Stress at work. For many people it seems like it’s just a part of life. In fact, research has revealed that anywhere from 30-40% of Americans feel “extremely stressed at work.” However, work-related stress can really take over your life if you aren’t careful. Workplace stress can disrupt your overall quality of life, make it difficult to sleep and easily seep into you your personal life as well.
Work stress can also lead to a number of serious health consequences. In fact, people who deal with a high amount of work stress are more likely to get colds and flus and chronic stress has been linked to serious issues like heart disease and metabolic syndrome. However, for most people, you can’t just quit your job in order to avoid the associated stress.
Regular workplace stress needs to be taken seriously—but what exactly can you do when you can’t change your workplace demands? There are several things that you can do in order to help mitigate and deal with your stress while at work.
Always Start Your Day Off Right
How you start your day can greatly impact how the rest of your day is, so make sure you put a great deal of effort into your morning routine. If you start your day off on the right foot, it can put you in a better headspace to manage your stress once you get to work. If your morning is filled with stress, busy school drop off, road rage and chugging coffee while on the road, you aren’t going to be in a calm and centered place when you get into the office.
Take your time in the morning, get up earlier so you can eat breakfast, eat something healthy and take time to either workout, meditate or read in the morning to get your mind relaxed and to help yourself get in the right attitude for the day.
Do Your Best to Stay Away From Conflict
This can often be easier said than done, but the more you can do to stay away from conflict while in the workplace. Interpersonal conflict can take a toll on your physical and emotional wellbeing and add to your stress in the workplace.
This means doing your best to steer clear of sharing personal opinions, stay out of office drama and avoid gossip while you’re at the office. Staying calm, clear-minded and laid-back will only help you feel your best.
Keep Yourself Organized
Sometimes your desk can be a manifestation of what is going on in your brain.
One of the many things that you can do in order to mitigate your stress while in the office is to get yourself more organized. Think about your desk at the office and what you walk into every morning. Is it chaotic, messy and filled with piles of things you still need to get to?
Walking into that every day will only put you in a state of stress. Take the time to organize your desk and make sure you leave it organized when you leave at night so you can walk into a clean and clear space every morning—ready to work in a calm and less stressed mind space.
Stop Multitasking SO Much
There are so many people who think that multitasking is the key to getting things done at work, but it’s time to let go of this dated idea. Multitasking may feel like a way for you to maximize your time and get more done in a day—but it is also a way to leave you feeling overwhelmed from splitting your attention.
No matter how good you think you are at multi-tasking, chances are, you aren’t doing yourself any favors by trying to multitask all the time. It is even more likely that it is actually leading to that stressed feeling that you have when you’re at work. Instead of multitasking, try another strategy like chunking, or work on your mindful meditation to train your mind in a way to be more focused and mindful of the tasks in front of you.
Get Moving
So many people today spend so much time sitting at a desk. While a sedentary lifestyle may be common, it doesn’t mean that its good for you. Your sedentary lifestyle may be one of the biggest culprits of your stress at work. Most people start feeling the effects of their sedentary lifestyle at some point or another, and stress can be one of those effects.
One of the best things you can do is to take short exercise breaks throughout the day whenever you can. This may be squatting at your desk, going for a walk at lunch, or squeezing in a quick stretching session. Regular exercise breaks are a great way to life your mood and stay healthy while you’re at it.
Meditate
Small, regular mindful meditation sessions can truly help with your daily work stress and with your life stress as well. The great thing about meditation is that you can do it anywhere at any time, you can even do it in the car for 5 minutes before you walk into the office.
Regular meditation breaks in the day or meditating before and after work can truly help with your stress. Start small, and work on your meditation daily and you will start to see the effects first-hand. The great thing about meditation is that there is no wrong way to do it and no wrong time to meditate either—you just need to find the opportunity to sit alone with yourself once a day and it can do wonders for your mind, body, and your stress levels.
Remember, just because stress at work is common, it doesn’t mean it has to be part of your everyday life. There are things you can do to help yourself when it comes to managing workplace stress so that you can get back to getting control of your life.
