Survival at Work: How to Go About Being Productive Under Stress
At some point or another, we have all been caught up in the stressful hustle and bustle of work. We may have had a bad night’s sleep, missed our favourite TV show, felt slightly ill, or just been ‘off’ from the beginning of the day. When this happens during a typical week at work, it can be mildly irritating to those around us as well as ourselves. However, what if you are going through something more serious? What if your boss is suddenly laid off or called away unexpectedly for an emergency business trip across the country; leaving you with no guidance on how to handle everyday tasks? Or perhaps your workplace has recently become volatile due to layoffs and reorganization; meaning you never know who could stab you in the back at any given moment. In such a case, how do you not only manage to stay afloat and be productive but also survive psychologically?
A survey was recently conducted in which participants were asked what they felt would help them get through such a period of time at work; here are some of their responses:
– “Having a strong support system (family and friends) outside of work and sticking with it.”
– “Keeping busy with other interests like hobbies or exercise.”
– “Finding new ways to cope with stress by talking about feelings and experiences with others.”
These people all agree that having outlets where we can take off our ‘work masks’ is important when trying to remain sane under pressure. As well as this, it’s important to find support groups and share our troubles, pains, and happiness with others. Let us now consider some tips for each of these:
– “Keeping busy with other interests like hobbies or exercise.”
Going back home after work and immediately jumping into a rut by drinking wine until bedtime every night only makes the situation worse. If there is an activity you enjoy doing during your personal time, try to do more of it! This will not only give you something productive to occupy your mind with when you get home every evening, but also open up new horizons that you may have never explored before in life. Whether this is book club meetings, a gym class schedule at the gym near your house, going out for dinner more often with friends, or anything else that you enjoy doing, there is never an excuse to not do what makes you happy.
– “Finding new ways to cope with stress by talking about feelings and experiences with others.”
Whether this is your pet cat purring on your lap as you vent all of the stress out of yourself onto its soft fur, or a wine party with good friends after work once every couple of weeks, find ways to release pent up emotions in a healthy way. This will prevent those feelings from building up inside of us until we snap later on down the road. The more time we spend bottling our frustrations up versus venting them out, the harder it is going to be for us to take control over our lives again.
– “Having a strong support system (family and friends) outside of work and sticking with it.”
There is no time like the present to call up that special someone in your life who always makes you feel at ease when everything is on the line, or make plans for dinner during their free time. By having solid relationships with people around us besides co-workers; we can let off steam easily via phone calls, text messages, or social media sites, without feeling like our problems are being downplayed by those who don’t understand what we’re going through through through at work. For some of us, these outlets might include calling home to mom every night, playing dates with fellow moms or dads from the PTA group once a week, or simply taking long walks around the neighbourhood to clear our heads.
There are many, many more things that could be listed here for advice on how to stay productive at work under stress, but let this article serve as a primer instead of an endless list of ideas. Make use of these tips whenever you feel overwhelmed by the harsh realities of the workplace, and do your best to remember that there are always solutions available to us when we put in enough effort towards finding them.
– “Finding new ways to cope with stress by talking about feelings and experiences with others.”
It is important not only to vent our frustrations out onto other people in person/via phone/text messages or social media sites but also channels available for us where we may be able to share our troubles anonymously. One example would be a forum, where people who have gone through the same experiences as you may be able to offer their advice and support on how they dealt with similar situations. Another way could be opening up an anonymous Twitter account and tweeting all of your frustrations out, without fear of being judged by those around you at work or offending them.
One positive thing that can come from stress is good health. It has been scientifically proven that those who do not experience high levels of stress are more prone to getting sick than those who do. Stress causes our brains to release hormones such as cortisol into our bloodstreams, which helps the immune system prepare itself for battle against foreign invaders such as bacteria and viruses. Those who live their lives without stress are essentially opening themselves up to any number of diseases out there, which is something that should not be taken lightly.
At some point or another, we have all been caught up in the stressful hustle and bustle of work. We may have had a bad night’s sleep, missed our favourite TV show, felt slightly ill, or just been ‘off’ from the beginning of the day. When this happens during a typical week at work, it…