Solo Mental Health
Resources for freelancers, remote workers and independent people to build positive and defeat negative mental habits and patterns.
If you want to keep up to date with new resources, we announce them on our Twitter account: @healthsolo.
Charting loneliness
Loneliness is increasingly recognised as a public health issue, but to tackle it effectively we need to be able to accurately distinguish between the many forms it can take
- loneliness
- depression
- relationships
Why You Should Try Micromastery
The wellness case for learning new skills
- wellness
- skills
- mindfulness
- focus
- happiness
Burnout and the Brain
Just as the impact of burnout stifles healthy professional growth, emerging research shows that the chronic psychosocial stress that characterizes burnout not only impairs people’s personal and social functioning, it also can overwhelm their cognitive skills and neuroendocrine systems.
- burnout
- stress
How to Be Great? Just be Good, Repeatably
Greatness is not about overnight successes or flashes of excellence, but periods of repeatable habits
- focus
- habits
- routines
Work as identity, burnout as lifestyle - Ezra Klein show
What happens when work becomes an identity, capitalism becomes a religion, and productivity becomes the way we measure human value.
- work
- meaning
- burnout
You Procrastinate Because Of Emotions, Not Laziness
Procrastination is not a time management problem. It is an emotion regulation problem - we delay activities which might make us feel not-so-good.
- procrastination
- focus
- self-control
How I run a company with ADHD
- ADHD
- Focus
Is Hustle Culture Actually Hurting Us?
Does success have to feel like such a slog? And worse still, are we somehow confusing that slog with an embodiment of feminism?
- productivity
- work-life balance
Exercise as a treatment for depression: A meta-analysis adjusting for publication bias
Our data strongly support the claim that exercise is an evidence-based treatment for depression.
- depression
- exercise
Productivity Isn’t About Time Management. It’s About Attention Management
Prioritize the people and projects that matter, and it won’t matter how long anything takes.
- focus
- attention
- productivity
How to increase serotonin in the human brain without drugs
- exercise
- depression
Is Willpower a Finite Resource, or a Myth?
The common, monolithic definition of willpower distracts us from finer-grained dimensions of self-control and runs the danger of magnifying harmful myths—like the idea that willpower is finite and exhaustible.
Patience is something you do
The idea is that we can be patient for just about anything if we know it’s only for a short amount of time, and often that’s all that’s needed.
- patience
- motivation
How I got my attention back
There are a thousand beautiful ways to start the day that don’t begin with looking at your phone. And yet so few of us choose to do so.
- attention
- focus
The Psychological Trap of Freelancing
Why freelancing can create anxiety around money
- anxiety
- mindset
- relaxation
With Lifelong Struggles, Effort Isn’t What’s Missing
When we account for the unseen complicating factors going on inside each of us, nobody can ever tell you how hard or easy something should be for you. They don’t have enough information.
- self-knowledge
- procrastination
Proper Breathing Brings Better Health
Stress reduction, insomnia prevention, emotion control, improved attention—certain breathing techniques can make life better. But where do you start?
- breathing
- mindfulness
- anxiety
- stress
To Take Charge of Your Career, Start by Building Your Tribe
- community
- mastery
There Is More to the Job Experience Than Just Burnout
Burnout occurs when exhaustion, cynicism, and inefficacy combine in the most extreme negative pattern. But it is usually a minority of the working population that is experiencing burnout — so what is happening with everyone else?
- burnout
Makers and mental health
...makers in particular need to play close attention to their mental health. Why?
- wellness
How Millennials Became The Burnout Generation
"I couldn’t figure out why small, straightforward tasks on my to-do list felt so impossible. The answer is both more complex and far simpler than I expected."
- burnout
How to find the right career for you
Everyone says it’s important to find a job you’re good at, but no-one tells you how to do so.
- career
- motivation
- skills
- meaning
How to Configure Your iPhone to Work for You, Not Against You
The Very, Very Complete Guide to Productivity, Focus, and Your Own Longevity
- technology
- focus
- productivity
Let’s hear it for the four-hour working day
Spending more hours doing work does not necessarily produce superior results. The analogy can be made to “Quality is better than Quantity”. A couple of hours of doing quality work beats doing long hours of work
The brain-changing benefits of exercise
What's the most transformative thing that you can do for your brain today? Exercise! says neuroscientist Wendy Suzuki. Get inspired to go to the gym as Suzuki discusses the science of how working out boosts your mood and memory.
- exercise
- focus
- mood
Grit: the power of passion and perseverance
Leaving a high-flying job in consulting, Angela Lee Duckworth took a job teaching math to seventh graders in a New York public school. She quickly realized that IQ wasn't the only thing separating the successful students from those who struggled.
