How to Stay Focused At Work When Personal Struggles Arise

A great deal can be riding on your remaining focus at work. Promotions, upskilling opportunities, and task accuracy are just a few of the many. While your intention might always be to maintain professionalism and productivity while performing your job to a high standard, it can sometimes be challenging when personal struggles arise. If you’ve found yourself in this very situation and are worried about it beginning to impact your professional reputation, here are some helpful tips for staying focused: 

Ask for Help 

While asking for help depends on your personal struggle, it can be worthwhile in many situations. For example, if you’re worried about a loved one being neglected in their nursing home, you may see the value in contacting a Florida nursing home neglect lawyer to handle the situation for you. They can investigate and hold the persons responsible to account. Knowing an expert is taking charge can be a weight off your mind. 

If you’re having mental health struggles, consider reaching out to a trained counsellor or therapist. They can provide advice and tools for life challenges like relationship troubles, as well as mental health conditions like anxiety, depression, and PTSD. 

Your workplace may also offer an employee assistance program (EAP) that you can take advantage of. Even your friends and family can be a listening ear and a form of support when you need it the most. Asking for help can be scary, but it may provide you with the tools and skills needed to manage and maintain your personal and professional life. 

Acknowledge Your Struggles

Knowing the impact that your personal struggles can have on your professional life, it’s only natural that you’ll try to suppress them. You may think that pretending they aren’t there will make it easier to keep your life on track.

However, ignoring your struggles doesn’t make them go away; you just feel more drained trying to carry on like normal. Acknowledging what’s happening for you is a significant part of maintaining your focus in the workplace.

Be honest with yourself about what’s affecting you, and give yourself permission to not feel or function at full capacity. Recognizing that life has been challenging for you is the first step toward managing it. 

Communicate With Your Employer 

You don’t need to tell your employer your exact struggles, nor do you need to go into great detail. However, strategic honesty can be helpful when you know your change in performance will be noticed. What’s more, you may be surprised by how understanding your colleagues and employer can be if you decide to share.

Share enough to explain your need for flexibility. If your workload is starting to feel overwhelming, for any reason, talk to your employer early, not once you’re already feeling burned out. 

Being transparent, or at least offering some insight into your personal struggles, may help you find temporary solutions to make your everyday work life easier, such as extended deadlines, time off, or delegation. 

Prioritize Your Work Tasks

When you notice a dramatic drop in your emotional energy, everyday work tasks you could once manage with ease can suddenly become much harder. Suddenly, you may achieve less in a day or have lower work standards. 

During such a challenging time in your life, it becomes important to prioritize your work. Identify the tasks that have the greatest impact and focus on them first. Where possible, delegate, postpone, or simplify any non-essential work.  

Now is also a great time to consider technologies that could save you time and reduce stress. Productivity tools, for example, may help you keep on track without overthinking. You may even find technologies and software that can automate previously time-consuming tasks. 

Rely On Structure

Many personal struggles can be out of your control. You can’t do anything to fix or manage them and, instead, must ride the wave until it’s over. You might have no control over your personal turbulence, but you do have control over your everyday activities and work life. Use structure as your anchor during this challenging time.

Maintain a consistent sleep structure, mealtimes, and work schedule for when you start and finish work each day. You may also find it beneficial to set up a shutdown ritual at the end of each working day to separate your home and business life. For example, you might decide to walk home rather than take public transport so you have time to wind down. Journaling and listening to soothing music can also form part of your shutdown ritual.

Take Time Off Work 

If you have access to paid vacation days, consider using them while dealing with a personal situation. While you might prefer to use your PTO for fun activities and time away, it may come in handy when you know your whole focus isn’t on your job when it needs to be. 

How you choose to spend your days off is entirely up to you. You might try to resolve the challenges in your personal life, if it’s possible. Otherwise, you might decide to go away or use the time to rest, relax, and recharge. The hope is that in the days you’ve taken off work, you’ll have a chance to take care of yourself and be able to return to work feeling more at ease and in charge.  

Give Yourself Grace

When you’re a high achiever who takes great pride in your work, making mistakes or being ‘off your game’ due to personal challenges can be disheartening. However, you should give yourself grace. Being a high performer doesn’t mean you always have to power through. You can have off days. 

Remind yourself that this hard season will pass, and you will come through the other side wiser. Most importantly, remember not to measure your worth solely by how productive you are in the workplace. You are worth more as a person.

Conclusion

Staying focused when you’re going through something life-changing or challenging can be unbelievably hard. It’s also hard not to have it affect your professional life, including your productivity. However, by communicating, being kind to yourself, taking time out, and seeking help when needed, there’s every reason to believe that you can come out the other side feeling stronger and wiser.

Featured Photo by Yasmina H on Unsplash