Stress Busting: 6 Tips For Keeping The Balance

Whether you’re just a little frazzled or stressed up to the eyeballs, you could do with reading Jennifer’s tips below. Look no further for practical advice on eliminating stress and focusing on what matters most at work and at home.

Stress has a way of seeping into different areas of our lives and before we know it, we’re overwhelmed. Meeting deadlines, paying bills, finding time to clean the house, getting the kids to extracurricular activities, getting home to make dinner, the list goes on and on. Since so many of our responsibilities are grounded at home and work, these are two of the biggest areas affected.

Take A Step Back

What has helped me minimize my tension is narrowing down different ways of looking at my whole day. I take a moment and consider, What is stressing me and what should I do about it?

Separate Work And Home

First, I focus on separating work and home. Sometimes these areas bleed into each other, which is where the stress festers. You may be at your desk thinking about what needs to get repaired in the kitchen during the week. Or you may be sitting on your couch trying to watch TV when you’re constantly nagged by a task you didn’t finish at work.

These are thoughts that need to be set aside, even if there’s a fear of forgetting what needs to be done. Reassure yourself that it will still get done. Your work will still be there. And when you make time to unwind, you’ll have a more relaxed, clear mind, when you head back to work.

Specially For Home Workers

If you sometimes work from home, you’ll find that you have to literally balance work and home. It’s easy to let yourself get distracted by the comforts of your surroundings, and the overlap pattern happens again!

It’s important to stay focused in this environment. Staying on track can include regular e-mail checks, messaging coworkers, or engaging in a conference call. These types of interactions can act as reminders, but also bring focus to the task at hand. The result is efficiency, which will bring more overall relief to your day.

The Joy Of Lists

There are numerous ways to organize and balance duties for both aspects of your life, but the one I most suggest is making a to do list. Completing one task at a time can be more effective than starting one before finishing the last – something that is sometimes mistaken for multi-tasking.

Creating a visual representation of tasks will definitely relieve any overwhelming or anxious feelings. It allows you to break things down and actually get a sense of achievement when you cross something off your to do list.

Get A Hobby

One last thing I want to suggest is the importance of interests outside of all these responsibilities. Basically, do things that you find calming or fun that have nothing to do with chores or your job. It seems like common sense, but more often than not people find themselves occupying every hour of their day with worry and work.

I personally have found my calm in growing succulent plants and creating terrariums for them. It’s a hobby that requires no particular direction, and allows me to enjoy something of my own creation. While some hobbies seem like more work (yes, even succulent growing!), you have to remember two things that differentiate them from your home and work responsibilities: 1) they’re activities of your own choosing, and 2) the process is soothing, not stressful.

These are all little stepping stones towards better, well-rounded living. The big idea is to maintain a balance between life in the workplace and at home. That way you can have a positive mindset and keep your stress levels low.

Last But Not Least

Do some yoga!

Click Here For Online Yoga To Move You Into Calm

This post was written by Jennifer Scott, a lifelong sufferer of anxiety and depression. She created her website, SpiritFinder.org, as a platform for advocacy on opening up about mental health. Through the site, she hopes to share the types of steps and success stories that can help others realize their own power. When she isn’t working on her website, she enjoys travelling, working with animals, and seeking out new friendships and adventures.

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