Work is a stressful environment.
Phones ringing constantly, deadlines becoming due, expectations to manage, your boss breathing down your neck, interruptions, daily meetings, and on and on and on.
Often times, trying to manage the way you feel is a monumental task.
If you’ve had days where you just want to go home and scream into your pillow, then the following tips may help.
1. Focus on one thing at a time
The new fast-paced Silicon Valley lifestyle has adopted the idea that your ability to multitask is imperative to success. However, in reality, this couldn’t be farther from the truth.
There was a recent study published by researchers at Vanderbilt University that disproved this idea.
They used MRI imaging to monitor brain function of people who were in the process of trying to multitask.
Here’s a quote from them:
“When humans attempt to perform two tasks at once, execution of the first task usually leads to postponement of the second one. This task delay is thought to result from a bottleneck occurring at a central, amodal stage of information processing that precludes two response selection or decision-making operations from being concurrently executed…. Our results suggest that a neural network of frontal lobe areas acts as a central bottleneck of information processing that severely limits our ability to multitask.”
In short, humans don’t know how to multitask effectively.
It makes us way less efficient.
So don’t try to juggle multiple tasks at once. Devote all of your focus on one task. Complete it. And then move on to the next.
2. Unplug
One of the most valuable things you can do when you’re not working is regrouping your mind.
The best way to do this is by going off the grid — unplugging.
Yes, I’m sure you’re important. Yes, people are probably counting on you.
But remember this. Just because something is important, DOES NOT mean it’s urgent.
This is a motto that I’ve lived by for quite some time.
Be healthy
Nothing is worse for your mental wellbeing than being unhealthy.
When you’re unhealthy, things always seem much worse than they actually are.
For example, the feeling you get when you accidentally drop the ball on the proposal you were supposed to write is going to feel much worse if you’re tired and have a headache.
That morning meeting that you can’t stand is going to irritate you exponentially more if you suffered from a bad night of sleep because you were out drinking the night before.
Our bodies are machines. If we fill it with terrible fuel, it’s not going to run very well.
So if you feel tired, maybe try a kale smoothie instead of a coffee. And if you struggle to get a good night’s sleep, work out vigorously before bed. And if you other things aren’t working – perhaps you could try alternatives, like CBD.
Keep working at it. Keep optimizing yourself.