Post by Admin on Apr 19, 2007 10:46:46 GMT -5
Surviving a Bad Day at the Office
By Peyton Mays, Senior Editor, MSN Shopping
Most Mondays are a struggle, but this one actually began the night before as you lay there in bed, staring at the ceiling, and decided that a grand jury indictment or an alien abduction would be infinitely preferable to spending another day at the office. Even if you're one of the lucky ones who love their job, there are going to be times when the cubicle closes in. According to a recent study, 82 percent of Americans experience job stress at one time or another, so welcome to a very crowded club.
When assuming a new identity and flying to Buenos Aries is not an option, here are a few tips for coping with your own personal office hell without a pocket flask.
Working-by-numbers
On days when your heart, soul and brain are elsewhere, the best strategy is to put yourself on autopilot. The average office worker switches tasks every three minutes, replying to incoming e-mail, returning a call or opening a new document. Cut through the chaos. Start by making a list of everything you have to get done. Add a block of whatever time you need to answer e-mails or return calls. Rank your list by priority and dig into number one. Finish each task before going on to the next. Mundane as it sounds, plodding through your day sequentially will speed its passage, help you feel more in control and give you a sense of getting somewhere – even if it's somewhere you'd rather not be.
Take 5
Each hour, or after completing each task, take time out for five minutes. Leave your office or abandon your cubicle and give yourself a brief change of scene before beginning the next chore on your list. It can do wonders for clearing your head. Think of it as re-booting your brain. If you're shackled to your desk, use the five minutes to stretch, visit a favorite web site, play a round of computer solitaire or just close your eyes. For more options, keep reading.
Raise your force shield
The people who typically annoy you the most can be insufferable at times like this. Simply put, you don't need them today. Try to reschedule meetings with them to another time, pleading overload, illness or another more inventive extenuating circumstance. If you can't weasel out – let's say you share an office with someone who sets your teeth on edge – slap on a pair of noise-canceling headphones and crank the tunes. Listening to music not only screens out the creep in the next cubicle, it actually lowers your pulse rate.
Skip the java
As someone who drinks his weight in coffee every day, I realize this is easier said than done, but the plain truth is that while caffeine may make you feel more alert, it also increases your heart rate and your level of stress. Take a decaf break for a day – drink lots of water, munch on an energy bar or fresh fruit and don't forget your vitamins. Some swear by chamomile tea.
Work out the kinks
Daily exercise is a proven stress-reducer. But even if you fall somewhere short of the mark in that department, use what break time you have to limber up a bit. Get outside your building and take a walk. Do some stretching exercises. Lift your shoulders as high as you can, hold the position for a couple of seconds and release. Do that 10 times and you'll feel the tension evaporate from your shoulders and neck. Sustained movement releases endorphins that help stimulate a sense of well-being.
Improve your set design
Dilbert cartoons and rubber chickens aside, the way you furnish your little corner of the corporate universe can help you relax and endure even the most idiotic office memo. According to one study, placing a plant or two on your desk where you can see them can lower stress and improve productivity. No window? Go for artificial greenery. Photographs of your family or of a happy moment in your life, or even a souvenir from a great vacation, can similarly provide psychological refuge.
Take a virtual vacation
Keep a folder in your desk filled with travel brochures of places you'd love to go or photos of where you've been. When things come to a boil, take it out and imagine yourself there. Close your eyes and think of all the sounds and smells of that place. If it doesn't calm you down, it will at least remind you of why you're sacrificing your 9-5. Or, look out a window for a few minutes and just watch the motion of the clouds or the sunlight through the leaves of a tree.
Breathe
When we're under stress, we tend to take rapid, shallow breaths -- if we remember to breathe at all. You can reverse the effect by going for slow, long and deep breathing. It oxygenates the blood, relaxes the mind and, at least if you don't work in L.A., it's great for your lungs and body. For some reason, the scent of lavender oil has a calming effect. Keep a bottle handy (of the oil, that is).
Make a survival kit
Facing eight hours of angst in the trenches is a lot easier if you're prepared. Here's a list of shopping links for some of the things mentioned in this article.
Noise-canceling headphones
Nutrition bars and drinks
Vitamins
Chamomile tea
Live plants
Artificial plants
Lavender oil
Books about relieving office stress
Mama said there'd be days like this
There's no dodging this particular bullet. We all have days at work when the clock seems to run backwards and the inbox metastasizes. They're no easier to avoid than long lines at the DMV. Accept the fact that some days you're just not going to operate at 100%. Take a lesson from the members of Congress and never let a lousy attitude or lackluster performance get in the way of your career. Just concentrate on making it through to 5 o'clock, get a good night's sleep and chances are you'll be back at the top of your game tomorrow.
Peyton Mays spent 18 years in radio before swapping the microphone for the keyboard. As MSN Shopping's senior editor, he tracks retail trends and offers tips and shopping advice. He prefers his martini with a twist.
