10 Less Stressful Ways to Get Your Daily Work Done

10 Less Stressful Ways to Get Your Daily Work Done

“Tell me to what you pay attention and I will tell you who you are.”
Jose Ortega y Gasset

“We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit.”
Aristotle

It is early morning. You’ve had your breakfast and done your morning routine.

So you head out into your day. And in a short while you’ll sit down in school or at your job and get started with your daily work.

But how can you get that work done in a way that is less stressful, less energy consuming and simply a bit smarter?

Today I’d like to share 10 tips that have helped me with that.

I hope you will find something here that will help you too to simplify and relaxify your own daily work.

1. Do just one thing at a time.

It will help you to get your task all the way to done, to feel less stressed and confused and you’ll do a better job compared to if you multi-task things.

And if you feel stressed and overwhelmed during your day then you can tell yourself this simple thing to regain focus and inner clarity again.

2. Keep a minimalistic workspace.

It makes it easier to keep your focus and attention in the right place and to keep your thinking clear.

I keep a workspace with just a wooden desk, a chair, my computer, a larger screen and a glass of water or mug of tea on that desk.

3. Go slow.

One good way to do more focused work is to go a bit slower than you may usually do.

I have also found that by just doing something at a slower pace it feels less like a mental burden and so I am less likely to procrastinate.

4. Eliminate.

From time to time ask yourself:

What one task during my day or week can I simply eliminate and not do with few or no consequences?

It’s easy to just keep doing everything simply because “you should” or because you’ve always done so.

So question how you go about things to free up energy and time. There is often room to at least simplify a bit through elimination.

5. Cycle 100% focused work with 100% full rest.

This is a big one for me.

By doing things this way you’ll help yourself to keep your mental sharpness and energy up for the whole day and workweek.

I do this by setting the timer-app on my phone for 40 minutes (or sometimes just 5-10 minutes if it’s a task that I’ve procrastinated on).

During those minutes I only focus on the one task at hand and it becomes easier to do so because I know that I only have to do it for this limited time period.

When the timer beeps I leave my work for 5-15 minutes. During those minutes I focus only on resting by having a snack, taking a short walk or by relaxing with my eyes closed on the couch.

6. Don’t beat yourself up when things don’t go as planned.

Instead, be kind to yourself and smart with your energy and ask yourself:

What is one thing I can learn from this?

Use what you can learn to do things better and to avoid making the same mistake in the future. It’s a better use of your time than spending it on regretting a past that you cannot change anyway.

7. Let emails and other online checking wait until the end of the workday.

Or at least for a few hours.

Don’t start your day with going through your email – if possible – because it can add a lot of stress and suck away your limited energy and attention early in the day.

It can also make it hard to even find enough time for your most important tasks if you get too distracted by your inbox.

8. Limit your daily information input.

Regularly unsubscribe to blogs, podcasts, social media channels and email newsletters that doesn’t add much value to your life anyway.

Keep only the most helpful, funny, inspiring and best ones.

This very simple thing can free up quite a bit of both time and attention during the course of a month.

9. Ask yourself questions every day that help you to find your focus.

It’s so easy to get off track during a day.

To stay on it or to get back there if you get lost use one – or both – of my own favorite questions:

  • What is the most important thing I can do right now?
  • What would I work on if I only had 2 hours for work today?

If you like, write these questions down on a note and put that note where you cannot avoid seeing it during your day.

10. Focus mostly on the how to and not so much on the what-ifs.

Don’t get stuck in analysis paralysis, overthinking and in the worry and lack of self-esteem that usually comes from those destructive thoughts.

Instead, focus on what you actually can do, on what action you can take to move forward.

Empower yourself by asking yourself:

What is one small step I can take right now to move forward towards my goal or out of this situation?

 

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About the Author

Henrik Edberg is the creator of the Positivity Blog and has written weekly articles here since 2006. He has a bachelor’s degree in journalism from the University of Gothenburg and has been featured on Lifehacker, HuffPost and Paulo Coelho’s blog. Click here to learn more…

Comments on this entry are closed.

  • If we want to get more done, we should focus on doing only one thing at a time. I totally agree. However, there are just too many good ideas around and I always overestimated my potential.

    I try to commit to too many tasks in a day. End up accomplishing only a few. So I guess I should be more focus and put more of my energy into things that really matter. Thanks for sharing, :)

  • Enes

    Very helpful one! Thanks for sharing!

  • Joan

    I’ve found, with age (I’m 58) and having lived with a pack rat, that I automatically do most of the things on this list. The simplicity and minimalist approach have definitely reduced my stress levels. Thanks for the reinforcement that I’m doing it right.

  • This is just what I needed to read today. Thank you. I so appreciate your Positivity Blog!

  • jon s

    thank you Henrik

  • I love all your tips Henrik, and #8 really speaks to me today. Having a cluttered inbox really overwhelms me. I also regularly step away from the computer and work on mindfulness when I feel stressed or stalled.

  • Ravi

    Nice article, I like this

  • Just want to say how much I enjoy reading your positivity emails and I find they really help me to focus on good things, because just living and coping with each day is not always easy,, thank you x

  • Candy

    Thank you for the wonderful messages I receive from you. Every day, I hope to see if you have another meaningful and helpful message for me. Your articles bring me peace and understanding. I have read many self help books for many, many years. Your blog is the most helpful literature than anything else. You have no idea how much I appreciate your writings!
    With sincere gratitude,
    Candy Lawton

  • Amit Jaitly

    Great and positive thoughts, has helped me a lot and is inspiring

  • Kiran babu

    These are things we know but do not put in practice but a good one to start the day

  • Thanks for sharing! Love the last sentence.

  • Manal Alzayani

    just reading the steps destressed me!
    I tend to juggle many tasks at the same time. I started recently focusing on doing one task at a time, but I will definately add the breaks.
    Appreciating the completion of one task at a time and not being too hard on myself for not completing all tasks at hand also helped me a lot.
    Thank you for the inspiration.

  • Deborah John

    Thank you for your massage, I don’t miss reading your emails and there are somuch of a help to me.
    Be blessed!

  • Great posts! I was having a lot of work stress and have started to make some simple changes to help.

    1.) coming into work on the earlier side (less people, less distractions, and my clients aren’t awake yet. )

    2.) I don’t touch e-mails until 9am. Nothing has ever been THAT important that it couldn’t wait an hour or two (I’ve also been getting out of the habit of e-mailing back immediately- it sets the precedence that I’ll always do so, which sometimes I won’t be able to with the 30 clients I support.)

    3.) I don’t bring my computer home anymore. When the work day is done the work day is done.

    4.) I do a morning and evening to do list so I don’t wake up @2 in the morning worrying.

    I’ve noticed that not only am I less stressed, but if anything I’m getting more accomplished, I hear less negativity from my clients, and I can sleep through the night. yahoo!

    Jocellyn

    • Rachel

      Jocellyn,

      I love your list as well. I work in an environment where I am constantly interrupted. I don’t bring work home but find if i do wake up at 2am….which is often…..I am worrying about clients and all the issues that come with them. I find I am having to learn to just say no to additional projects that I just can’t take on and let others take the lead. I call it letting go and telling myself i don’t have to do it all.

      Thank you for sharing your thoughts. Very helpful. :)
      Rachel