Stress has become an integral part of modern life. As per the Cigna 360 Well-Being Survey 2019, close to 82% people are suffering from stress. Several studies have revealed that more people experience stress at work than in personal life. In many cases this stress builds up to cause anxiety or even panic attacks. There is no way we can avoid work, but there are a few ways to beat the stress you experience with it.
Here are some tips that you can use to combat stress at work:
- Keep a positive approach:
Stress has become such a popular word these days that when people say, “I am stressed”, they actually imply that they are busy. Work pressure need not necessarily mean that you are going through stress. It could simply mean that you are doing more than your usual to meet up to the demands of the situation. When you approach your work pressure with a positive mindset, you stay in the ‘solution zone’, which means that you find out ways to deal with the work load without surrendering to stress.
2. Declutter
Remember that stress when you were frantically searching for that important file an hour before the meeting? Sometimes, stress is just a consequence of you being unorganized. To defeat stress, simply start by decluttering your desk. If you waste your time looking for things, you are bound to feel stressed. Not only does decluttering help in making you more organized, it also allows better flow of positive energy. Your work station should be inviting enough to make you feel comfortable and not be a place that you want to run away from.
- Avoid Procrastination
How many times have you pushed away a critical task because you felt you could do it later? The longer it remains unfinished, the longer you allow stress to linger. Not to forget, pushing the work away takes away precious time that is required to complete it. Last moment rush to finish an important task is a sure shot way to manufacture stress.
- Make a To-Do List
Not knowing what to do and when can make you forget a thing or two. Sometimes this can lead to mismanagement of work too. These can be reasons enough to build up stress. When you have a ‘To-Do’ list, it leaves less room for stress as you can choose your priorities and even delegate some work if needed, to make sure that you finish your work on time.
- Avoid Multitasking
Ever watched a toddler play with his toy? There is rarely a being more at peace than a child engrossed in his play. Do you know why? It is because his entire focus is on one thing. As we grow up, we consider ourselves smarter than super computers and try to address ten tasks at a time. Result: too much stress. Multitasking doesn’t help you to finish more in a lesser time, it only adds to stress in multiple ways. If there’s much to be done, it’s better to delegate work or ask for help than drown in stress.
- Work Smart
Stress can be a result of too much of hard work. Sounds weird? Well, smart work always triumphs over hard work, when you want to beat stress and climb the ladder of success. Allot time to each work and adhere to that time. Take small breaks in between tasks to get refreshed. Drink water, keep yourself hydrated. Mindlessly working for long hours and thinking that you are working hard is like saying, “Hello Stress, be my guest.”
- Stop Chasing Perfection
It’s one thing to want to do something well, it’s another thing to want to be perfect at it. When you choose the later, you are likely to experience stress. Perfection itself is very relative thing. Perfection depends on perception. If you feel that you have not done enough to meet someone else’s expectation, you’ll continue to chase an elusive level of perfection. When you feel a compulsion to be perfect, you remain perpetually dissatisfied with your work. Dissatisfaction is a strong foundation to build up a mountain of stress.
- Choose Communication, Not Confrontation.
It doesn’t matter if you’re the boss or the employee, you may find yourself in stress when you are not on the same page with the people you work with. The only way to avoid conflict and confrontation with boss, subordinates, co-workers or clients, is to have a clear communication. Listen to the other person with an intention to understand that person’s views or requirements, not to counter his opinions. Maintaining a harmonious environment is your responsibility too if you want to avoid stress.
- Avoid Negative People
The sole mission of some people on this planet is to throw their negative thoughts around. They see a problem in every solution. Their imagination is very strong, but they use it only to imagine unpleasant situations. If you find yourself around someone like this, RUN! Before you know, they’ll feed you with thoughts about how difficult the client is or how pathetic the boss is. They are masters at manufacturing stress for anyone who gives them a patient hearing. If you don’t want stress, you need to keep away from these people in your life.
- Change Your Response
If you can’t avoid people who are manufacturing stress around you, change the way you respond to them. You can’t change the colleague who is creating stress for you, but you can choose how you react to what he says and does. Even if they are right, reframe the problems differently so that you don’t perceive something as a potential threat that can cause stress. Look carefully, find out the root of the problem or crisis, if any. Find definite solutions for the problem instead of choosing to go with the flow with others. The way you respond to people or situations will decide if you experience stress or freedom from it.
We humans have a unique power called ‘Imagination’. This superpower has allowed us to create massive things like rockets and computers. Funny as it may sound, it is this same power that enables us to create imaginary situations in our heads that we feel would be difficult to control. At work, where we spend a considerable time our day, we perceive a lot of situations to be beyond our control. Stress is just one of the consequences of such imagination.
If you can imagine such uncontrollable situations, put your imagination to devise ways to get out of it too. Play with your superpower and before you know, STRESS will vaporize into thin air.