Feeling stressed out at work? Here are the ways to deal with workplace stress!
Work-related stress can continue to remain even after clocking out. A survey found that Malaysian workers are overworked and deprived of sleep, with51 per cent suffering from at least one dimension of work-related stress as well as 53 per cent getting less than seven hours of sleep in a 24-hour period.
What stress is all about?
Essentially, when stress is caused by work overload, it can be due to various of reasons, including:
long working hours,
heavy workloads,
time constraints,
organizational change,
lack of support, and
harassment/bullying to name a few.
If your career is persuading you to lose sleep or grind your teeth or any of the symptoms I’ve listed below, get assertive about making some changes.
The common signs or symptoms of work-related stress can be:
Fatigue
Muscle tension, pains and headaches
Depression
Anxiety
Feelings of being overwhelmed and unable to cope
An increase in sick days or absenteeism
A drop in work performance
Mood swings and irritability
However, there are ways of managing on-the-job stress effectively before it inevitably wreaks havoc on your health.
Here are a few ways of coping with tension in the workplace:
1) Step back to get away from the situation.
Taking a short break to help yourself calm down is a good way to rest your nerves if your schedule allows it. It's a great way to take care of your mental health throughout the day. Take advantage of your break times to relax and unwind away from the desk.
Standing up and walking around is indeed a good form of exercise, then why don't you start walking over to his / her workstation the next time you will need speak to a colleague instead of texting him via the web?
2) Cultivate good interactions with your peers
An unpleasant day at work can certainly be turned around if you have a support system. So, do your best to develop friendships with your colleagues. However, set boundaries with colleagues that may be prone to gossiping or being completely problematic. Be sure to communicate in a respectable, professional way to avoid coming across as unfriendly.
3) Make time for healthy meals!
A quick trip to the vending machine for chips is all you need to satisfy your mid-day cravings, when you’re stressed, right? Thus, to reduce unreasonable 'hangry' moments, kick off the day with healthy foods. Try eating something with plenty of protein to stay full for longer.
4) Get a good night’s sleep for a productive day
On any day of the week, even Mondays, waking up well-rested will have a positive impact! So, get plenty of sleep (sleep for at least 7-8 hours).Turn up rested and ready to work.
5) Fine-tune your time management abilities
Are you highly organized? Stop to take a moment to look around your working area or take a glance at your schedule for the day, if you're not sure. Now, how does it make you feel, as you observe your atmosphere or calendar? Are you overloaded and tense?
If so, the trick to easing your stress could be done through improved planning. Keep in mind that life does not always revolve around job, it's just one tiny teeny component of your whole being. When you see things from this viewpoint, you’ll learn to be more relaxed even when situations go haywire in the working environment.