In today’s complex and “always on” demands of working and living in a modern world stress and discomfort can become a norm.
I know first-hand what happens when stress at work and at home take over and life becomes out of control. I’ve been there and done that. Over time I’ve learned some simple to do actions to take in order to reboot from burnout and proactively manage stressors.
Here’s the deal…stress is a natural part of life, and if you learn to pro-actively handle it in positive ways, you’ll enjoy greater job satisfaction and experience more joy in life (not to mention better health too). I know that to be true personally.
Learning to deal with job and life stress can take time and effort, but there’s no better time than the present to get started on your journey to successfully handling stress and enjoying your job and life, day after day.
What causes your stress?
There are mental and emotional manifestations of stress, and there are physical ones as well. Recognizing them can help make it easier to understand where most of your stress is coming from so you can take action to change it.
Knowing where you experience most of your stress won’t remove it, but gaining an understanding is the start of finding ways to lower your stress levels.
Some things that make you stressed on the job and in life can include:
- Deadlines
- Making mistakes
- Work overload – Work under load
- Training or lack thereof
- Office conflict
- Organizational change
- Customer demands
- Children
- Parents
- Spouse/Significant Others
- Friends
- Relatives
- Finances
- Health
- and so much more…
Tip: Make a list of what causes you stress and then stack rank the items that are the most stressful. Now look at the options below to help reduce the stress and pick one option to consistently implement over the next 30-days.
Even if there are a lot of things going on with your job and life that cause you stress, you can let that some of the stress go and feel good again.
Letting go of job and life stress
Some people unleash their stress by yelling, acting out, and verbally attacking others around them. This can happen all too easily in an office environment where people are packed close together working on time pressured projects and it can happen at home too. I’m here to tell you that you can avoid these kinds of things and release your stress in a much more effective way which is good for everyone including you!
Try these strategies to release your stress at work:
Remember to breathe. Breathing is vital for survival, but it’s also great for calming you down when you breathe effectively. Inhale slowly through your nose, and feel the air fill up your abdomen, not your lungs. Then exhale slowly through your mouth. If you do that a few times, you’ll feel calmer and less stressed. It’s great for anxiety, too.
Squeeze a stress ball. They’re small, lightweight, and designed to be squeezed when you feel stressed out. Even if you feel a little silly at first, they can be very beneficial.
Take a walk. Seriously, take a walk. When you get up and out of the environment and get into your body you allow yourself the chance to exhale and think. Walking has been one of my go to stress relief strategies. So much so that I’ve asked others to hold walking meetings instead of sitting in conference rooms when it made sense. As a family we take walks as a way to connect and work through stress too.
Hydrate. I know we all know that water is important for our health. What I’ve found is that it’s a great strategy for managing stress too! Drinking water is a great way to pause as well as help your body function best. Before you go to verbalize your frustration, you might find that taking a moment to drink some water can be just the pause you need. It allows you to get a grip on what you’re feeling and then make a calmer decision about how to proceed.
Letting go of job stress away from the office
I’m sure you’ve heard the advice that when you get home from a stressful day leave your stress behind. Avoid carrying it around with you as you go about the rest of your day. What happens at the office should really stay there. Hearing this doesn’t make it easy to do does it? I know for myself there are times that this is much easier said than done. Right?!?
Here are some ways to let go of stress that I’ve found to help a lot:
- Meditation
- Reading
- Walking
- Talking things over with friends or family
- Listening to music
- Taking a nap
- Or…anything else that makes you feel joyful and peaceful (playing with a pet, any form of exercise, a hobby, etc.)
Tip: You can use an app or do this without technology. Pick what works best for you, and is easy to use, so that you set yourself up for success! My favorites apps are: Headspace & Relax Melodies
The good news is that you can create the kind of atmosphere you want in your own home, even if it’s not possible to do that at your job. It really depends on you and your desire to implement stress management techniques in healthy ways.
Here’s what I know to be true…when you let go of job stress on a daily basis as it happens, you avoid going around frustrated and angry which helps your relationships with other people, your own health, and the way you feel about yourself.
Want to strategize? Schedule a free 30-minute fast track to results session today!
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