Writings on Self-Advocacy, Burnout, and Workplace Wellness
Self-advocacy isn’t just for career progression; it encompasses a suite of skills that infuse every aspect of your life. In this post I describe 7 lessons grief has taught me about standing up for myself.
The interruption shield is an important self-advocacy at work technique; a prepared list of phrases that enable you to skip past interruptions and politely interject on others when you need to.
In another article on burnout and mental health at work, Neelu explains how burnout can be exacerbated by poor self-advocacy, and provides some tools and strategies to help you improve your self-advocacy skills.
Neelu teaches self-advocacy skills for AAPI employees and introduces employees from all cultures to the specific difficulties faced by team members with non-Western cultural backgrounds.
In this video I describe two important self-advocacy tools for Asian and South Asian women; dancing between the ‘We’ and the ‘I’, and engaging your interruption shield.
In the final clip from Neelu’s LinkedIn Live with Kelly from Equipt Women, Neelu discusses the effect of growing up in a collective culture, in which the self takes second place to the group.
In another quick clip from Neelu’s LinkedIn Live with Kelly from Equipt Women, Neelu shares a counterintuitive approach to problem solving; knowing when nothing is the most appropriate thing to do.
In this quick clip from Neelu’s LinkedIn Live with Kelly from Equipt Women, Neelu discusses how to reframe the questions you ask yourself and others in order to achieve more positive outcomes.
In this quick clip from Neelu’s LinkedIn Live with Kelly from Equipt Women, Neelu shares her one biggest tip for quietening your inner imposter and learning to appreciate your own skills.
In this quick clip from Neelu’s LinkedIn Live with Kelly from Equipt Women, Neelu shares how to prepare for being interrupted in a meeting so you can take back control and make your point.
In this quick clip from Neelu’s LinkedIn Live with Kelly from Equipt Women, Neelu discusses one of the most important ways to move forward and unlock self advocacy skills in the workplace; forgiveness.
In an extract from Neelu’s Book, Be Your Own Cheerleader, Neelu shares 10 quick skills to help Asian and South Asian women self promote at work.
As a woman, and particularly as a woman of color, I’m sadly accustomed to being talked over in meetings. Over the years I’ve developed a strategy that helps me to speak up and be heard, switching the focus of the meeting back to the very valid points I have to make.
Self-Advocacy Advice
In this post, Neelu matches the 15 most common symptoms of burnout with practical advice for how to alleviate them.
Do you feel trapped, hopeless, and unable to see a way out? If so you may be burned out. Here are 15 signs that you need to take action and take a break.
Be yourself! Don’t be fake! It has almost become cliché. Can you really be your ‘Friday night’ self at the Monday morning all-hands? No one wants that. So here’s the secret to being yourself without actually, y’know, being yourself.
Many factors add to the sense of overwhelm and low self efficacy that brings on the burnout. Here’s one way to take back a little power when you are feeling down; deploy your interruption shield!
Have you given your Why much thought since the world turned upside down? If you are still working for your old Why, you could be working for a purpose you no longer believe in, and feeling burned out as a result.
In this post on burnout prevention, I explain how advocating for your own rest time — to yourself and others — can enable you to work hard and achieve your goals without burning out.
In this article I explain how to climb out of the pit of despair a moment of negativity can throw you down, by taking a step back and reminding yourself that the only constant is change.
In the next part of my blog series on burnout-proofing yourself, I discuss your inner critic and imposter syndrome, plus other ways to stand up for yourself to yourself.
In this article from my blog series on using self-advocacy to protect you from burnout, I explain how to tweak your motivation dial to meet your own needs in different situations.
In the first of a blog series on using self-advocacy to protect you from burnout on the road to success, I describe how to stand out from the team and get the credit you deserve.
Burnout is real, and it’s affecting more and more of us as we navigate through uncertainty, upheaval and grief to keep life ‘normal’ in the midst of a pandemic. In this article I share my tips for making the most of the time before bed to relax and answer to no one but you.
Burnout Advice
Some of us spring out of bed in the morning with excitement for as-yet undiscovered mysteries and life-lesson inspiring challenges we could uncover during the short time we have before the sun dips back over the horizon. The rest of us wake up groggy and reach for the coffee to jolt us awake. Here are 5 simple tips to wake you up (hint: caffeine isn’t one of them).
You are killing it at work. But one bad bout of the flu has you out of commission for two weeks, and you are scrambling to cover your workload. Overwhelmed, frazzled, and energetically depleted, you attempt to tough it out without sharing your burdens with your manager or team.
These days the only thing that doesn't change is change. We changed to working from home, then we changed to a hybrid working model. Perhaps by the time you read this we will have changed to working on the moon. Who knows? All this change leads to worry and negative self talk. So here's how to switch it OFF.
We have been 100% virtual for well over a year and a half and Zoom fatigue is real. Full disclosure, Zoom fatigue was real in my home office after a couple of weeks. So how can you reduce the impact of Zoom calls on your day?
Overwhelm when facing a seemingly huge task is real! In this video I share one simple trick to get you on the road to completion.
Ayurveda believes we are a microcosm of the macrocosm. As such, there are five great elements in nature and within each cell of our being that impact our daily lives. The five great elements are Space, Air, Fire, Water, & Earth.
Have you ever found yourself looking at someone’s profile, scrolling through their public persona, and lost track of time? Before you know it you find yourself in a downward spiral of self-doubt and despair. Sound familiar? Here I share a few tips on how to get out of the comparison game.
Authenticity means being true to oneself, and stifling your essential you-ness can have a detrimental impact on your mental health. Does that mean you should come to work in full drag costume because that’s your bag on your days off? Probably not. So how can you be true to yourself AND adjust in different environments? Watch this video to find out.
Walking improves creativity, including convergent thinking, such as the ability to come up with solutions to a problem, and divergent thinking, which involves conceiving open-ended, original ideas. So what are you waiting for? Schedule your next online meeting for a walk around the neighbourhood.
What if you could set the tone for your day to be more productive, peaceful, and purposeful? Listen right now to a simple strategy for putting down your phone, beating device addiction, and setting yourself up for success.
5 seconds is all it takes to center throughout the working day with this practice from Wendy Palmer at Leadership Embodiment. Quickly center between meetings and tasks to be more productive, peaceful, and purposeful.
Have you been lying to yourself? You’ve been telling yourself you need to love something to stay motivated. WRONG! People have been getting boring stuff done since the dawn of time. Here’s how to do the things you don’t want to do.
There is so much research around happiness in the US and yet Americans struggle to be happy. Americans are notorious for constantly searching for happiness, so why not leverage the insights and wisdom from the Danes?
When performance review season approaches, the onus is on you to accurately articulate your accomplishments so they can measure your performance. Here are some self-advocacy tips to help you prepare for your performance review.