What are your top tips for dealing with workplace stress?

We all know how busy PM life can get, and that sometimes with that hectic schedule along comes feeling stressed out and tired - sometimes even before the week has even really begun! It’s a very busy time of year in PM world at the moment - particularly around new business and maintenance. What are you all doing to keep a cool clear head to manage your stress levels? For me, it’s ensuring I take my breaks when I need them and keeping up with daily exercise. I also try and make sure I walk around during my phone calls, rather than just sitting at my desk! Does anyone have any other tips?

Wine, wine & more wine :stuck_out_tongue:

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Great tips.

For my part: I double my intake in water. I start something new : Eg I recently started piano and this requires all my brain power, so I unplug on everything else otherwise I don’t get anywhere. Walking meditations, writing and gratefulness, cooking ect.

I’ve been through a few burn outs and with hindsight, all of them were a question of mindset and self limitations belief. So I give myself time to listen to lots of motivational videos, Audiobooks on success mindset and productivity. Everything happens inside your head, the circumstances around you are not stressful, even the amount of them are not stressful, the way you look at your pile is. Change your questions, change your outlook and your days are a lot brighter too.

Braingym helps too if you want to have a google. they make sure that your right brain and your left brain are talking to each other. And that’s where the magic happens. When you’re overwhelmed and stressed, your left brain, the brain for details takes over. That’s why what you see is an Everest of tasks which triggers your stress hormones. when Your right brain (the one for the big picture) talks to the Left brain, your directly start prioritising things for your tasks to match your vision. That makes you excited to get through them, not stressed.

Changing your mindset is one of the best way around stress… wine helps too though (in the short term) :slight_smile:

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we have a no whining policy :wink:

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I like that @glenn. We actually have that policy at my house. Are you whining? Sounds like you are whining. I can’t help you if you are whining.

My poor kids :laughing:

Now wine, on the other hand, there is plenty of “wining” that goes on :roll_eyes:

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Audio books are so great @marine - I’ve started listening to Michelle Obama’s audiobook (she narrates it) and wow - it’s so relaxing and calming…I have to replay bits sometimes because I just sort of wander off in my mind as everything clears away -it really is amazing!

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Haha @sarah - I meant BESIDES the wine. That’s just a given :stuck_out_tongue_winking_eye:

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yep I don’t know if you do that too but I increase the spead to 1.25x (if I’m multitasking as I listen) or 1.5x if I’m in the bus doing nothing else to make sure I’m always focusing on what is said? I realised that my mind wanders at normal speed but never does at increased speed.
I’ll add Michelle’s one to the list. Anything else you would recommend?

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Not just yet - I’m an old school reader and even have a library card for the local council library! Could never bring myself to give up a good paperback for even a Kindle, so audio is super new for me.

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@rikki I keep thinking about to this question… Apart from all the wine LOL
We found alot of our PMs were working back past 5pm on a regular basis and doing it for a prolonged period of time wore them out and caused heaps of stress. We decided to forward all calls to the VAs from 4pm so that they could complete all tasks and finalise everything ready for the next day without being intrupted.
I know another office that give their team an extra 30 minutres break as long as they are going for a walk around the block/part. My office are a bit lazy for that tho :stuck_out_tongue:

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Gin-CGA

We have one of these in our office… :rofl: We were considering a punching bag, but that felt too agressive…