How Can I Reduce Stress At Work?
Do you suffer from stress at work? Do you have too many tasks to complete in too short a time? At the end of the day, do you often feel as if you have made only backward progress but no progress at all? Don’t worry, it’s not just you.
Everybody has a day now and then when everything seems to go wrong. But what can you do if you feel constantly stressed by the pressure at work? The pressure to perform and excessive demands from above, difficult colleagues, overtime – this dangerous mix can lead you to burnout. How can you deal with stress in such situations without completely panicking? We have therefore not only compiled an overview of the most important triggers and effects of stress at work but also give you concrete tips on what you can do about it.
Working under pressure:
What triggers the pressure?
Stress factors can be divided into three groups: social, physical, and psychological.
- Social stress factors are primarily all those that can be described as “stress at work with colleagues”, i.e. competitive pressure, conflicts, and bullying. Social stress factors also naturally include dealing with the executive floor – unpleasant pressure from above is also referred to as bossing.
- Physical stress factors concern the working environment (e.g. low lighting, noise), strenuous physical activities or night and shift work.
- Mental stress factors begin for some people when they are dissatisfied with their job, deadline pressure, constant availability, under challenge and the fear of being fired are also part of it.
The effects of stress at work
The effects of stress at work can be both physical and psychological, ranging from a harmless bad mood to serious physical illness. The first signs can be a bad mood, irritability, or pessimistic thoughts, followed by a decline in motivation and social withdrawal. Physical signs at the beginning are often exhaustion and tension, but stress can lead to gastrointestinal problems, weight loss, a weakened immune system, sleep disorders, and in the worst case also to burnout.
Stress at work and in private
Fatal interactions
If you have stress at work, it often happens that you take it home with you – according to recent statistics, 55% of the 800 workers and employees questioned occasionally deal with professional matters in their free time. Tiredness and exhaustion due to overwork at work lead to 40% of the respondents having the impression that they are not able to organize their leisure time completely freely. In addition, 48% state that they cannot organize their leisure time entirely according to their own wishes. This strain also leads to the fact that many people cannot use their free time sufficiently for recreation: 51% of the women and 58% of the men stated that they cannot recover.
When stressed people take their problems and worries from work home with them, they are often more irritable and less resilient, which can contribute to tensions and conflicts with partner and family. Double burdens at home and at work, in turn, can reinforce each other and lead to overwork.
Therefore, you should not wait too long when you feel overloaded and stressed, but actively try to fight the stress.
Measures against stress at work
There is no patent solution for dealing with stress in the workplace, but there are some useful tips on what you can do:
1. Change your angle of vision
Many workers are afraid of the pressures they may encounter at work. The bigger the pressure, the bigger the fear of doing something wrong, until finally no action is taken. The vicious circle is that this only increases the pressure – less time, more tasks.
So try to counter the pressure with motivation rather than fear. See the pressure as a new challenge to prove your abilities.
2. Address your stress
Talk to your boss and colleagues about the fact that you are overworked. For example, ask your manager for a performance review. Of course, this is not possible in every company environment, but if possible it should be the first step – maybe others have not yet noticed how you are doing?
3. Say no
It is not easy to say no to work colleagues or your superior. But especially when you are faced with more and more work, you should try to make them refuse further tasks. Signal to your counterpart that you would like to complete the task, but that your schedule and other projects do not allow it at the moment. If possible, offer to tackle the task at a later date.
4. Set priorities
If you feel that you have too much work and too little time, you need to prioritize: What can I realistically do on this day, this week? Start your working day with a list of things you need to do that day – and start right away. First, take the thing you’re most afraid of. Once you’ve done that, you’ll be so pleased with yourself that the rest will almost go by itself. At the end of the day, take the time to update your to-do list and plan for the next day. By the way, such a list can also be a good basis for further discussions with colleagues and superiors, because it will ultimately make it clear what and how much of your tasks is too much.
5. Avoid interruptions
Especially in today’s world, many people have the impression that they have to be available around the clock and immediately make time for new tasks, calls, e-mails, etc. Being able to work on your tasks in larger blocks without interruption often helps to reduce the perceived stress level. Try to create a calm and undisturbed working atmosphere (close the office door, make it clear that you are not available until the next meeting, etc.) in order to be able to work more productively.
6. Pause for a short time
It may sound contradictory, but in fact, under great pressure, you should first pause for a moment, breathe deeply and come to rest. It is usually the wrong way to immediately fall into blind action. This often causes even more stress and additional mistakes. Just a few minutes can be enough to collect yourself and then withstand the pressure better. You proceed more concentrated and feel less stressed.
Tackling and reducing stress in the workplace is not only a challenge for you, but also for your work environment. Make not only yourself but also others aware of the negative effects stress can have and then try to work together to counteract them!
7. Go step by step
The secret is not to work better under pressure. Often the difference lies only in a concentrated approach. It is easy to succumb to the misconception that under pressure you have to do as much as possible at once. The exact opposite is true.
Especially under pressure, you should take on one task after another. The advantages of this simple method are multiple: You achieve better results, avoid mistakes, reduce the pressure with each individual task, and in the end you will be finished even faster.
8. Renounce perfection
It is good to set high goals for yourself and work hard to achieve them. But you should be careful about perfectionism. Here your own demands are so high that they can never be achieved and so you put yourself under increasing pressure.
Especially under time pressure, you should be aware that a good performance is perfectly sufficient. From the outside, enough pressure is already being brought to you. Make sure that you do not increase this pressure yourself.
9. Withdraw
Everyone deals with the pressure differently and so you have to find out for yourself how to work best under pressure. However, it helps many people if they can withdraw and keep to themselves during this phase.
This has nothing to do with dislike or isolation from your colleagues, but rather promotes concentration. If you have your own office, this is relatively easy, share the workplace with others, headphones can help to reduce distraction.
10. Organize yourself
Tidy up your desk. If you do not yet have a filing system, develop one. Reserve a certain amount of time each day for routine tasks such as deleting e-mails and doing paperwork. You should try to pick up each document only once – get it done and, if possible, file it immediately. And resist the impulse to constantly check your e-mails – this is one of the most time-consuming tasks of all!
11. Take regular breaks
Don’t miss your lunch break and get some fresh air if possible. Breathe deeply so that you can concentrate better afterward. If you regularly work a lot of overtime, you should make a fixed appointment at least once a week: Go to the gym, get a massage or meet friends. This way you will be forced to finish work on time.
12. Take time off
Make sure you take your vacation to the fullest. No one is irreplaceable – the company won’t go under just because you are away for a few days. And nobody wishes at the end of their life that they had spent more time in the office, quite the opposite! You have to manage to find the right balance so that you enjoy going to work, but also really switch off at the end of the working day.
This plan should make it possible to cope well with even the most stressful phases in the job. If none of this helps, do not be afraid to reconsider your position. Everyone deserves a job they enjoy. If you are constantly feeling bad at work, do not hesitate to change jobs. Ask yourself what you really want and ignore the expectations of others. Your goal must be to find a job that you enjoy all around.
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