People working 80 hours per week are no longer as rare as they used to be. Now, with the concept of remote work and hybrid work, the fact that you’re at home doesn’t mean you’re not working. Even in a conventional office, walking out the door doesn’t mean leaving your work for the day.
How does one remain sane by working so much? Even a much more lenient work schedule can be problematic. The solution lies in having the right mindset and developing methods that would allow you to cope with this demanding schedule. With that in mind, here are the top seven tips that should help you preserve your mental health while working.
1. Mini-games for quick stress release
Everyone knows about squeezing stress balls to calm yourself down, but this is just one of many things you could try. Why not try something like a fingerboard? You take a replica of a skateboard that’s just small enough to support your finger and play with it on your office desk. It’s a lot less silly than it sounds and a great way to unwind.
Now, there are many reasons why these simple activities work. For instance, a stress ball engages your hand, forearm, and shoulder muscles. The principle is the same for a fingerboard.
It takes your mind off the activity or occurrence causing tension and, through the mind-body connection, helps you let go of a lot of anger and frustration.
Another thing you can use these exercises for is a breathing exercise cue. If you inhale and exhale as you squeeze the ball or control a fingerboard, you’re doing a great job at regaining control over your body.
2. Learn how to use the tools that are provided
Resistance to change and learning is a common reason for frustration. Whenever there’s a new rule or a tool in the workplace, some people go into full panic mode and develop a reluctance to evolve.
The truth is that all of these tools are here to make your life easier. This is not because your employer cares so deeply about your sanity (no, nothing as altruistic) but because it’s in their best interest that you’re proficient.
This is also in your best interest since it reduces your margin of error (a major source of frustration and anxiety) and helps you finish tasks quickly. This is even more important in fields like accounting, where a reliable bookkeeping or accounting program can protect you from legal trouble.
The bottom line is that getting better at your job saves time and effort and reduces anxiety. It helps with the self-actualization motive through praise, raises, and promotions. It also makes you indispensable, which increases your job security and career progress.
3. Establish boundaries
The only people who will ever object to you having boundaries are those who directly benefit from your lack of boundaries. The key to remember is that learning to say no is in everyone’s best interest, not just yours.
What do we mean by that? First, it prevents you from getting exploited or put in a situation that you’re not competent or qualified enough to handle.
Some people are just “too nice” to say no, but does this mean they don’t notice when others exploit them? Does this mean they don’t start resenting someone who exploits their kindness? Most importantly, just because they’re “nice” doesn’t mean they can’t be passive-aggressive. Usually, people who avoid confrontation resort to this passive aggression the most. In other words, they’re fertile ground for growing a toxic work environment.
Also, the rules set a framework for your work culture, but your company still relies on your ability to organize with your coworkers. When these arrangements are made, you need to stand up for yourself.
4. Maintain work-life balance
Enduring even the harshest work environments is not difficult if you have a place to retreat to. We’re not suggesting that you stay in the job you hate just for the money, but you must build your happiness outside of work. The financial incentive coming from work needs to be justified by investing in something that matters or brings you joy.
The majority of people lose sight of what they’re working toward. Now and then, you must remind yourself by treating yourself to something you can see, touch, or enjoy. You need to remind yourself why you work and why your sacrifice matters.
It’s also important that you do not grow distant from your friends and family because of work. You’ll not stay in that workplace forever, and that supervisor who is now praising you will forget about you two weeks after you quit. Is sacrificing everything you’ve worked toward worth it just to make them happy? Is their praise worth that much?
5. Organize and declutter your space
You won’t work the same in a cluttered room as in a well-organized space. There’s no good reason behind this; it’s just how our minds work, and you must take this as a warning.
When we say there’s no longer a good reason behind this, it used to be that you couldn’t find the paper you need beneath the pile of folders and that searching for this document would rob you of an hour’s work. Today, all of these files are in digital format and easily traceable. So, what’s the problem then? The problem is that a mess impacts your ability to focus.
Our brains like order, and a reminder of disorganization demotivates us and draws our cognitive resources. This reduces our ability to focus and ruins our productivity, but it also lowers our mood, even without us being aware of it.
6. Mini breaks, breaks, and vacations
You can’t work 24/7, and you’ll need to take a break eventually. However, this can mean several things, depending on your interpretation of a ‘break’.
First, it could mean taking a vacation. Going somewhere nice and being removed from the workplace is generally smart. It can help you recharge your batteries and even make you feel extra productive in the days and weeks leading up to a vacation.
It could also mean taking a break during work hours. You can’t just work 24/7. You need to take a coffee break even if you don’t feel like it. Continuous work will ruin your focus, and you won’t be able to do the same amount of work on the first and last hours of your work day. A break provides a soft reset to counter this.
Then, it could also mean interval working like the Pomodoro technique. This method can maximize the amount of active work you do each day, even if the amount of work time diminishes overall. In other words, you’ll get more done in less time, and who doesn’t want that?
7. Find a hobby with an opposite dynamic
Not everyone works at the office. If you work at the office, you spend most of the day staring at the screen; however, if you work outside, especially if physical labor is involved, there’s nothing wrong with relaxing behind the screen.
For an office worker, a gaming session might not be the healthiest form of unwinding, but for a painter or a construction worker, this might be exactly what the doctor ordered. Overall, we’re not saying that you should allow work to dictate every aspect of your life, but having something opposite to put you in a balance can hardly be a bad idea.
The thing is that leading a sedentary lifestyle means sticking to indoor and seated activities throughout the day. Even if you’re working a job that involves a lot of sitting, if you go out at the end of the day, you’re breaking this cycle and evening out the scales of your life.
Your work doesn’t stop at the end of the day
Pushing yourself too hard will leave you exhausted for tomorrow; however, your work doesn’t end with your day. It’s not a question of if you can withstand it; it’s a question of how long. The solution that prolongs your efficient work life is always the solution that you need to strive for.
