PA Life’s Wellness Columnist Julia Green, Sales & Commercial Manager at Center Parcs Conferences & Events encourages you to be mindful of demanding workloads, and shares advice for managing the inevitable pressure points…
For many people, January signals a fresh start. But for Executive Assistants, Personal Assistants and other business support professionals as a whole, September often feels like the real start of the year.
Summer holidays are over, leadership teams return refreshed and full of ideas, conference season gets underway, budgets begin to dominate conversations and diaries fill at lightning speed. Before you know it, you’re coordinating back-to-back meetings, planning events, juggling shifting priorities and already looking ahead to year-end.
Autumn is an exciting season – but it can also be exhausting
The temptation is to hit the ground running, saying yes to every request and trying to regain control by filling every gap in your diary. But a successful September reset isn’t about doing more. It’s about creating habits that help you perform at your best throughout the busiest months ahead.
Rather than asking yourself, “How can I be more productive?” try asking, “What helps me work well?”
For some, that might be protecting ten minutes between meetings to reset before moving onto the next task. For others, it could be blocking out focused time to tackle complex projects before the inevitable stream of last-minute requests arrives. As the guardian of someone else’s diary, it’s easy to forget that your own time deserves protecting too.
EAs and PAs are often the calm in the middle of the storm. You absorb pressure from multiple stakeholders, solve problems before anyone else notices them and keep everything moving behind the scenes. But constantly supporting everyone else can leave little capacity to look after yourself.
Prioritise wellbeing in every working day
The reality is that wellbeing isn’t something you fit in once the inbox is empty or the event has been delivered. Those moments rarely come. Instead, it needs to be woven into every day.
Simple habits can make a significant difference: taking a proper lunch break away from your desk, walking outside between meetings, setting realistic expectations on response times or simply pausing for a few minutes before switching from one high-pressure task to another. These aren’t indulgences—they’re the habits that help maintain focus, resilience and good decision-making.
“September is a good time to review your boundaries.”
September is a good time to review your boundaries. As requests increase and priorities compete, remember that saying yes to everything often means saying no to your own wellbeing. Supporting your executive effectively doesn’t mean being available every minute of every day; it means bringing your best energy, judgement and professionalism when it matters most.
As the pace builds towards the final quarter of the year, resist the pressure to pursue perfection. A sustainable routine will always outperform an ambitious one that lasts a fortnight.
This September, give yourself permission to reset with intention rather than intensity. Because when you look after your own wellbeing, you’re better equipped to support everyone else’s success too – and that’s something worth prioritising.
For more practical wellbeing advice and mindful strategies to help you and your colleagues stay balanced throughout the year, explore our Wellbeing category.
Center Parcs Conferences & Events offers unique forest-based venues for conferences, meetings, team-building activities and corporate events, combining flexible event spaces with on-site accommodation, dining and wellness experiences to create inspiring business events.
