How to Manage Your Stress at Work

From tight deadlines to cramped offices, from cold and uncaring upper management to ridiculous standards and expectations in the place you work, there’s a lot to weigh you down when you’re working. Any job can be challenging, exciting, depressing, or difficult – most adults list work as the leading cause of stress in their lives, and it’s no surprise!

What is maybe more surprising is how little is done to combat workplace stressors. Whether it’s workers doing nothing to alleviate their stress or management assuming that chronic stress is just part of the job description, most people take it for granted that work is going to be unpleasant and stressful.

But it doesn’t have to be. Here are just a few ways to get your work stress under wraps.

Take Care of Yourself

This is a given, but it’s also so important that it needs to be said! To begin properly handling your work stressors, your body needs to be at its best. That means making healthier food choices (especially when stress makes you want to chow down on your favorite comfort foods), getting plenty of sleep at night, and keeping up with your daily exercise.

It doesn’t have to happen all at once: take small steps. Try a few short breathing exercises next time your workload is overwhelming you. Go for a walk around the block after you eat lunch. Google some healthy – but still tasty! – alternatives to binging a whole bag of Doritos when the stress is getting you down.

Socialize and Connect

Work can be a painful, boring slog when we’re just not feeling it. It’s those days where we really need other people to pull us through the day – and that can’t happen if you refuse to connect with your coworkers. We get that there are some types of people you just won’t get along with, but trying is the important bit. Put down your smartphone during breaks or your lunch hour, and put yourself out there a bit.

Talking over a problem with someone who is supportive and sympathetic can be a great way to let off steam and relieve stress! Open yourself up to conversation and you may be surprised how people respond. Humans are social creatures after all – and it feels good to have other people to chat with, complain to, and share funny online posts with!

Keep Organized

How many times have you read ‘must be able to effectively multitask’ on a job description? How often have you told interviewers that you are a great multitasker? Well – research shows that multitasking isn’t all it’s made out to be. In fact, the human brain just isn’t designed to handle doing several tasks at once. That’s right: multitasking ruins both work efficiency and work quality.

So instead of trying to juggle everything in your workload, figure out your work priorities and get organized! Keep post-it notes or a list or a planner, and write out everything on your agenda at the beginning of the day. Then sort it all by ‘urgently important’, ‘needs to get done’, ‘would like to get done’, all the way down to, ‘could wait’. Focus on one task at a time until it is completed, then move on to the next one on your list. You’ll eliminate the stress of multitasking, and likely get way better results at the same time!

Managing your stress at work can not only help improve your quality of life in the workplace, but provide some much-needed relief from anxiety, depression, lack of concentration, and everything else that comes with leading a stressed work life. So stop letting stress ruin your life! Recognize your stressors and take control of them!