How To Beat Stress At Work

1. Take regular breaks.

Some people seem to take pride in the fact that they never have a break. " Lunch is for wimps " as Michael Douglas said in Wall Street.

I think these people are just plain wrong. Even a short break helps you to re-energise, relax and refocus. Without a break, you may think you're working hard but you're getting diminishing returns. You're slowing down and working less efficiently.

2. Take some exercise.

If you're starting to feel stressed, get up and walk about. Go outside if you can or at least change your position and your surroundings. Sitting in the same place for a long time makes you feel stiff and it stops the blood and oxygen circulating properly.

Move about, do some stretching, swing your arms around ( in a safe place,
obviously ) and get that blood flowing again!

3. Manage your time well and delegate wherever possible.

Most managers try to do too much themselves and they don't delegate enough. Don't make that mistake - manage your work and your time. Don't do tasks which other people should be doing and don't leave your own tasks until the last minute rnso that you're stressed by the thought of the deadline looming up.

4. Accept what you cannot change.

Some things you can change, some things you can't. Change what you can change, stop worrying about what you can't. Worrying won't make any difference, it just makes you feel worse.

5. Leave your work behind when you go home.

" Easier said than done ", you might think. But there are ways to do it.

Use your jou
ey home as a " decompression chamber ". Make a conscious effort to wind down and forget your troubles at work. Listen to some music or read, do something to take your mind off things.

And, when you get home, don't relive the whole day by going over everything that happened. Don't keep talking about all the things that went wrong or annoyed you during the day, you're just piling on the stress. Let it go!