06 Mar 5 Simple Tips To Enjoy A Stress Free Day

With all due respect to ergonomic setup guidelines, proper posture, dynamic sitting, appropriate and good functioning equipment and healthy movement…….they can all be somewhat undone without learning how to prioritize, plan and engage in what we call “proper work flow”. It is analogous to the golf swing. Good posture, grip, ball placement and the shaft angle, lie angle can all be undone with poor swing tempo!

Therefore, something that we stress at each evaluation or ergo training class is the importance of planning your day, as much as you can, without just sitting down and getting to work and reacting to what is in front of you! The more you can plan, the more you can affect the pace of your work and therefore help to reduce unwanted and unnecessary stress.

Of course we realize that things will spontaneously “pop up” at work and potentially derail the best laid plans. However, this is not a good enough excuse to constantly be the respondent to the demands of the day. Proactive is prophylactic!

So here are some simple and straightforward tips to help you through your day.

1. Let’s all agree that the beginning of the day may bring some additions to what you might have already planned for, and if you aren’t physically prepared, stress can begin to impact your dayfrom the outset. So take some time before you get started to do some simple stretches, set your workstation to fit your body and take a deep breath (and make sure to repeat those stretches throughout the day)!
2. Organize, prioritize, plan and execute! You’d be surprised how many of get this wrong. First, gather, literally or figuratively, your work and inspect it. Then organize your work with respect to priority, time allocation and physical demands. Once you have this set, it is time to plan your day by course of action. You will learn to add some buffer in here so as to reduce potential stressors (much like learning to manage a financial budget). And finally, the process of executing your plan can begin ( a strong suggestion her is to make your best effort to complete what you have started)!
3. It is important to plan for both short breaks during your day (stretching, deep breathing, resting your eyes, a breath of fresh air etc.) as well as taking an appropriate mid-day break to really recharge your battery (a light healthy meal, a walk and your favorite book are all excellent choices).
4. Take a moment before calling it a workday to preliminarily plan the next day’s tasks and close out any outstanding issues that you can. And here is a helpful tip: avoid making plans for right after work. I have found that when I do this, events can conspire, work piles up and I start to become anxious about meeting ALL of my commitments and then stress begins to build.
5. And lastly, review your plan for effectiveness. If it is not providing you with the desired results, take a moment to analyze your methodology and be prepared to tweak it. A regular, productive and positive routine can go a long way to helping you cope with the rigors of the modern work world.

Now, please do me a favor (so I don’t get stressed out), and leave a comment to let me know what you do to combat stress and plan ways to keep it together during your work day.  I eager to hear and learn from you!

Until the next time,

Andrew