Stay Calm! I'm Working!
5 May 2014
Read by 2499 persons
Office work is often demanding, and pressure can be very high. Here are some tips to help you cope without losing your mind.
Do one thing at a time
Nowadays, office workers change tasks on average every three minutes. Their day consists of a multitude of tasks, constantly interrupted, a situation favored by the multitasking capabilities of modern computers. Accomplishing eight different tasks at the same time may seem heroic, but it is not. In fact, it's exhausting, inefficient, and excessively stressful. Instead of checking your emails at all times, having two or three documents displayed on your computer screen, or answering your voicemails as soon as they come in, structure your workday so that you only do one thing at a time. First, start your day by reserving two uninterrupted hours for practical work. During this time, forbid yourself from answering the phone or checking your emails. After this period, read your emails and respond to them immediately. Go to lunch, then, upon returning, structure your afternoon in the same way. Choose a specific time, such as right after lunch or an hour before leaving work, to call back people who have left you a phone message.
Work in short bursts
By working on multiple tasks at the same time, it becomes difficult to stay creative or keep your attention on a single task for long periods. The brain works rather cyclically, alternating between creativity and rest. Do the same: after spending an hour or two on a task, stop for five minutes to stretch your legs, do some stretches or a few exercises, in short, to move around. Not only will your work improve in quality, but you will have managed to slip a small half-hour of stress-relieving exercises into your schedule.
Rate your colleagues
Give a "P" rating to those who drain your energy, and an "A" rating to those who give you energy. Try to avoid Ps as often as possible; however, if you feel your batteries are running low, take a few minutes' break in the company of an A, advises James Campbell Quick, PhD and professor of organizational behavior at the University of Texas at Arlington.
Find creative ways to motivate yourself
Here's one: write a check to an organization you dislike, put it in a pre-addressed and pre-stamped envelope, and ask a trusted friend to mail it if you fail to meet deadlines or complete an important task. Or, more positively, entrust the friend with an object you hold dear, instructing him to return it only if you have achieved your goal.
Skip the coffee during meetings or group work sessions
In a study sponsored by the British Economic and Social Research Council, it was found that group work was less effective when team members drank coffee during sessions. It was also observed in this same study that it was enough for the subjects to think that the drink they were drinking contained caffeine, whether true or not, for their feelings of stress to increase, as well as their heart rate.
Keep a Vacation file on your desk
Put brochures illustrating the places you'd like to go. When stress takes over, take a few minutes to dream by browsing your file, which, in addition to offering you a virtual vacation, will have the advantage of reminding you why you work (at least, in part).
Personalize your workspace
For example, by installing a small altar on which you will put some photos of your spouse, children or pet, as well as a photo of yourself doing something enjoyable; or pin your photos on the wall. Also keep within reach an object that will remind you of a special occasion. When you are overwhelmed or stressed, take five minutes to look at the displayed photos, remembering the places where they were taken. Hold the souvenir object in your hands and return in thought to the place where you obtained it. You are once again ready to face your workload.
Keep a journal
Keep it in a desk drawer (preferably locked). Take it out whenever you feel your bad mood rising, your frustration growing, or despair setting in, and write down everything you'd like to say to your boss, colleague, or client, but that you must keep to yourself. This will release your emotional burden without risking losing your job. In addition, this little exercise will help you understand more realistically what you like about your job and what drives you crazy. Be careful, however: your computer is not a good place to keep this kind of writing.
Keep a Nerf foam gun at the office
And try to convince some of your colleagues to have one. In case of overheating, go shoot in the corridors. It's a fun, cathartic, and completely harmless way to let off steam.
Take a sick day
If you suffer unusually from headaches, neck pain, back pain, or other aches and pains, or if you have trouble sleeping or show unreasonable impatience towards your coworkers, it's a sign that it's time to take a day off. Consult your calendar and circle in red the date you plan to be absent. Have no qualms: you are not lying to your boss, you are really sick, except that the problem is mental rather than physical. If you don't take this day to do something you enjoy, chances are you'll really get sick before the end of the month. Incredulous? Know that 80 percent of visits to primary care physicians are related to stress-related symptoms.
