How to Get More Done with (a Lot) Less Stress: 12 Daily Habits

How to Get More Done with (a Lot) Less Stress: 12 Daily Habits

“Three Rules of Work: Out of clutter find simplicity; From discord find harmony; In the middle of difficulty lies opportunity.”
Albert Einstein

“Think simple” as my old master used to say – meaning reduce the whole of its parts into the simplest terms, getting back to first principles.”
Frank Lloyd Wright

The daily work we do – in school, at work or in a business – can easily become overwhelming, ineffective and suck the energy and joy out of what you are doing.

So how can you work in a lighter, simpler way that helps you to get more of what truly matters done in less time and with less stress?

Let me share 12 habits that I’ve discovered over the years that help me to do just that.

1. Prepare your day the evening before.

Pack your bag or suitcase. Pack the leftovers from your dinner in a container and put it in the fridge. Put your keys, wallet etc. in a place where you can easily find them as you head out.

This preparation will help you to have a less stressful morning.

2. Be 5-10 minutes early for appointments.

This will make your time of travel during the day into a time of relaxation and recharging. Instead of a time of stress and anxiety.

Plus, people tend to like when other people are on time.

3. Work on just one thing at a time.

It will be easier to focus and to do a good job.

And to do it in less time compared to if you try to multi-task (at least if you are anything like me).

4. Work in a cone of silence.

Just before you start working on that one thing shut down your email program and instant messaging programs.

Shut the door to your office. Put your cell phone in silent mode and put it in a drawer.

If possible, shut down your internet connection. Or use an extension for your browser like StayFocusd.

5. During your day regularly ask yourself questions for simplicity and focus.

It is easy to get off track during a regular workday.

To stay on track or to get back there if you get lost use questions like:

  • What is the most important thing I can do right now?
  • Is doing this bringing me closer to my goal?
  • Am I keeping things extremely simple right now?

6. Let your lunch time be a time of relaxing.

Eat slowly. Put down the fork between bites to make that easier. Eat mindfully and savor each bite.

Eating your lunch this way can help you to relax and to release quite a bit of stress in the middle of your workday.

Plus, it can help you to not overeat because it takes your brain 20 minutes to register that you are full. By slowing down your eating your brain can stop you before you eat too much.

7. Spend 80% of your time focusing on a solution.

And only 20% of your time on dwelling on your issue, challenge or problem. Instead of doing it the other way around.

This makes it easier to live a lighter and more action-filled life and to not fall down into a pit of self-pity or get stuck in a mental habit of perceived powerlessness.

8. Ask for help.

You don’t have to always go it alone. You can ask for help.

You may not always get it but you might also be surprised at how helpful and kind people can be in helping you ease your burdens and solve a challenge.

Just don’t forget to do the same for them as best you can when they ask.

9. Just check your email once a day.

Checking email or social media accounts many times a day tends to drain a lot of time, energy and can leave you unfocused and stressed.

Try checking and processing all of those things just once a day instead. I do it at the end of my workday.

If that is not possible for you then try to postpone it for a few hours at least. And put your morning energy and focus into your most important task of the day.

10. Write shorter emails.

Limit your emails to 1-5 sentences when possible. You can also have some canned responses for common questions saved in a folder in your email program.

This will help you to spend less time and energy on your daily email processing.

11. Consciously set and maintain firm boundaries between your work and personal time.

Have a set stop time for your daily work (mine is 7 o’ clock). Don’t work on weekends.

Consciously manage your boundaries and you’ll have less stress and more energy and focus both to do better work and to have a personal life of higher quality.

This is one of the most important and often overlooked habits in this article.

12. Be smart about the 3 fundamentals of energy.

By that I mean getting enough sleep, exercising a couple of times a week and eating healthy.

This may seem very obvious in theory. But in practice it makes a world of difference for your optimism and self-talk, energy levels, ability to handle stress and to think clearly.

 

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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.

  • Lorraine

    Thank you for the reminder Henrik… I practice I out of the 12 daily. I will have to incorporate the other four.

  • Nadish kumar

    Most of the times i am not able to get sound sleep. My mind is full of worries and neagtive argument of others. I know what is i have to do but i cant focus on my study. I am easily destracted by others and having sudden influence of other on me. My mind is not clear how to get rid for it?? I am a overthinker person and takes very little things seriously.

    • Nadish, sounds like all the things you think of are only a manifestation of some deeper issues. Maybe you take small things seriously because you feel you need to prove something to someone, don’t want to be a failure in life, feel like you need to be a success etc…

      In order to find a balance you need to experience both sides, you’re on insecure side now, so you might want to try “arrogant” one. Shock therapy, but works for some

  • Robert

    great as always and much appreciated!

  • Thanks for these tips. Sometimes I need reminders to slow down and pause. The checking email once a day has definitely been a tip that has helped me.

  • Kat

    Henrik, thank you for writing this blog. I’ve read a lot of positive psychology literature and none of it has resonated with me the way your writing does. This article is full of tips that I’ve known, but can’t think of when I’m in a negative space. I’ve been making a collection of your simple,effective tips so I can easily look through them and get back on track when I’m stuck. Thank you .

  • Rosaura

    Saludos desde Panamá, me gustan sus artículos y los trato de poner en práctica, en este caso me faltan como 4 puntos que no hago de esta lista. Trataré de hacerlos para mejorar.

  • Saul Perez

    Awesome advice. Thank you for inspirational words.

  • Bill Plantz

    Always great to be reminded of these things!

  • Nouroudini Ahmed

    Very interesting post. I shared it on FB and Tw.
    Ahmed

  • Ishita Saini

    Once again, cannot express enough gratitude towards this blog and how much it has helped me. It has been more than 3 years since I’ve been following it, a friend of mine suggested it to me when she noticed I used to be stressed all the time and to this date, this works as good for me as my actual therapy sessions. Thank you.

  • the article is very helpful thank you

  • Ombese psychologist.

    Like it all. Great power and motivational strength in it. You have been inspiring me for long now and still you are. Much thanks Henrick

  • Hi Henrik!

    This daily habit is got to be my favourite, “Spend 80% of your time focusing on a solution”. This is actually science backed, when we choose to focus on something, our mind has a gateway which will filter anything out that does not connect or resonate with what we are focusing on.

    So if we are focused on the problem, we will automatically filter out the solution. We have to be focused on the outcome we want to bring it about. When we can start becoming focused and make it a daily habit our subconscious will take over and literally drive us to our goals.

    Thank you for a great read.

    Zaira

  • Joel Szydlowski

    Henrik…
    This was a good article. We live in a busy world today, more so than our ancestors. Self love and reward is due all of us for diligent thoughts and efforts put forth on our daily life. A silent self pat is due when our values have positive influence on others… don’t forget to thank yourself for dealing with stress especially if it involves others. Lead by example. Nothing has to always be 100%