The Two Secrets of Being Productive While Sick

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Mondays are productivity days at SimpleProductivity blog.

Cold and flu season have begun. Couple that with the frantic activity that the holiday season brings, and many of us end up sick.

On top of the standard cold I catch right before I have to sing, I overextended my voice and managed to even lose my voice for a couple of days. Not fun. When you are at home and your only link on the phone is a six-year-old, all sorts of things get crazy.

So what is the productive person to do when he or she gets sick? There are two essential ways to make sure you balance productivity with healing time.

Do Only the Necessary

In order to make sure you have the maximum time to rest and recuperate, you must cut back what you do. Eliminate everything that isn’t absolutely necessary. This includes both work and home. If you have sick time, use it. And don’t spend the time at home doing other things. Remember, people will understand if you’ve been sick.

Adjust Expectations

We may have cut back, but other people may still demand we participate in activities. Or we may feel guilty that we are not doing everything we said we would, or that we normally would. This is handled easily by adjusting expectations, both yours and others’. Cut yourself some slack, and make sure everyone else knows that the more you rest, the faster you will be back up and doing things.

Remember, when you are sick, the best thing you can do for yourself is to take care of yourself and get plenty of rest. The less you let interfere with healing, the faster you will be back in top shape.

Photo by vieux bandit