Despite all hassle on the way, you made it to work on a Monday morning. Now you are ready to go for another 8 working hours.
The moment you open the computer, you will be bombarded with hundreds of e-mails calling your immediate attention. Sometimes the work load is beyond your capacity and you feel overwhelmed.
If the above scenario sounds familiar, take a moment to ease your mind. Otherwise, you will be stressed due to excessive workload demand over the time. If work related stress is not addressed properly at the ground level, it can lead to a psychological breakdown.
In this article, I have elaborate on how to stay cool in your work environment.
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How to stay cool at your work space?
The simple solution is by developing mindfulness at your work place. Mindfulness teaches you how to maintain a stress-free work environment.
Although it is easy to say so, learning to stay cool at work place needs some time and effort. Remember, mindfulness is an important tool to be practised 24/7. Therefore, let us cultivate mindfulness in our work life as well.
What is to be mindful?
Be mindful simply means be aware of your thoughts, words, and actions at any given moment regardless of where you are.
How to practice mindfulness at work place?
Here are some creative ways to add some mindful moments while you are at work.
Practice some meditation while you sit
Just before you open the computer or while it is starting, sit in an upright posture. Simply pay attention on the posture of your body. Take a deep breath to relax your body and mind.
Do not thrust yourself to start work immediately. Instead, spend 3-5 minutes of still moments. That calmness will make a great impact on your productivity during the rest of the day.
Find time during breaks
Most of the work places have two 10 minutes breaks per work day. If you are entitled to breaks, find an outdoor space for deep breathing for a few minutes.
If you would like to go for a walk during the break, you can walk mindfully while taking deep breaths to relax yourself.
For example, when you keep the right foot be mindful of the fact you are keeping the right foot. When you keep the left foot be mindful of the fact you are keeping the left foot.
By that way, you will avoid the mind getting clouded with endless thoughts such as a mistake you did a few minutes ago or how to respond to an e-mail immediately after the break.
Keep mindful steps inside the office
Even if you walk a few steps inside the office like walking to the copy machine, you can walk with awareness.
Before getting up from your seat, remind yourself that you will be getting up with awareness. Then with every step you make, be aware of the lifting and placing of the foot.
By this way, the mind gets a little rest with the awareness of the body.
Consider using a meditation app
If your work place promotes mindfulness training, you can consider using a meditation app like Insight Timer, headspace etc.
Spread love and kindness to your work colleagues
Once you leave home, your work family fills the gap. Therefore, do not get angry with your noisy neighbor or hate the constantly interrupting supervisor.
When you get any negative thoughts, you are the first victim of your defiled mind. Therefore, guard the mind with love and kindness.
Instead of getting isolated with your phone during breaks, consider going for a walk with your colleagues. That way you can make friends at the work place.
Be patient with yourself
Even if you cannot finish work as planned, do not get disappointed with yourself. Always be happy with what you have finished so far.
Use multitasking efficiently
Though multi-tasking is a popular word in the fast moving world, studies have shown that the mind is capable of performing only one task at a time.
Do not attempt to jump from task to task. Even if you get 100 e-mails per day, you can respond only one e-mail at a time.
Therefore, focus on one task at a time and finish it with minimum errors.
Hang out with positive co-workers:
Hanging out with positive minded people will always bring good vibrations. Find such co-workers in your work place to improve and maintain an optimistic temperament.
How does work place lead to stress?
According to The American Institute of Stress, job stress is a major source for American adults which increased gradually over the years.
Causes:
Causes which trigger stress are subjective. It depends on how well you can fit in the work environment. Some of the causes would be;
- by monotonous unchallenging work.
- Toxic work environment
- Personality traits such as perfectionism, pessimism etc.
- Poor Management
Is there any mindfulness training introduced by companies?
Over the past few decades work related stress has become a global issue which affect the productivity of companies.
According to the world Health Organization, depression and anxiety cost the global economy an estimated $1 trillion per year in lost productivity.
Therefore, prominent companies like Google, Aetna, and General Mills are offering mindfulness training to improve the effectiveness of their employees.
It is said that Apple CEO and co-founder Steve Jobs practiced Zen meditation and used to meditate before going on stage for important public speeches (Galles, 2015).
What are the benefits of practicing mindfulness at work place?
If you practice mindfulness for a few days, you will realize how it benefits your work life. Some of the benefits of practicing mindfulness are;
- Reduce work-related stress
- Make less mistakes
- Ability to focus well with the clarity of the mind
- Better communication with co-workers
- Optimize productivity
- Enhance creativity
- Maintain job satisfaction
- Reduce absenteeism due to work related stress
- Create a happy and pleasant environment
- At the end of the day leave with happy face
As a final point, you should consider practicing mindfulness even at the work place. It will support you to maintain a calm and peaceful mind as long as you work!
Photo by Mimi Thian on Unsplash, Photo by Ash Edmonds on Unsplash, Photo by LinkedIn Sales Navigator on Unsplash