Readersdigest.ca
Posted on May 5, 2014.
Do one thing at a time
Nowadays, office workers change tasks on average every three minutes. Their day consists of a multitude of tasks, constantly interrupted, a situation favored by the multitasking capabilities of modern computers. Accomplishing eight different tasks at the same time may seem heroic, but it is not. In fact, it's exhausting, inefficient, and excessively stressful. Instead of checking your emails at all times, having two or three documents displayed on your computer screen, or answering your voicemails as soon as they come in, structure your workday so that you only do one thing at a time. First, start your day by reserving two uninterrupted hours for practical work. During this time, forbid yourself from answering the phone or checking your emails. After this period, read your emails and respond to them immediately. Go to lunch, then, upon returning, structure your afternoon in the same way. Choose a specific time, such as right after lunch or an hour before leaving work, to call back people who have left you a phone message.
Work in short bursts
By working on multiple tasks at the same time, it becomes difficult to stay creative or keep your attention on a single task for long periods. The brain works rather cyclically, alternating between creativity and rest. Do the same: after spending an hour or two on a task, stop for five minutes to stretch your legs, do some stretches or a few exercises, in short, to move around. Not only will your work improve in quality, but you will have managed to slip a small half-hour of stress-relieving exercises into your schedule.
Rate your colleagues
Give a "P" rating to those who drain your energy, and an "A" rating to those who give you energy. Try to avoid Ps as often as possible; however, if you feel your batteries are running low, take a few minutes' break in the company of an A, advises James Campbell Quick, PhD and professor of organizational behavior at the University of Texas at Arlington.
Find creative ways to motivate yourself
Here's one: write a check to an organization you dislike, put it in a pre-addressed and pre-stamped envelope, and ask a trusted friend to mail it if you fail to meet deadlines or complete an important task. Or, more positively, entrust the friend with an object you hold dear, instructing him to return it only if you have achieved your goal.
Skip the coffee during meetings or group work sessions
In a study sponsored by the British Economic and Social Research Council, it was found that group work was less effective when team members drank coffee during sessions. It was also observed in this same study that it was enough for the subjects to think that the drink they were drinking contained caffeine, whether true or not, for their feelings of stress to increase, as well as their heart rate.
Keep a Vacation file on your desk
Put brochures illustrating the places you'd like to go. When stress takes over, take a few minutes to dream by browsing your file, which, in addition to offering you a virtual vacation, will have the advantage of reminding you why you work (at least, in part).
Personalize your workspace
For example, by installing a small altar on which you will put some photos of your spouse, children or pet, as well as a photo of yourself doing something enjoyable; or pin your photos on the wall. Also keep within reach an object that will remind you of a special occasion. When you are overwhelmed or stressed, take five minutes to look at the displayed photos, remembering the places where they were taken. Hold the souvenir object in your hands and return in thought to the place where you obtained it. You are once again ready to face your workload.
Keep a journal
Keep it in a desk drawer (preferably locked). Take it out whenever you feel your bad mood rising, your frustration growing, or despair setting in, and write down everything you'd like to say to your boss, colleague, or client, but that you must keep to yourself. This will release your emotional burden without risking losing your job. In addition, this little exercise will help you understand more realistically what you like about your job and what drives you crazy. Be careful, however: your computer is not a good place to keep this kind of writing.
Keep a Nerf foam gun at the office
And try to convince some of your colleagues to have one. In case of overheating, go shoot in the corridors. It's a fun, cathartic, and completely harmless way to let off steam.
Take a sick day
If you suffer unusually from headaches, neck pain, back pain, or other aches and pains, or if you have trouble sleeping or show unreasonable impatience towards your coworkers, it's a sign that it's time to take a day off. Consult your calendar and circle in red the date you plan to be absent. Have no qualms: you are not lying to your boss, you are really sick, except that the problem is mental rather than physical. If you don't take this day to do something you enjoy, chances are you'll really get sick before the end of the month. Incredulous? Know that 80 percent of visits to primary care physicians are related to stress-related symptoms.
Readersdigest.ca
Posted on May 5, 2014.
