Is work following you home? How to deal with work stress
We all have a ‘work-mode’. But how do you switch it off when you’ve had the day from hell, your line manager is on your case, and you’ve still got 25 unopened emails sitting in your inbox?
When work is particularly demanding or stressful, it’s even harder to turn your back on it in the evenings. Especially if you’re working from home. There are huge upsides to flexible working, but living and working in the same place can mean that work never quite goes away at the end of the day.
The more blurred the lines become between your work and home lives, the more pressured and stressed you feel. Here are some suggestions from the Zebra team on how to unwind after a stressful day.
Setting boundaries – getting work ‘back in its box’
Step away from the desk! Stop when you say you’re going to stop – let your colleagues know that you’re signing off. If you’ve been in back-to-back meetings, you need to shift gears. Try creating your own post-work ritual. Change your clothes, take a quick shower, or ten minutes with a cup of tea in the fresh air. This helps you draw a line under the day.
You might not be making a physical commute anymore, but you can make a mental one.
Shutting the door on a stressful day at work
If you tend to work all over the house, curled up on the sofa or stretched out on the bed, it’s time to think about having one dedicated workspace.
Creating a clear separation between your workspace and the place where you like to read, cook or journal, makes it harder for your work stress to follow you ‘home’.
Get in the habit of putting everything away at the end of the day. Put the laptop in a drawer (out of sight means out of mind) and pens back in their place, so there’s no temptation for a sneaky peak at work emails. Again, having your own personal shutdown ritual can calm frayed nerves, restore order and help you ‘shut the door’ on work.
Tell it to a friend, or partner
Bottling things up is a sure way to allow negative energy to reach boiling point – and next thing you know, you’re heading for meltdown. But if you can talk about it with someone, it lets the heat escape.
Try FaceTiming a friend for ten minutes or reaching out to someone who cares about you. A good friend will listen without judging, and not rush to offer suggestions. Just knowing that they’re there for you makes you feel valued, listened to and loved.
Don’t be afraid to let your emotions spill over. You’re not at work now, so if you want to have a good cry, go ahead.
Tell it to your journal
Journalling is especially useful if the work stress is created by personality clashes or painful situations with colleagues. Often writing about the situation helps you see a way forward, and you can even practise and experiment with words or phrases to say the next day to open up a conversation and move on.
A personal journal is the ultimate safe space. You can say whatever you want, without judgment, or fear. It helps you understand yourself better. Writing about your fears or frustrations helps you process what’s happened in your day and make sense of it.
You don’t have to hold back – it’s like a letter to yourself that you never send.
Time being creative is time well spent
Creativity is a great healer. If your day has been less than perfect, all your ideas have been dismissed, or you’ve been told to redo a report or assignment, then affirming your own imagination and creativity is a positive and empowering way to spend the evening. Immerse yourself in designing a new spread, crafting, or experimenting with new colour combos.
Or pick up your Sarasa Clips or Doodler’z gels and get doodling!
Letting your mind – or your pen – wander where it will on the page, helps us be present in the moment. It gives our conscious brain a break, and lets the subconscious take over.
Don’t overthink it – just doodle away. When you look up, an hour will have gone by, and you’ll feel much calmer.
Be kind to yourself
Once you’ve let those negative thoughts subside, you’re ready for some gentle self-care. These might be tried-and-tested techniques – but they work! Listen to music, spend some time meditating or breathing deeply. Lose yourself in a novel or spend half an hour designing a beautiful bookmark for a friend. Being overstressed is exhausting! So, these slowing-down techniques are particularly effective on our physical wellbeing.
Reward yourself. Tomorrow is a brand-new day.