7 Ways To Reduce Stress At Work

There are certain people who walk around the office telling everyone how stressed they are and how they are at their wit’s end. They aren’t the ones that you should worry about.

The genuinely stressed are trying to hide it – from themselves and from everyone else. They have bags under their eyes through lack of sleep, their mind is dulled by the plethora of broken records, their confidence is shot by (perceived) rejection after rejection. They are scared of whatever is coming around the corner next, and a small part of them truly doesn’t know whether they will cope. 

Stress is a disease that affects millions of people every year. No one is immune, not everyone can fight it, and in certain situations you simply have to accept that you are stressed and do your best to work through it. I have had a good few situations like this in my professional life and here are seven suggestions of how to deal with it:

Breathe.

When stress is overpowering you, the easiest first step is to release its hold on your body. When you breathe deeply, it sends a message to your brain to calm down and relax. Your brain gets more oxygen, your heart rate slows, your blood pressure lowers, and the urge to fight or flight diminishes.

Sleep.

When you are anxious, your brain is in overdrive, your sympathetic nervous system doesn’t shut down correctly (as normal) and it is harder to fall asleep. A vicious circle ensues as the resultant daytime exhaustion makes it harder to cope with the daily stressors. In order to get a good night’s sleep, you really need to deal with the stress directly, but relaxation techniques in the evening can help. 

Escape.

Stepping away from (or avoiding) stressful situations doesn’t make the stressor go away, but it does give you some temporary space to deal with your response. You do need to take positive action to resolve the stress, and escaping for a while gives you the chance to think things through in a calm and logical manner. 

Act.

It is ever so easy to close your eyes and hope for things to get better. Feelings of helplessness are never far away in this scenario, as unless you do something positive about your stress, it will likely only get worse. Doing anything but giving in to the stress will seem like a positive step.

Understand.

It is only truly possible to understand stress in retrospect or through the eyes of others, as when you are in the situation, it is almost impossible to think rationally. Understanding how you respond to stress and what triggers these responses is crucial in managing any future risks.

Prioritize.

Many stresses arise because situations seem “too complicated.” By simplifying the choices that you have to make and prioritizing your actions (by doing the difficult stuff first), you can deflate any stressful situation into more manageable portions. Prioritizing helps you feel more in control of the stress – and that is never a bad thing. 

Realize.

We all get stressed sometimes – realizing that it is nothing out of the ordinary makes it all seem that little less scary. If you stop thinking that you are a super hero, who can deal with whatever comes their way, then you will realize that sometimes failure is acceptable. Stresses will come and go, but you will survive, and you will prosper – despite it seeming like the end of the world at the time.

Please share your thoughts in the comments section below as I learn just as much from you. I write a daily business blog. Here are some other articles I have written. If you like what you read, please feel free to follow me here on LinkedIn or via twitter @anuragharsh.