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This article was written by industry friend Jenny Halasz @jennyhalasz who we have cited here numerous times. She wanted to publish something on an important topic and here it is.
#SEOChat is a fixture in the search community on Twitter, tackling lots of tactical SEO questions. But there's never been a discussion going on quite like the one taking place now. The overall theme of this discussion is around depression and anxiety within our industry.
This was the lead-in:
Important discussion on #SEOChat this week, especially given recent events. @jennyhalasz will lead a discussion on the challenges of being independent, working from home, and the high incidence of depression in our industry. Please join us at 1pm ET Thursday, July 26. https://t.co/iml90HRqVH
— Paul Thompson (@thompsonpaul) July 24, 2018
The industry suffered a significant blow this week, as Jordan Kasteler succumbed to a long battle with depression and it prompted many conversations about how we deal (or don’t deal) with depression in our industry.
While the participants of SEOChat were mixed on whether they think SEOs are more likely to be depressed or not, everyone agreed that working from home (which many of us do) has a lot of benefits but also a lot of risks.
A5 - I think depressives want to isolate, and a WFH SEO job/business can definitely enable that. There's also the "I dont have to get up and go anywhere" factor that lets the negative self talk have free reign sometimes. #seochat
— Carrie Hill 🗺️📌 (@CarrieHill) July 26, 2018
A5 Actually no. SEO attracts a huge range of different people - thats great. Other disciplines might have more problems - Devs and designers can be isolated too. I don’t think we have more than our share. Perhaps they are more visible because we communicate a lot. #SEOChat
— Simon Cox (@simoncox) July 26, 2018
A5 Imposter syndrome is real. I think our industry is more likely to attract Marketing Chameleons (fake it til you make it types) which makes those who do good sound SEO work consistently stress more. #seochat
— Joe Youngblood (@YoungbloodJoe) July 26, 2018
Some of the suggestions the participants made are worth sharing again:
- ritualize some form of physical activity
— JP Sherman (@jpsherman) July 26, 2018
- plan your snacks
- schedule human interaction
- if you have a partner, communicate about "at work" vs "at home"
- be a part of a community#seochat https://t.co/KFASDoYk1e
A6 My best advice is: Get a gym membership and work out at least once a week, Force yourself to do something else you enjoy once a week, and take at least one day a week and completely digitally disconnect. No phone, no email, nothing. Just you and the world. #seochat
— Joe Youngblood (@YoungbloodJoe) July 26, 2018
A6) One thing that I tried to always do is have a morning routine that involved actually getting dressed and "ready" for the day. #seochat
— Laura Lee (@LauraLeeSEO) July 26, 2018
The general thread agreed - exercise, routine, and making time for outside interests and social interactions is very important if you work from home.
SEOChat this week was pretty deep and will likely return to regularly scheduled tactical discussions next week. But as Bill Slawski said, "we never quite know what others are going through."
A5 When Henry David Thoreau wrote that “the mass of men lead lives of quiet desperation," I think he was spot on, and that we never quite know what others are going through. Being open to discussion and being supportive of others is a good idea. #SEOChat
— Bill Slawski ⚓ (@bill_slawski) July 26, 2018
Be aware of your fellow industry professional. Talk to each other. Share the good and the bad, and let's keep talking about how we can make life in the search industry even better.
