7 EFFECTIVE WAYS TO REDUCE WORKPLACE STRESS

While it may seem like there’s nothing you can do about stress at work and home, there are steps you can take to relieve the pressure and regain control.

Long-term exposure to work-related stressors like these can affect mental health. Work stress can also harm companies or organizations. Burnout reduces job productivity and boosts absenteeism and job turnover, and also leads to conflict between coworkers, causing stress to spread within a workplace.

The first step of everything is identification. Identify the stress triggers and list them out. Then we can analyze those and solve them one by one. While evaluating these triggers, You might also notice subtle but persistent causes of stress, such as a long commute or an uncomfortable workspace.

• Sometimes, feeling overwhelmed by work comes down to how organized you are. Try setting up a priority list at the beginning of your workweek by preparing tasks and ranking them according to importance.
• You can also beat procrastination by setting aside specific time blocks for deep concentration work.
• Being available around the clock will easily burn you out. It’s important to create clear boundaries between your work and home life to help you avoid potential stress. Part of this means setting aside time for socializing and establishing rules for when you’ll check emails or take phone calls.
• When in doubt, sleep it out. Our minds suffer severely when we're tired and stressed, so the best way to combat this at work is to take a ten-minute nap. Taking a power nap is known to help stabilize emotions, increase energy and restore brain functionality. If your workplace hasn't already installed a nap room, head to your car or the break room.
• Regular exercise is a powerful stress reliever even though it may be the last thing you feel like doing. Aerobic exercise - and activity that raises your heart rate and makes you sweat is a hugely effective way to lift your mood, increase energy, sharpen focus, and relax both the mind and body. For maximum stress relief, try to get at least 30 minutes of heart-pounding activity on most days. If it’s easier to fit into your schedule, break up the activity into two or three shorter segments.
• Reduce Interruptions to Reduce Job Stress. One of the biggest causes of stress is the worry that you’re not going to be able to accomplish the day’s work. Increase productivity and reduce stress by scheduling specific times to check your email or return phone calls and ask your employees to do the same.
• Help others around you. Research shows that behavior like supporting others and giving positive feedback to colleagues can help reduce your stress levels and the effect that your stress has on your mental health.

Stress is tough to beat, but with these simple and quite pleasurable techniques, you can turn your hectic office into a place of peaceful productivity. In the words of President Theodore Roosevelt, “Far and away the best prize that life has to offer is the chance to work hard at work worth doing.” What could be more worth doing than working on your health and happiness?