Whatever faces you, you are entitled to work where capable – and it should not affect how managers and colleagues treat you. Here’s how to acknowledge a health condition with your employer, and work through it positively.

For too long, people with long-term physical health problems or those people with mental health issues have been discriminated against in the workplace. Mental health issues were stigmatised, with conditions little understood.

Thankfully, attitudes are changing with employers now looking to support and help their employees. With mental and overall health of employees high up the agenda, most employers are seeking to actively work and engage with employees on such issues. There are even mental health courses that you can take online to boost your awareness and understanding.

But when you have a health condition, mental or physical (or both) how can you manage your health alongside giving your employer the best you have to offer?

Starting the conversation

Although many employers are taking proactive steps to help employees manage their health better, as well as providing an improved atmosphere in which to work, they won’t know to provide extra support or make changes to accommodate your health issues if they don’t know you are unwell.

Effectively, you need to start a conversation about being unwell or the mental health issues you are facing. Clearly, for someone in the midst of some kind of health crises, this can seem like a gigantic step.

Here are some suggestions for taking this important first step;

Many people find that with the support of a trusted work colleague, they are able to start the conversation about what is happening to them.

We all know how busy work can be and with something so important, snatching a few moments with your boss in the corridor is not a great way to start discussing something as personal as your health. You need to ask to make a time for you to meet to discuss something important.

For many people, opening the conversation about your mental health or discussing an ongoing illness is the most daunting step. Some people send an email first, before meeting their boss. This takes away that initial opening line of ‘I have been diagnosed with…’ etc. It also gives your boss time to think about how best they can support you.

Ask what support is available

Employers are now taking the health and well-being of their works more seriously, and look to offer support that allows people to deal with health issues but carry on working in a way and at times that suit them.

But it is a balancing act and, as an employee, you must also realise that your boss needs to ensure that the business is also moving forward, with responsibilities and so on being met.

This doesn’t mean they can dismiss you for being ill: they can’t as there are employment laws that prevent this.

Employees also worry about ‘triggers’ when they take time off. Some companies and public-sector employers monitor when people are off. If a pattern emerges, it is the employer’s responsibility to work with the employee to see why this is, and what they can do to make things better for their workers.

Be prepared to work with your employer

Your boss won’t always get it right. Many people still struggle to work with and deal with health issues, especially mental health. The point is that they try to work with you, but they are not always going to say the right thing and the right time.

And, if you stay home from work, your boss is entitled to maintain contact with you. You may perceive this as pressure to return but remember, your boss or supervisor is more than likely trying to help you. There are guidelines, however, on how contact is made and what this should achieve.

Consider raising awareness with your colleagues

Employers are now offering training to supervisors and managers on how to work with employees with health and mental health issues. There are many avenues to explore with your employer about raising awareness of various health issues with your colleagues and management.

How is your wellbeing?

From feeling a little low in spirit to depression and anxiety, there are many organisations who can help with your mental health issues. They can provide you with help about how to deal with your health issues at work too, what you can expect from your employer and so on. But there is no doubt, sharing your worries and concerns helps.

 

Juggling distance learning and work can seem like a daunting task, as it involves taking on yet another commitment in your already busy life. But you understand that in order to grab the promotion you want or to make a desired career change, you need to upskill. This means that you need to get essential qualifications under your belt.

Distance learning is a way to get these qualifications without having to give up work or find time on the evening, week after week to attend a college course. That said, juggling a distance learning alongside work can be tough. How have other students accomplished successfully balancing these two?

Time
The biggest issue for many students, including those that study part-time, full-time, as well as by distance, is time – or more precisely, a lack of it.

When you work full or part time, you instantly lose many hours each week of possible study time. Combine this with other commitments, and you might be left feeling that you literally have no time left to study.

Making time may mean looking at some of these commitments and taking a step back – but when giving up work or dropping hours is not a possibility, what are your options?

As with all qualifications, there will be intense periods of study as well as times where you can relax a little more. Even though you may create a schedule of study for the week, don’t berate yourself if you don’t manage to follow it exactly – life happens from time to time!

Build in ‘spill over’ periods in your study timetable so that if you don’t get a chance to study for an hour at the specified time, you could carve out some time on another day.

Distractions & Procrastination
Distractions are everywhere – what one student finds annoying, another will enjoy. For example, do you prefer peace and quiet when you work, or do you like listening to music?

