April is National Stress Awareness Month, and we imagine that you’re pretty aware of how stressed you are – especially at work. The question is, are you taking proactive steps to help reduce this stress? We’re here to help.
It’s easy to get overwhelmed and stressed out at work, particularly at this time of year when you have deadlines and targets to meet.
Feeling overly stressed at work is not only detrimental to your mental health, but it also affects sleeping habits, lowers your mood and overall reduces your productivity.
We could write tips about meditation or breathing exercises, but in reality, not everyone has time for this sort of stuff.
So instead, here is a list of simple adjustments you can make to help manage your stress more effectively.
Time management is key.
The key with successful time management is to be realistic. Don’t set yourself deadlines and targets that are out of reach. Avoid overloading yourself with too many responsibilities and set yourself a to do list with prioritized tasks.
Regular breaks are your friend.
Taking regular breaks is absolutely crucial for reducing your stress levels. We don’t mean take an hour, do a yoga class or go for a hike type breaks.
We’re talking simple ten-minute breaks, where you make a drink, read something that’s not your work, even have a scroll on TikTok if you fancy it. Just look at or do something different.
Speak to your colleagues.
If you’re feeling stressed, there’s a very good chance your colleagues are too. Open and honest communication about it is healthy – and that goes for talking to senior staff too. Nobody will persecute you for feeling overwhelmed, they will want to help so the task gets done as effectively as possible.
Boundaries for the win.
Boundaries aren’t just something that you set in your personal life, but in your professional life too. For some people, saying no is a difficult task, however learning when you’ve reached your limit is essential.
In saying no, you’ll be able to ensure that maximum time and effort is put into each piece of work you complete, as opposed to having a number of poor quality and rushed tasks.
You have the right to disconnect.
It may be tempting to check your emails at 8pm or on a Saturday morning, but it’s crucial to disconnect from work outside of working hours.
This goes for phone calls and messages from senior team members too. As much as you feel like it can’t wait, we assure you it can.
Managing stress levels isn’t a one-size fits all situation, it’s an ongoing process that you can work on over time.
If you’re reaching the point where you can’t handle the stress levels and think it’s time to look for something new, talk to us today.