#CareerCounsel: Don’t take your work stress home

So you get home and your family, friends or housemates notice you’re in a foul mood. Maybe you’re a bit stressed from work perhaps? If work is the reason you go home, nowhere near as ready to unwind as you should be, then STOP!

You cannot let the toll of a busy week, or month, infiltrate your home life. It’s unhealthy for you, impacts those you’re closest to and ultimately leads to severe demotivation with your work life. Where would that leave you? #CareerCounsel is here to help with some quick tips!

How can I leave work with a clear head?

Well, as common as this technique is, taking a few minutes and breathing calmly really helps. Take a few minutes before you rush off to reflect on your day; what you achieved and what you might not have managed on that day. Mindfulness allows you to focus on the present, and your feelings right there and then. You don’t want to take them away, so quiet reflection will help with that.

You should immediately appreciate what you did achieve. Rather than to do lists, which seem like an endless run of things to do, round up what is left to do on a ‘how to’ list. How will you achieve that target, or that goal? With a plan of action in mind, you will worry a lot less at 3AM about what’s left to do when you know how you’ll tackle it.

Our regular guest panda, Ghilaine, has some advice about how to prioritise your tasks affectively. Check it out!

Our stress minimising tips

So, it took five minutes to take a breather and plan your attack for the rest of the week or month. We have a few other tips that will really make a difference!

• The commute home: Let’s face it; the rush hour can stress the calmest of souls. But, have a think about why commute stress can be attributed to YOU. You’re rushing to get home, moaning about traffic or crammed onto a stuffy train. If you approach the journey calmly, with no rush, a missed train will not have you pulling your hair out. Some traffic will be a piece of cake as you listen to some of your favourite tunes. You might get home slightly later, but you’ll have no minor gripes playing on your mind.
• What makes you laugh? That’s right, laughter is the best medicine. Inject some humour into your evening to remember not everything is doom and gloom.
• Hobbies: Whether it’s the gym or a bit of reading, your hobbies take you out of your immediate mind set. Exercise lets you focus on the physical side rather than the mental and reading takes you into another world for a short while. Whatever your hobby, it will take you away from your stress and help you forget about it surprisingly well.
• Everybody has those days: That’s right, stress isn’t exclusive to you. So stop right there, and enjoy a good balance between work and play. Nobody is perfect, so sometimes you won’t get everything you planned done.

Embrace your home time with family or a good meal with friends. You EARN that time while you work hard, so don’t forget that. If you take work mentality with you, why not stay in the office 24/7? #CareerCounsel does not condone that, not one bit. Follow all our counsel posts right here! Or, read some of these great posts...

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