Like it or slump it

Ever felt like a coherent mass of loosely consolidated materials or rock layers moving a short distance down a slope?

At some point in their working lives, most people have. This is, of course, a slump. Where every day feels like a Monday, and Mondays feel like some new, even worse day.

Like their geological counterparts, slumps are a natural occurrence in the landscape of work. Luckily we’ve dug deep to find the shiniest gems of advice, to help you on the rocky road to salvation.

Slumps, in people as in rocks, have three major causes.

1) Undercutting

When the rug gets pulled from under you, it can leave you feeling hit for six, which may cause a knock-on slump. A sudden problem in your personal life can undercut your work performance out of nowhere.

2) Overloading

Burnout is probably the most common source of slumps. A gradual creep of responsibilities and demands on your time can slowly accumulate until, suddenly, your helpful and proactive attitude cheque bounces, and suddenly you’re deep into your give-a-damn overdraft.

3) Shocks

Pride comes before a fall. Working on a large, draining project can have a rebound effect that leads to temporary zombification. Sometimes a person only has so much to give, and when they go over that, there is going to be some recovery time when they’re forced to just tick over, and let the batteries recharge.

Managing a Slump

So you recognise the symptoms and know you’re in a slump — what now? Here are three solutions:

1) Take a break

When the going gets tough, the tough take a well-deserved rest. There isn’t a better time to take a holiday and mentally regroup than a slump.

Attempting to power through a slump is a valiant but ultimately futile effort, although of course most people won’t be bothered to attempt it. As the quotation goes, the definition of insanity is trying the same thing over and over expecting different results.

Sometimes you just need a little time and space to get your head on straight again.

2) Try something new

It doesn’t matter if you love where you work and are motivated to succeed if your brain finds itself in the same rut every day. The mind thrives off novelty and tackling new challenges, so if you’re finding yourself ground down, it may not be typical fatigue but apathy in the face of the same old everyday routine.

Explore all avenues of possible change. That might be a major shift, like taking the time to learn some new skills or actively seeking a horizontal switch to a different position. You may even be able to vary what you work on with a little negotiation.

If all of that isn’t possible, and holiday is not an option, there are a lot of different ways you can bring a little novelty into your day. Switch your routine up — eat something, or somewhere, new, change your environment (desk position, ornaments), even dare to talk to somebody new in your office.

In extreme circumstances, and all this seems like a band-aid on a bullet hole, you may want to take a slump as a sign that it is time to move on.

3) Re-evaluate and re-balance

If you find yourself in slumps more often than you would like, or seems reasonable, it may be time to apply a little analysis to your working life.

How often are you going out of your way to help other people out, and getting little in return? Are you staying in the office after hours, or checking your emails in bed?

Letting yourself be over-stretched by the demands of others is a key cause of slumps. Knowing your own limits and not breaking them as a matter of course is the best way to stop a “boom and bust” kind of productivity.

Obviously that is easier said than done, but putting hard limits on certain draining aspects of your life — personal or professional — can make all the difference. Developing your ability to say ‘no’ is a big part of preventing yourself getting burnt out.

Nobody, least of all yourself, will respect your boundaries if you don’t have any.

Preventing Slumps

Even if you can’t prevent them 100%, there are ways to minimise your slumping risk. Taken straight from the New Zealand Regional Council on Land Management, so you know it must be true, there are two excellent ways to prevent slumping:

Plant trees and ensure excellent drainage.

We’re not suggesting a hippy lifestyle and efficient toilet habits, although that may also help. In the natural world, networks of tree roots provide stability, while drainage stops water from freezing and causing undercuts.

In the human world, this means having a strong support network and a consistent outlet for stress relief.

Isn’t it amazing how far this analogy goes?

What we’re saying is make like a tree: grow roots and provide excellent drainage. Use high quality fertiliser, and hydrate daily with sparkling wine.

About the author

Jerome Langford

Jerome is a graduate in Philosophy from St Andrews, who alternately spends time writing about HR and staring wistfully out of windows, thinking about life’s bigger questions: Why are we here? How much lunch is too much lunch? What do you mean exactly by ‘final warning’?