It is important to identify what could potentially distract you, and then take positive steps to avoid these factors.

Distraction is one thing, procrastinating is another – this is where you are so overwhelmed that you choose not to face the assignment at all. It might feel easier to watch a TV programme than it is to work, read through course notes or prepare for a test.

Eventually, you slip so far behind that it becomes (in your mind) impossible to catch up, and so your course (and its potentially career-changing qualifications) slip through your fingers.

The secret to success for any distance learning course, regardless of topic or level, is to maintain regular ‘contact’, whether that is reading a textbook or a related journal, reading through course materials or similar. Keep pushing your course to the front of your mind, keep it within reach, and learn to identify distractions when you are procrastinating.

Study Space
At work you will no doubt have a space that you work from. It could be a workbench or a drawing board, a reception desk or a desk in a large open-plan office – this is your space, and you should make it your own.

This could be something as simple as arranging your desk or personalising it with a photo of your family. All of these small elements combine to make it a place where you feel comfortable to complete your daily tasks.

Your study space should be the same. It doesn’t have to be a grand, large space – the current trend is to create a study nook (i.e. under the stairs) that utilises a small amount of space but does so in a very practical way. It should be comfortable, a place where you can work on your course without interruption for an hour or two per week.

Support
Employers want to hire well-rounded staff that possess a range of skills and qualifications. The better equipped and skilled their workforce, the better shape their business will be in to compete in a competitive market place.

Many employers will offer support to employees that they know are undergoing courses, so it is well worth chatting with your human resources department or reading through the staff manual.

Real Life
As well as paying course fees and/or offering study time, employers will often allow you to use work as a practical element for your coursework or assignments.

For example, a teaching assistant studying for the Higher Level Teaching Assistant qualification may need to use the classroom setting as the basis of a project. This could mean facilitating small group work or delivering a pre-planned session. They may need to be assessed in this role as proof that they can deliver a lesson or facilitate small group work. In this case, the classroom teacher will act as an informal assessor, offering feedback that will prove valuable when completing the course.

Using real life and workplace experiences is a critical part of vocational qualifications, and a good form of support from an employer. This is a great way to achieve balance when studying for a qualification whilst working.

Use experiences past and present to add depth to your course and to your learning.

Be Organised
It is Monday morning and you have a full week of work ahead, full of extra pressures as well as commitments in your family life. To top it all off, you have an assignment that you need to complete in order to move on to the next topic.

Getting and staying organised is critical to balance and success when learning from home. Being organised means thinking ahead, understanding what needs to shift to the back burner, and what needs to come to the fore.

This includes prioritising topics and activities that need to be completed in order for you to successfully stay on track and complete your course.

It is inevitable that at certain times your course will need to take a back seat, giving way to work commitments (and vice versa).

Don’t Cram
When you sign up for a distance learning course it can be tempting to bask in the glory of trying something new – meanwhile, letting all of your coursework fall by the wayside. You need to assign value to your course and the qualification it offers you, as well as to the learning process itself.

This means staying with your course and not leaving assignments to the last minute – just say no to cramming! This is not good for your stress level, and it won’ts get you the desired results.

Try to arrange your work and studying responsibilities so that they are in harmony. Look at your work and study calendars and try to dovetail them together. For example, don’t try and complete a major assignment that requires many hours of study and reading into the same week you are involved in a big project at work.

Take Time for Yourself
In amongst all this work and study is YOU! You mustn’t forget that you need to take some time out for your own peace of mind. Just like you have a day or two off from work, you should have a day or two off from studying.

Enjoy the fresh air, go to the gym, go to Zumba class, enjoy a walk up a mountain, meet a friend for afternoon tea, or enjoy an afternoon watching a classic film on TV – any activity that makes you feel good is a great way of restoring work and study balance!

What hints and tips do you want to share with your fellow learners? Email us your ideas!

Life is all about balance. We all juggle work commitments with family, shoe horning in social engagements and events when we can, along with a healthy dose of rest and relaxation.

With such a fine balance achieved on a day to day basis, it doesn’t take much to upset the apple cart. Adding another important commitment can seem like sheer madness.

