General Business

Everyday Practices to Prevent Workplace Burnout

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Easy Steps of Preventing Burnout in the Workplace

The American work-grind is a thrilling ride. Whether you are a CEO of a Fortune 500 company, or an eager entrepreneur getting a start-up off the ground, the business-hustle has an energy-fueled fervor that is addicting. We push ourselves to keep performing. Seeing hard work translate into success is addicting. We take pride in our achievements—the product of 12 hour days, ingenuity, and drained coffee mugs. At some point in the ascension, we all risk hitting a wall. The lingering thought in the back of the mind is preventing burnout.

Humans can only sustain a ‘tour de force’ drive for so long before burning out. Stress, sleep deprivation, and the lack of healthier lifestyle choices that gave way to working leads to 120,000 deaths each year.. The same study showed that $190 billion a year goes toward covering the health care costs of stressful jobs.

A separate study found that 44% of workers state that their current job is having an impact on their overall health. 43% report that their job has a negative impact on their levels of stress. Respondents stated that workforce pressure swayed them from taking vacation time, made them apprehensive about job security, or had significant issues keeping up with the demands of their workload.

*This polling was initiated by NPR, Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, and Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health and a research paper published by Harvard Business School and Stanford University’s Graduate School of Business.

Know the Signs of Burnout

I know this sounds like a cliche HR formality but knowing the symptoms of burning out can help you gauge your limits and prevent fatigue. A psychologist from the University of California named Christina Maslach developed what’s referred to as the Maslach Burnout Inventory. This can be used as a diagnostic tool to indicate when it’s time to ‘slow down.’ This inventory has three dimensions:

Emotional Exhaustion—Feelings of hollowness, depression, or being spent up both physically and mentally. Changes in personality and continued irritation also meet this criterion.

Depersonalization—Alienation from colleagues and friends occurs. Being unable to empathize with others and feeling a prolonged disconnection.

Reduced Personal Accomplishment—One’s capacity to perform is undermined. Loss of self-confidence resulting in one’s work performance suffering.  

Burning out is separate from the typical workplace grumblings or feelings of occasional sadness. These symptoms are recurrent. Burnout happens when a person has passed the threshold of their professional capacity. If you are feeling any of these mental and physical inhibitions and leave them unattended, workplace stress can manifest itself into depression or anxiety.

Symptoms of Depression:

  • Insomnia
  • Engaging in Daily Functioning
  • Problems Getting Out of Bed/Awakening in the Morning
  • Extreme Sadness
  • Loss of Appeal to Usual ‘Fun’ Activities

Symptoms of Anxiety:

  • Racing Thoughts
  • Racing Heart
  • Stomach Issues
  • Difficulty Concentrating

If any of these symptoms are controlling your work-experience or impeding on your life, consider scheduling an appointment with a physician.

Escape Technology

There are many factors involved when it comes to determining the culprit of burnout. In the modern office, technology almost certainly plays a role. Sitting for 8 plus hours a day staring at a computer screen is not an ideal situation for a human. Still, this is a reality. In the office, there are some practical steps one can take to make your workflow easier on the body.

  • If you work on a computer, download f.lux. This software adapts your computer display brightness to the time of the day. At 9 a.m. your computer screen mimics sunlight as it monitors the amount of blue light radiating from your screen. Gradually, as the day goes on, the lighting of your computer screen gets warmer. This supports a healthy circadian rhythm and melatonin levels needed for good sleep.
  • Maintaining proper posture at your desk is also important. Make sure the chair you sit in every day aligns properly to your spine. Every few hours it’s good to get up and get the blood flowing to the brain. Stretch, drink water, and then get back to your work.
  • You should also set parameters for yourself. This regulates the active inputs in your life. For instance, after 7 p.m. you will not respond to emails or take business phone calls. Separating your personal life from your work life can help you recharge.

Actionable Steps Toward Healthy Work-Life Balance

Everyone has their own personal ways of preventing burnout. Some practice yoga or work out while others binge on Netflix. The trick is to have a life outside of work that is just as rewarding as your career achievements. Work-life balance is one of the most applicable ways to maintain a healthy life outlook. How do you get most out of the time spent away from work projects?

  • Learn Something New. A good step toward fostering your entrepreneurial spirit and staying healthy is committing to learning something new every day. You can do this by reading books that interest you. Speaking with your mentors or even learning a musical instrument or new language is practical, fun, and keeps the mind sharp.
  • Take personal time. Whether it is stepping away from the grind and taking a vacation, going to a spa day, or catching up with friends—find something that you enjoy and immerse yourself in it for a little while before returning back to work. When you get back to the office you’ll be surprised how refreshed you feel.
  • Meditating. Taking a few minutes a day to clear your mind is both physically and mentally therapeutic. Going to a meditation class is a great de-stressor. Even taking a five-minute head-clearing walk can be helpful. Many busy workers have discovered Headspace—a meditation app for mindfulness training. Figure out what works for you.
  • Service to others. Once you’ve rested, you might find that doing some volunteer work on the weekend helps you replenish energy levels. Make sure you’re in a good state to volunteer and work with others first, then try pursuing some philanthropic activities.
  • Positivity. It’s an old cliche but it’s real. When you get home from work, think about the positive things that happened that day. Instead of worrying about the report due tomorrow, focus on what you accomplished today.

When It’s time to Notify Management

If you are having severe symptoms of fatigue, depression, or feel too burnt out to cope, it is better to be proactive about the situation than to let it get worse.

