3 Ways to Overcome Stress at Work
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3 Ways to Overcome Stress at Work

3 Ways to Overcome Stress at Work
Sources of stress at work include performance anxiety, squabbles with co-workers or disagreements with the boss. In fact, research shows that people in a bad job – faced with job insecurity, excessively high demands, heavy workload or unfair wage – were found to have a mental state similar to unemployed individuals. How should one cope with stress in this fast-paced corporate environment? Here are three ways that may help you.

Practice Self-Care

Job stress can make people sick. To reduce this tension, exercise self-care by eating (a low-sugar and high-protein diet) and sleeping well. To relax, engage in activities that you enjoy like yoga or meeting up with friends. Engaging a life coach is gaining momentum in the realm of psychological and emotional self-care. With the plethora of certified coaches who conduct sessions online, regular coaching sessions can even be done in the comfort of your own home.

Adopt the Shift Strategy

It has been said that life is 10% what happens to you and 90% how you react to it. When applied to this context, the saying implies that how we respond to what happens at work is far more important than what actually happens. Here is a 5-step approach that will prevent you from buckling under work pressure:

Stop and catch a breather:
Taking a deep breath in between completing tasks will help calm you down.

Harness your knee-jerk reactions:
When something negative happens, some people cannot stop worrying. While there are those who withdraw from the situation, others get defensive and lash out. By getting help from your family in pinpointing your reactions when you are stressed, you can make a conscious effort to stop responding in the same way.

Identify and manage your negative feelings:
Set aside time to consider your emotions and think about what would help you to get through any negative emotions. In this instance, listening to music or going for a walk can be therapeutic.

Find alternatives:
When considering other ways to respond, ask yourself these three questions: What has worked in the past? What would someone I admire do? What would an objective bystander advise me to do?

Take one positive step:
It helps to lighten up and look at the glass half-full. If you feel overwhelmed with juggling various tasks, have a to-do list.

Be Grateful and Reconnect with What You Love about Your Job

Embrace one thing that you are grateful for every day at work. Every time something good happens at work, make a mental note of it. At the end of each day, reflect on the good day you had. To spread the cheer, treat your colleagues to a snack or share a joke. To stay driven in your job, it pays to constantly remind yourself why you got into this job in the first place. Ask yourself, “what is good about my job? How does my being in the workplace make a difference to my colleagues?” These two questions will help you see the meaning in what you do at work, enhance job satisfaction and ultimately alleviate work stress.