And yet we do it! And we invariably reach our goal, in some shape or form, and usually with success, but it can be tough.stress headache

So how do you balance work, life, family and a part-time course? How do you thrive in this challenging atmosphere and avoid being swamped by deadlines, goals and pressure?

Is there a secret to success, or is it a ‘take it every day as it comes’ approach that works best, battling problems and issues as they arise?

Firefighting or Strategy – Which is Best?
Living a busy and fulfilling life is just as much about having a plan as it is about dealing with problems. If you are one step behind all the time you will constantly feel like you are catching up, leaving you exhausted.

The solution then becomes ’something has to give.’ This often means ditching something you enjoy. Taking on another big commitment, such as home study courses, almost seems like a step too far.

So, how do you strike a balance between current commitments and home study? Here’s what our students told us worked for them.

  1. Have a plan… but be prepared to deviate

Home study courses will normally give you a rough guide to the number of hours expected to complete the course. Some qualifications will also go on to suggest a time frame, e.g. 360 hours over 12 months of study.

You can also set the time frame yourself. Hence, if you plan on completing the HLTA level 4 diploma, the expectation is that it will take you 240 hours. You will likely plan to complete the course within the 12-month time frame with tutor support. Divide 240 hours by 12 months and that gives you a monthly total of 20 hours, or roughly 5 hours of study a week.

Great! That’s doable, you think, and plough headlong into it. But then life happens.

man focusing

Christmas creeps up, and then birthday events and holidays, alongside juggling childcare and extra commitments at work. Don’t forget, these 5 hours study a week are nominal – there may be some concepts of the home study course you fly through with ease, and others that take you a lot more time.

You need a plan. From what our students tell us, this is one of the best ways to get to grips with and commit to any home study course, no matter what level the qualification.

THE BALANCE – Be prepared to deviate. This means looking forward and understanding what commitments you have and when, and working around them. If you ‘give’ study hours to something, where can you recoup this time in future weeks?

  1. Stay organised

Another tip that our students give us is to get organised and – more importantly – stay organised!

There are many ways of doing this, including:

 

 

 

THE BALANCE – Being organised means that you pay attention not just to your study but to other aspects of your life, too. Unfortunately, there will be times that your studies will take a back seat but equally, there will need to be times that you push your study obligations to the fore.

  1. Time to Play

Unfortunately, our sights can be so firmly set on reaching our goals that our vision becomes clouded. It is also true to say that becoming too consumed by working and studying means that we lose focus of the bigger picture.

You may think that studying for hours on end is productive, but research shows that long periods of time knee-deep in books and study can lower our productivity levels. Not only that, it can also diminish the quality of our work.

So, what’s the answer?

Our students tell us that factoring in time to relax and ‘switch off’ is a great way to make sure that productivity levels stay high and that the quality of the work stays high, too.Our students came up with all kinds of ideas:

 

 

 

 

THE BALANCE – time to kick back and relax is not just about your studying endeavours but about work and across life in general. Having a short break from your work helps your mind to re-focus on what needs to be done to not only reach the next milestone but reach it in the best way possible.

  1. Commit, but Be Kind to Yourself!

Finally, many of our students talked a lot about not just committing to home study courses, but also being kind to yourself.

On one hand, we realise that to get the promotion we have always wanted or to take our career paths to higher heights, you need to commit to getting the right qualifications. Students all over the world tell the same story. To get the job they want, they need the skills, and that means choosing and applying for a place on an accredited course.
It does take determination, commitment and a certain amount of tunnel vision to get the qualifications you want. It will mean switching off your favourite TV programme or swapping the latest bestseller for course materials. It will also mean sacrificing social time for an hour or two with your ‘head in the books’.

These challenges and opportunities are a part and parcel of reaching your goals, because just as your course will equip you with new skills, so will the process of studying.

But, there are times when we ‘weaken’. We do read the novel or watch the TV, and we don’t complete the work or tasks we set ourselves for that evening or that chunk of time.

This doesn’t mean you have to punish or berate yourself. If you had a vase of beautiful flowers and you noticed one wilting flower, you wouldn’t throw the whole bunch away, would you? You would remove that one flower and keep the rest to admire.

THE BALANCE – Your study is that vase of flowers. If you miss one session of your study calendar, don’t throw the rest of the week or your timetable away. Start your next session by picking up where you left off.
Enjoy your course and the opportunities it will bring during and after you successfully complete it!