Whether you make resolutions or not, the new-year is a great time to assess and improve your well-being. What’s this got to do with work? The state of your physical and mental health can make the difference between career and personal success or occupational and private struggles.
Many customer service workers today say they frequently feel overwhelmed or stressed. While some workplace stress is normal, feeling excessive stress can affect your effectiveness at work and leave you feeling anxious, cranky or depressed. Ignore your stress long enough and it could affect your concentration or sleep and leave you more vulnerable to headaches and digestive issues.
It’s true that there are a lot of stressors at work that are out of your control. Though the economy continues to improve, many companies are still riddled by lay-offs leaving a heavier than ever workload for remaining the remaining workers. Customer service standards are on the rise again (hurray!) as companies strive to set themselves apart from the competition, unofrtunately employees are often expected to learn these skills on their own. All this can add up to a lot of stress.
The good news is that you are not completely helpless. One of the most important things people can do is to better learn how to deal with all this added pressure by taking better care of both body and mind.
Today we’ll address we’ll address the physical, next week we’ll tackle the mental and emotional aspects of reducing stress. Don’t add extra tension by trying to change everything at once! It just never works, and is why most new-year’s resolutions fail. Instead, just pick one of these areas to begin with.
GET MOVING! – Regular exercise is a powerful stress reliever, even though it may be the last thing you feel like adding to your busy day. Find an activity that you find either gentle or joyful and you’ll be more apt to stick with it. You’ll be rewarded with a better mood, increased energy and enjoy a more relaxed body and mind.
MIND WHAT YOU EAT – Think of food as fuel and make good for you choices that keep you going. Food is not your enemy – it is one of the great pleasures in life so ENJOY it…wisely. Low blood sugar can make you feel apprehensive and bad-tempered. Stuffing yourself can make you feel sluggish and lazy; neither is good for working with customers. Nourish your body with healthful foods that are full of flavor. Eat smaller meals and bring portable snacks to work being sure to grab a bite every 3-4 hours.
CATCH SOME ZZZ’S – We’ve all heard people boast about how little sleep they get, they actually wear their fatigue like a badge of honor. But the truth is lack of sleep can add to even more stress and poor decisions. Is getting a good night’s rest sexy? Well no – but it sure feels good! When you’re well rested you naturally look better and are more emotionally balanced, leaving you better equipped to deal with any job stress that might come with your workday. Aim for 8 hours a night.