Tips To Beat Workplace Stress

Steve Jobs in his commencement speech at Stanford once said, “The only way to do great work is to love what you do.” Being happy at work and loving your job can be a productivity booster. However, there can be stressful elements at work including heavy workload, job insecurity, low salary, and conflicts with co-workers or bosses, which can affect both your physical and emotional well-being.

Excessive work stress can lead to anxiousness, depression, fatigue, social withdrawal, sleeping problems, increased blood pressure and muscle tension. Instead of attempting to fight stress with fast food or alcohol, it is important to find out a solution when you feel tension is on the rise. Here are some stress busters to deal with stress at work.

1. Be an optimist

Optimism helps people to understand the positive aspects of situations even during challenging times. Oscar Wilde has so rightly said, “The optimist sees the doughnut, the pessimist sees the hole.” This means people who are optimistic actively pursue things that are good for their well-being and try to minimize stress in their lives. In other words, even the most miserable day holds the promise for them that “tomorrow will probably bring better.” One of the ways through which an individual can manage stress is by making a “to-do” list and prioritize the acts in the list and plan the acts accordingly. At the same time, self-awareness, self-confidence and self-control at the workplace, also contribute positively to make things better.?

2. Find friends at workplace

A good social network (made up of colleagues, friends and family) goes a long way in making you look at things in a different manner. The best way to blow off steam and regain your sense of calm is by sharing your problem with someone close to you. By turning to your co-worker for support can help you negate the stress build-up at the workplace. It also gives you the comfort of knowing that your colleagues are there for you if you need them. Some of the ways to build and foster relationships with others include:

• A phone call to sibling or your children
• A quick chat with your friend
• A coffee break with your colleague
• A visit to a family member

You can also build your social network outside work by:

• Joining a yoga or gym class
• Joining a community education course or a local college
• Searching for people at social networking sites
• Volunteering for a cause

3. Take time to unwind

Pressure to meet a deadline or to fulfill a challenging obligation can be stressful. To function effectively, it is important to take time to unwind and calm your mind and reduce anxiety. Taking time to unwind would allow you to think more clearly, socialize better and work more effectively. Essentially it will give you more energy to be happy and productive.?

Here are some ways that you can consider to defeat work stress whenever you are at home:

Meditate: If your job is stressing you out, you can beat it by practicing meditation – an effective way to reduce anxiety, depression, and pain. The best thing is it is a no-cost option which you can perform anywhere, even at work. As you feel more comfortable meditating, you can extend your sessions for longer periods.?

Listen to your favorite music: Listening to your favorite music has a significant power to help reduce stress and anxiety. Music can influence your emotions and soothing music can help lower your blood pressure and decrease the levels of stress hormones in your body.?

Take a warm bath or shower: Taking a warm bath helps relax your body and better prepare you to fall asleep. Hot showers can relieve tension and soothe stiff muscles. It is a good way to reduce daily anxiety and make sure that we feel good all around.?

Do a creative activity: Doing something creative can give you an outlet to release any stress from the day. Creativity involves invoking your imagination, which means you put your mind to a productive and constructive purpose. You can consider doing knitting, painting, drawing or making jewelry after work to relieve stress.?