Reaching out to management is not alarming. A good manager should be considered and will help assist with workloads or time-off to help you recuperate. If feelings of burnout are deriving from feeling unappreciated at work or being detached from the team, talk to your manager about how your efforts help meet company objectives.

We hope you found this article helpful! Good luck with preventing burnout and maintaining that perfect harmony between your work and your life!

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Hottest Apps for Small Business Bookkeeping

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Discerning the Best App for Your Small Business Bookkeeping Needs Saves Time and Stops Hassles

For some minds, small business bookkeeping comes easy and is considered a joy. Most of us do not have this kind of mind. This leaves the rest of us entrepreneurs scrambling to find a cloud computing app that can handle the tedium and calculations necessary for accounting. There are dozens of widely available small business bookkeeping apps. Figuring out which one you want to use depends on the style of your business, your business needs, and how much you want to pay.

If you are ready to upgrade from using spreadsheets to a purpose-built cloud bookkeeping app this will improve your business immensely. Spreadsheets are a powerful tool but margins are high for human error. Manual data entry is time-consuming, formulas can be written incorrectly, and if one cell is modified the entire spreadsheet can be incorrect.

Powerful accounting software and bookkeeping apps are the modern upgrade with functions designed specifically to improve where spreadsheets fall flat. Bookkeeping software can integrate into a small business’s bank accounts for real-time transaction reconciliation. Financial statements are also easily accessible. A software’s dashboard is easy to navigate and financial key metrics are presented orderly. This makes filing taxes much easier. Also important is that bookkeeping software will scale with your small business. As you grow or re-organize, your software will match your needs.

So, which small business bookkeeping software is the best for you?

1. QuickBooks Online

QuickBooks is one of the premier accounting software choices available on the market. Prices range from $10 per month to $50 per month for the Plus plan. For most small businesses’ bookkeeping, it will cost around $15.

This price is well worth it when you see the capabilities this software has built into its functioning. QuickBooks handles accounting, billing, invoicing, time tracking, accounts payable, reporting, inventory, payroll, sales, and taxes. These functions are centralized to a single dashboard. Many users also appreciate it’s seamless navigation and colorful design. This makes complicated figures easier to digest. The software also pulls from your online bank accounts. This allows you to download detailed financial reports and track your small business’s spending. QuickBooks also links with company credit cards, your POS system, and online vendors.

2. Nutcache

Nutcache is a robust cloud-based accounting application that can perform every feature of typical small business bookkeeping demands. The software is free unless you opt for the Pro plan which costs $5 for each user per month on an annual basis. The Enterprise plan costs $12  for each user per month when paid annually. For a monthly basis, this package will be $15 per month.

The simplicity of Nutcahe’s interface is valuable. With Nutcache, you can create an unlimited amount of invoices with your company logo and send them en masse to various clients. Invoicing and tracking tools come standard. Other functions include expense reporting, task management, and key performance indicators. You can track time with your budget to see what projects are the most profitable.

3. Zoho Books

Also, an application that embraces simplicity is Zoho books. There are three pricing plans that small business owners can choose from. The first is the Basic plan which costs $9 per month. The Standard plan costs $19 per month while the Professional plan costs $29 per month.

Zoho books web app ecosystem helps small business owners manage bookkeeping at each stage. The software seamlessly integrates with other Zoho business applications like Zoho CRM and Zoho inventory. Other third-party payment systems like PayPal are easily integrated. On top of this, Zoho Books performs accounting functions like organized financial reporting, client portals, and real-time bank account monitoring. Zoho puts an accountant’s knowledge at your fingertips.

4. Sage One

When it comes to small business bookkeeping, simple is powerful. Sage One cloud accounting fully embraces this idea by providing dynamic tools with straightforward navigation. The Sage One start plan costs $6.99 per month when bought in six-month increments. Sage One accounting costs $19.99 per month for the same deal.

The features for the basic plan will most likely cover most small businesses’ needs. Features like sales invoicing, tracking overdue balances, bank account integration, financial reporting, tax calculations, cash flow statements, check printing, and 1099 contractors. Additional features of the accounting plan include cash flow forecasts, quotes & estimates, and vendor billing. Sage One is well-organized and runs small business bookkeeping on autopilot. No more redundancy with this app.

5. Xero

Xero has a natural flow to its user experience that can make account management almost enjoyable. The app imports financial transactions into its database and links them to coterminous accounting transactions. Xero has three different plans. The Starter plan costs $9 per month for limited invoices and reconciliation features. The standard plan costs $30 per month with unlimited invoicing and reconciliation. With the Premium plan, you receive enhanced features at $70 per month.

The design of Xero rivals Quickbooks by providing a concise picture of your company’s financial health. Integration is also seamless with Xero as you can connect with 500 plus third party apps. Conversion from other accounting software is also handled with Xero and bank reconciliation is automatic. Xero offers developer support to help you through any issues you might encounter. Definitely worth the value.

6. Wave

This accounting app is perfect for small business bookkeeping with nine employees or less. Wave’s core functions—invoicing, accounting, and receipt features are all completely free. Payroll is $15 per month and $4 per employee for the first 10 employees. After this, it is $2 per employee.

Wave is great for small business owners who run a small operation. The developer’s mindset is that small business owners can pay for what they use with no surprises. For fundamental bookkeeping tasks, Wave is great. But, the lack of check printing, automatic migration ability, and time tracking might make growing businesses look elsewhere. This being said, Wave is a free program. You can a lot of bang for spending no bucks.

We hope you found this article helpful and good luck with your small business bookkeeping efforts!

 

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