7 Simple Ways to Deal With Stress At Work
Stress at work. For many people it seems like it’s just a part of life. In fact, research has revealed that anywhere from 30-40% of Americans feel “extremely stressed at work.” However, work-related stress can really take over your life if you aren’t careful. Workplace stress can disrupt your overall quality of life, make it difficult to sleep and easily seep into you your personal life as well.
Work stress can also lead to a number of serious health consequences. In fact, people who deal with a high amount of work stress are more likely to get colds and flus and chronic stress has been linked to serious issues like heart disease and metabolic syndrome. However, for most people, you can’t just quit your job in order to avoid the associated stress.
Regular workplace stress needs to be taken seriously—but what exactly can you do when you can’t change your workplace demands? There are several things that you can do in order to help mitigate and deal with your stress while at work.
Always Start Your Day Off Right
How you start your day can greatly impact how the rest of your day is, so make sure you put a great deal of effort into your morning routine. If you start your day off on the right foot, it can put you in a better headspace to manage your stress once you get to work. If your morning is filled with stress, busy school drop off, road rage and chugging coffee while on the road, you aren’t going to be in a calm and centered place when you get into the office.
Take your time in the morning, get up earlier so you can eat breakfast, eat something healthy and take time to either workout, meditate or read in the morning to get your mind relaxed and to help yourself get in the right attitude for the day.
Do Your Best to Stay Away From Conflict
This can often be easier said than done, but the more you can do to stay away from conflict while in the workplace. Interpersonal conflict can take a toll on your physical and emotional wellbeing and add to your stress in the workplace.
This means doing your best to steer clear of sharing personal opinions, stay out of office drama and avoid gossip while you’re at the office. Staying calm, clear-minded and laid-back will only help you feel your best.
Keep Yourself Organized
Sometimes your desk can be a manifestation of what is going on in your brain.
One of the many things that you can do in order to mitigate your stress while in the office is to get yourself more organized. Think about your desk at the office and what you walk into every morning. Is it chaotic, messy and filled with piles of things you still need to get to?
Walking into that every day will only put you in a state of stress. Take the time to organize your desk and make sure you leave it organized when you leave at night so you can walk into a clean and clear space every morning—ready to work in a calm and less stressed mind space.
Stop Multitasking SO Much
There are so many people who think that multitasking is the key to getting things done at work, but it’s time to let go of this dated idea. Multitasking may feel like a way for you to maximize your time and get more done in a day—but it is also a way to leave you feeling overwhelmed from splitting your attention.
No matter how good you think you are at multi-tasking, chances are, you aren’t doing yourself any favors by trying to multitask all the time. It is even more likely that it is actually leading to that stressed feeling that you have when you’re at work. Instead of multitasking, try another strategy like chunking, or work on your mindful meditation to train your mind in a way to be more focused and mindful of the tasks in front of you.
Get Moving
So many people today spend so much time sitting at a desk. While a sedentary lifestyle may be common, it doesn’t mean that its good for you. Your sedentary lifestyle may be one of the biggest culprits of your stress at work. Most people start feeling the effects of their sedentary lifestyle at some point or another, and stress can be one of those effects.
One of the best things you can do is to take short exercise breaks throughout the day whenever you can. This may be squatting at your desk, going for a walk at lunch, or squeezing in a quick stretching session. Regular exercise breaks are a great way to life your mood and stay healthy while you’re at it.
Meditate
Small, regular mindful meditation sessions can truly help with your daily work stress and with your life stress as well. The great thing about meditation is that you can do it anywhere at any time, you can even do it in the car for 5 minutes before you walk into the office.
Regular meditation breaks in the day or meditating before and after work can truly help with your stress. Start small, and work on your meditation daily and you will start to see the effects first-hand. The great thing about meditation is that there is no wrong way to do it and no wrong time to meditate either—you just need to find the opportunity to sit alone with yourself once a day and it can do wonders for your mind, body, and your stress levels.
Remember, just because stress at work is common, it doesn’t mean it has to be part of your everyday life. There are things you can do to help yourself when it comes to managing workplace stress so that you can get back to getting control of your life.
Dhaval Patel
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