Unexpected Ways You Can Relieve Work-from-Home Stress

One of the greatest enemies of productivity is stress. It doesn’t matter if your stress comes from your job, from your family and friends, or just from life—it can quickly break down the things you’ve worked hard to develop. If you’re working from home, escaping the stress can be even more difficult, since it’s all coming from one place. We’ll walk you through a couple of unexpected ways you can relieve work-from-home stress here.

Force Yourself To Do Something Fun

Having fun when you’re stressed out might seem counterintuitive, but forcing yourself to do something you enjoy can put your stressors in a new light. It doesn’t need to be anything big; something simple—such as going for a walk, listening to your favorite album, or playing a video game—can reset your brain and help you get back to work. Your problems won’t seem so large after you spend some time away from them.

Do Something with Your Hands

When our problems seem insurmountable, we often have the tendency to feel like we’re helpless. Working with your hands—knitting, crocheting, painting, lifting weights, or tidying up your workspace—can help your brain understand that you do have the ability to affect change. This is a great way to deal with your stress while feeling like you’re still being productive in the process.

Give Back to Your Community

Giving back to charity has been shown to have stress-relieving properties. Giving back doesn’t just feel good mentally; it also can lower your blood pressure, thereby reducing the feelings of stress. This is also a perfect way to motivate yourself to organize your space, since the excess things you don’t need will be going to charity rather than to a dump. Make sure you know your limits—don’t give more time and energy to giving back if you need it to get through your workday at home.

Introduce Mindfulness into Your Routine

Being more mindful of your actions has a meditative effect on your brain. If you’re doing a routine task for work, such as typing a report or filling out a spreadsheet, try to be more mindful of the task. Focus on each individual word you type, and block out your surroundings as you do so. This will center your mind on that one task, preventing you from feeling the stress of future tasks that you can handle later.

Now that you know about these unexpected ways you can relieve work-from-home stress, you can be a little more prepared for the next time it all starts to be a little too much. Utilizing these techniques will help you stay focused on what matters in the moment rather than on what might happen in the future.