Yes, we’re in a recession and the pressure’s officially on to keep your job. But, that doesn’t mean you have to go to bed grinding your teeth about having to wake up and face the next day. Consider these five tips for making your workday a little stress-free and a lot more satisfying.
1. Don’t check your email first thing in the morning. There are books that have been written on this topic! Yet, so few of us actually take the advice. If you are going into the office knowing that you have certain priorities to take care of, tackle those. Email can wait. Because if you make it a habit to respond to emails within 24 hours, you’re still more prompt than 90% of people out here
2. Pick up the phone. I’m as email-happy as the next person, but I know if you truly want to get things done, pick up the phone. You’ll be relieved once you see how quickly you’re checking things off your to do list.
3. Make someone’s day. Bring donuts to the office, or surprise a new junior staff member by taking them out to lunch. The plain truth is doing something nice for someone else will take your mind off anything you have to be stressed over inject some positivity in your day.
4. Maximize your time. Do you have a commute? Are you maximizing that wasted time in the car? Yes, it’s tempting for me to listen to the West Coast Feed of Howard Stern on Sirius-XM, but if I’m swamped, I may bring a few phone numbers with me and get a few business items out of the way when I’m traveling between meetings.
5. Take a breather. There is no shame in taking lunch at 11 or even 10 if you need to break away! Just tell your officemates that you have to run errands and want to beat the lunch rush. It’s almost guaranteed that you will come back with a clearer head and more ready to take on the day.
