How to Be More Productive and Happier During Times of Stress

If you’ve noticed that stress has recently been taking over your life, then you should know that you’re not alone. In fact, more than 80% of American workers feel like they have a stressful life. Keep in mind that stress will waste a lot of your energy and negatively impact your mental health. Nevertheless, it will have a negative impact on your life only as long as you allow it. There are quite a few ways to deal with stress.

One of the best ways to deal with stress is to stop viewing it as a threat. Instead, you should look at it as a challenge. Everybody goes through stressful periods in their lives. This is completely normal, and it’s something that you have no control over. However, you can change the way it affects you. The next time you notice that your stress levels are elevated, don’t let it get the best of you. Look at trying to overcome its negative effects like a challenge. Remember that there are ways to be more productive and happier when you’re stressed.

Exercise

In order to increase your happiness and boost your productivity, you should start exercising regularly. Keep in mind that you won’t have to run several miles each day to combat stress. Fifteen minutes to a half an hour of exercising a day is more than enough to help improve both your physical and mental health.

Get a Good Night’s Sleep

Getting a good night’s sleep is crucial for your overall health and wellbeing. Nevertheless, most people don’t have good sleeping habits. In order to increase productivity and improve your mood, you will need to sleep at least 7 hours each night. Whenever you don’t get a good night’s sleep, you’ll most likely experience elevated stress levels. To ensure that you sleep well, you should consider getting a soft mattress, since it will provide you with more comfort.

Focus on Your Breath

Your breathing can have a huge impact on your mood. If you want to become happier and reduce your stress levels, you can try doing some breathing exercises. The next time stress prevents you from being productive, make sure to take a few minutes to focus on your breath. If you want to relax, you should inhale slowly through your nose. Once you’re done inhaling, hold your breath for five seconds and start slowly exhaling. This simple breathing exercise can do wonders for your mental health.

Know Your Distractions

We all have distractions that prevent us from being productive. Some people love to be on social media for most of the day, while others spend too much time watching random YouTube videos. In order to become more productive, you will need to acknowledge your distractions and work on conquering them.

Take Breaks

You’re more likely to experience a lot of stress if you never take breaks at work. Regardless of what your job is, it’s important to take breaks from time to time. However, a break should be more than just taking a seat and checking your texts and emails. If you want to truly relax, then you will need to keep all electronic devices at bay. Take ten minutes to cool off and simply enjoy the moment. After taking just one quality break, you will feel refreshed and ready to get back to work.

Go for a Walk

It doesn’t have to be a long walk. Ten to fifteen minutes is more than enough to help you reduce your stress levels and boost your mood. When you go outside and start walking, you should enjoy the moment and focus on your breathing. It’s a good idea to take a seat on a park bench and try the aforementioned breathing exercises if you want to increase your productivity.

Adam Richards

About Adam Richards

Adam Richards is a semi-retired business professional originally from Bangor, Maine. He spent the majority of his career in sales and marketing where he rose to the marketing lead of a Fortune 1000 company. He then moved on to helping people as a career counselor that specifically helped bring families to self-sufficiency through finding them rewarding careers. He has now returned to Bangor for his retirement and spends his free time writing. This blog will be about everything he learned throughout his career. He'll write on career, workplace, education and technology issues as well as on trends, changes, and advice for the Maine job market and its employers.