Tips for Dealing with Workplace Stress

Work is an important part of life and it is where we spend most of our day. But, what if your job stresses you out? Here are some tips for dealing with stress in the workplace.

Stress is what it is. Situations come up in our lives that we look at as good or bad. How we react to them determines what the amount of stress we experience. Learning this lesson can save you a lot of stress on your job.
Handling your Duties

Believe it or not, there are people who like their jobs. When the work is satisfying you are more productive and don’t mind taking on extra duties when warranted.

But, when you are under the gun to get work finished and there just don’t seem to be enough hours in the day, you may be headed for trouble. If your frantic pace keeps up you’ll start to notice the adverse effects. At first it may just be a stomachache or a headache when you get up in the morning. You may pop a few pills before heading off to work.

It’s not a flu bug, it’s stress. And, here are a few ways to help you handle it.

1.    Create a schedule – If you have several projects going at once, map out when they are due. Set up time blocks each day to get work done on each one, with more time given to earlier deadlines.
2.    Learn to say “No” – No one is super human. If all you can handle well is two projects at a time, decline a third when your boss asks if you can take it on. You’ll save yourself a headache or three and your performance on the other two will be better.
3.    Take lunch – Many think it increases their productivity or shows commitment if they skip a meal. Well, it doesn’t. Getting nourishment and taking a break allows you to refocus on your goal and get more work done. If you are tired, you won’t be able to think and are less productive.

Are you stressed right now? In case you are in doubt, here are a few signs that your stress level has gotten too high at work.

•    Tiredness
•    Snapping at coworkers or your family when you get home
•    Lack of focus
•    Headaches
•    Irritability
•    No longer look forward to going to work

Don’t let stress ruin your workplace experience. Take steps to get your workload under control so you can manage your stress level.