Eliminate Stress at Work with These Five Steps

Eliminate Stress at Work with these five Steps

It’s not uncommon for people to suffer from stress – especially in the workplace. This is a growing problem and, according to the Health and Safety Executives, stress accounted for 37% of all work-related ill health cases in 2015/2016. The survey also found that stress – along with depression and anxiety – totalled 488,000 cases alone in that timeframe. Of course, these are very concerning statistics.

It’s clearly important that people know how to deal with stress when it strikes in the workplace. After all, good mental wellbeing isn’t just linked to improved health. In fact, it contributes to one’s ability to achieve wealth and success in their chosen career. Therefore, you should know how to fight off stress no matter what your working environment, because it could make a difference in both your personal and professional life. Here are five ways that you can eliminate stress at work:

1. Mindfulness

Mindfulness is a technique that’s becoming more and more popular. It is essentially the ability to manage your thoughts in a calm and progressive way. This is vital when it comes to putting an end to work-related stress, because it allows you to sieve any perceived negativity from your mind. Yes, you must first acknowledge any negativity before moving on. However, it’s easy to become skilled at using mindfulness to your advantage. Over time, you will feel yourself grow in strength, find it easier to keep your cool under pressure, and generally maintain a much more positive attitude during the working day.

2. Office yoga

You may have heard people bragging about how helpful it is to do yoga first thing in the morning or when they return home from work. However, it’s also beneficial to fit in a small amount of ‘office yoga’, as it’s known. There are many different yoga poses and exercises that can easily be tackled in short bursts throughout the day, or even slightly longer sessions during your lunch hour. The benefits of yoga are numerous, including that it can reduce a person’s stress, boost their mood and improve the way their brain functions. Yoga breathing exercises are ideal to attempt during the working day and can leave you feeling refreshed and re-energised before getting back on with a task.

3. Productivity hacks

There is a world of hacks designed to promote productivity – and most of these can reduce stress in the process. Take the famous Pomodoro Technique, developed in the late 1980s. Almost 30 years later, professionals all around the world still swear by it as a means of eliminating stress and increasing efficiency. The concept is rather simple: using a timer, you tackle tasks within a small timeframe (typically 25 minutes). To break down the key principles, if you use the technique effectively you should quickly find that you are working with time on your side rather than racing against the clock. The Pomodoro Technique puts an added emphasis on taking short breaks rather than burning yourself out. It ultimately reduces the stress that comes from attempting to hit tight deadlines and being forced to manage a busy schedule.

4. Unplug

It’s 2017 and many people would surely agree that they have become slaves to their gadgets. Whether your vice is your mobile phone, tablet or computer, it’s time to reap the rewards that come from ‘unplugging’. For example, take your phone. Your handset can amount to serious stress in many ways – whether it’s because you miss deadlines because you’re distracted on social media or because you’re missing out on precious sleep due to your phone buzzing in the night. Rather than accepting this as a way of life, you should think about taking designated breaks from your electronics. By turning off your phone or laptop – and subsequently putting your emails and professional projects to one side even for just half an hour a night – you can avoid the sensation that work is getting on top of you. In turn, this can help to reduce stress.

5. Drink tea

City University London has conducted research into the many benefits of drinking tea – and the results indicate that it can be helpful for people who are suffering from stress. The research – carried out by Dr Malcolm Cross and Rita Michaels – argued that tea has ‘warming effects’. This isn’t just because it contains the amino acid theanine that can make the brain more alert, but also that the act of making tea and enjoying it alongside friends or colleagues can help people see others as ‘possessing a warmer personality, being more generous and caring’. Ultimately, this leads to much more positively, which in turn can amount to less stress in work.

Don’t let stress take over

Don’t ever fall into the trap of thinking that stress is just a part of life – and perhaps even worse, just a side-effect of your job. While there will always be occasions when you will start to feel stressed in work, there’s no reason that you can’t take positive steps to eliminate it. For the best results, follow these five steps and you should find that you are able to remain positive, rather than succumb to the negativity.