintaining work-life balance

This may seem like a cliché that has been talked about one too many times. But this doesn’t take away from the fact that maintaining a work-life balance is one of the most important things to support one’s mental well-being.

It took me some time to realize — staying connected and available 24/7 is not the recipe for success. It only promotes burnout and can make professionals irritated and annoyed with their jobs. This can happen even to those who love what they do.

Right now, my favorite way to maintain my work-life balance is to put my phone somewhere away from me, unplug from all my devices, and relax with a book or in the gym (something I have already covered). This gives me time to come up with new ideas and dedicate my free time to myself, which helps me maintain my mental health.