By Peyton Mays, Senior Editor, MSN Shopping
Most Mondays are a struggle, but this one actually began the night before as you lay there in bed, staring at the ceiling, and decided that a grand jury indictment or an alien abduction would be infinitely preferable to spending another day at the office. Even if you're one of the lucky ones who love their job, there are going to be times when the cubicle closes in. According to a recent study, 82 percent of Americans experience job stress at one time or another, so welcome to a very crowded club.
When assuming a new identity and flying to Buenos Aries is not an option, here are a few tips for coping with your own personal office hell without a pocket flask.
Working-by-numbers
On days when your heart, soul and brain are elsewhere, the best strategy is to put yourself on autopilot. The average office worker switches tasks every three minutes, replying to incoming e-mail, returning a call or opening a new document. Cut through the chaos. Start by making a list of everything you have to get done. Add a block of whatever time you need to answer e-mails or return calls. Rank your list by priority and dig into number one. Finish each task before going on to the next. Mundane as it sounds, plodding through your day sequentially will speed its passage, help you feel more in control and give you a sense of getting somewhere – even if it's somewhere you'd rather not be.
Take 5
Each hour, or after completing each task, take time out for five minutes. Leave your office or abandon your cubicle and give yourself a brief change of scene before beginning the next chore on your list. It can do wonders for clearing your head. Think of it as re-booting your brain. If you're shackled to your desk, use the five minutes to stretch, visit a favorite web site, play a round of computer solitaire or just close your eyes. For more options, keep reading.
Raise your force shield
The people who typically annoy you the most can be insufferable at times like this. Simply put, you don't need them today. Try to reschedule meetings with them to another time, pleading overload, illness or another more inventive extenuating circumstance. If you can't weasel out – let's say you share an office with someone who sets your teeth on edge – slap on a pair of noise-canceling headphones and crank the tunes. Listening to music not only screens out the creep in the next cubicle, it actually lowers your pulse rate.
Skip the java
As someone who drinks his weight in coffee every day, I realize this is easier said than done, but the plain truth is that while caffeine may make you feel more alert, it also increases your heart rate and your level of stress. Take a decaf break for a day – drink lots of water, munch on an energy bar or fresh fruit and don't forget your vitamins. Some swear by chamomile tea.
Work out the kinks
Daily exercise is a proven stress-reducer. But even if you fall somewhere short of the mark in that department, use what break time you have to limber up a bit. Get outside your building and take a walk. Do some stretching exercises. Lift your shoulders as high as you can, hold the position for a couple of seconds and release. Do that 10 times and you'll feel the tension evaporate from your shoulders and neck. Sustained movement releases endorphins that help stimulate a sense of well-being.
Improve your set design
Dilbert cartoons and rubber chickens aside, the way you furnish your little corner of the corporate universe can help you relax and endure even the most idiotic office memo. According to one study, placing a plant or two on your desk where you can see them can lower stress and improve productivity. No window? Go for artificial greenery. Photographs of your family or of a happy moment in your life, or even a souvenir from a great vacation, can similarly provide psychological refuge.
Take a virtual vacation
Keep a folder in your desk filled with travel brochures of places you'd love to go or photos of where you've been. When things come to a boil, take it out and imagine yourself there. Close your eyes and think of all the sounds and smells of that place. If it doesn't calm you down, it will at least remind you of why you're sacrificing your 9-5. Or, look out a window for a few minutes and just watch the motion of the clouds or the sunlight through the leaves of a tree.
Breathe
When we're under stress, we tend to take rapid, shallow breaths -- if we remember to breathe at all. You can reverse the effect by going for slow, long and deep breathing. It oxygenates the blood, relaxes the mind and, at least if you don't work in L.A., it's great for your lungs and body. For some reason, the scent of lavender oil has a calming effect. Keep a bottle handy (of the oil, that is).
Make a survival kit
Facing eight hours of angst in the trenches is a lot easier if you're prepared. Here's a list of shopping links for some of the things mentioned in this article.
Noise-canceling headphones
Nutrition bars and drinks
Vitamins
Chamomile tea
Live plants
Artificial plants
Lavender oil
Books about relieving office stress
Mama said there'd be days like this
There's no dodging this particular bullet. We all have days at work when the clock seems to run backwards and the inbox metastasizes. They're no easier to avoid than long lines at the DMV. Accept the fact that some days you're just not going to operate at 100%. Take a lesson from the members of Congress and never let a lousy attitude or lackluster performance get in the way of your career. Just concentrate on making it through to 5 o'clock, get a good night's sleep and chances are you'll be back at the top of your game tomorrow.
Peyton Mays spent 18 years in radio before swapping the microphone for the keyboard. As MSN Shopping's senior editor, he tracks retail trends and offers tips and shopping advice. He prefers his martini with a twist.