- motivation
- perseverance
Why your critics aren't the ones who count
There is nothing more frightening than the moment we expose our ideas to the world. Author and vulnerability researcher Brené Brown shows us how to deal with the critics and our own self-doubt by refusing to "armor up" and shut ourselves off.
- vulnerability
The power of vulnerability
Brené Brown studies human connection -- our ability to empathize, belong, love. In a poignant, funny talk at TEDxHouston, she shares a deep insight from her research, one that sent her on a personal quest to know herself as well as to understand humanity.
- vulnerability
How to Get Things Done When You Don't Feel Like It
Five strategies for pushing through
- motivation
- procrastination
- focus
How to switch off at the end of the working day
Working too many hours leads to diminishing returns. It impacts both your business and your health. In the long run, it’s simply not sustainable.
- work-life balance
- stress
- focus
- burnout
- routines
- ritual
Inside the mind of a master procrastinator
Tim Urban knows that procrastination doesn't make sense, but he's never been able to shake his habit of waiting until the last minute to get things done.
- procrastination
- productivity
What Most Remote Companies Don’t Tell You About Remote Work
Remote workers shouldn’t feel like they have to travel to lead interesting, fulfilled lives. It’s ok to prioritize friendships, community, and your mental health over traveling.
- remote work
- loneliness
- anxiety
- routines
How to be alone: the difference between loneliness and solitude
Loneliness is being alone — and not liking it. It’s a feeling. Solitude is being alone — and content. It’s a choice.
- loneliness
- boredom
Finally, a cure for insomnia?
We are living through an epidemic of sleeplessness, but the medical establishment has largely ignored the problem. Can a radical new therapy help you get some sleep?
- sleep
- CBT
The Research Is Clear: Long Hours Backfire for People and for Companies
- productivity
- stress
- work-life balance
Productive Procrastination: How to Get More Done by Procrastinating on Purpose
Most people don’t procrastinate to avoid work; they procrastinate to avoid the negative feelings that come from misinterpreting the urge to procrastinate.
- productivity
- procrastination
- focus
Cognitive Neuroscience of Mindfulness Meditation
An examination of the effect of mindfulness meditation practice on the brain systems in which psychological functions such as attention, emotional reactivity, emotion regulation, and self-view are instantiated.
- mindfulness
- anxiety
- focus
For Depression and Anxiety, Running Is a Unique Therapy
- exercise
- anxiety
- depression
- motivation
What I learned after 60 consecutive days of running
- exercise
- anxiety
- motivation
If you’re wondering why you’ve lost friends in adulthood, this is probably why
- relationships
- loneliness
- commitment
Need More Self-Control? Try a Simple Ritual
- self-control
- willpower
- ritual
How To Let Go
- meditation
- anxiety
Probabilistic decision-making as an anxiety-reduction technique
- anxiety
- decision-making
Running as an experiment to reduce anxiety and facilitate healing
- exercise
- anxiety
- stress
The Power of Positive People
Are your friendships giving you a boost or bringing you down?
- relationships
What Happens When a Computer Runs Your Life
Exploring doing random new things, and the impact on your life
- creativity
- meaning
There’s no such thing as motivation
- habits
- motivation
The Willpower Instinct
- willpower
Sleep and Mental Health
Sleep and mental health are closely connected. Sleep deprivation affects your psychological state and mental health.
- sleep
Happiness Habit: Printing photos
- happiness
- habits
Coach.me App
Build your career. Get in shape. Learn a new skill. Habit tracking app.
- habits
- routines
Growth Mindset
It's not just our abilities and talent that bring us success-but whether we approach them with a fixed or growth mindset
- growth
- mindset
Growth Mindset (animated book summary)
- growth
- mindset
The Flinch
A book that will push you, scare you and possibly stick with you for years to come.
- confidence
- motivation
Solitude and Leadership
- focus
- loneliness
- meaning
When Panic Attacks
The New, Drug-Free Anxiety Therapy That Can Change Your Life
- anxiety
- CBT
- panic
Zen of Creativity
Cultivating Your Artistic Life
- creativity
Man's Search for Meaning
The classic tribute to hope from the Holocaust
- meaning
Rework
Change the way you work forever
- productivity
- focus
Toggl - Time Tracker
Use this to help split working time from rest; manage over-work; and help focus
- focus
Self-Help Anxiety Management
Anxiety Management on your Mobile
- anxiety
Oak
Meditation and Breathing Exercises
- meditation
Buddhify
Meditation & Mindfulness App
- meditation
Calm
Meditation Techniques for Sleep and Stress Reduction
- meditation
Headspace
Meditation and Mindfulness Made Simple - use this to help switch between work and rest
- meditation
- mindfulness
Is Chronic Anxiety a Learning Disorder?
Some psychiatrists think it might be, but the data are still too sparse to be sure
- anxiety