Why self-care needs to come from the top

We've collected self-care tips that aren’t about instructing an individual to go for a walk or take a bath, but addressing the stress and expectations from the top.
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Burnout, stress and being overwhelmed sometimes appear synonymous with working in the arts industry with the often long hours, varied shifts, limited resources and demands of our calendars combined.

Many individuals are nimble and creative when it comes to dealing with the day to day challenges of their roles and finding ways to unwind and look after themselves after work. Because many of us are committed, passionate and hard working individuals who aren’t necessarily working for a financial reward but personal and career growth, the lines between work and life become very porous.

The well-meaning advice to ‘switch off’ can be difficult for individuals to achieve if they are part of a work culture that doesn’t make room for all employees to practice self-care. It’s perhaps short-sighted to place the emphasis on the individual when there are expectations coming from the top to work to a point of exhaustion.

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Madeleine Dore
About the Author
Madeleine Dore is a freelance writer and founder of Extraordinary Routines, an interview project exploring the intersection between creativity and imperfection. She is the previous Deputy Editor at ArtsHub. Follow her on Twitter at @RoutineCurator