subject: Managing Your Time To Reduce Stress [print this page] In today's busy world we are often hurried, resulting in undue stress. Not only is this very taxing on us mentally, it takes its toll on us physically as well.
There are many ways to ease the stress we experience in our everyday lives. Many of which are quite simple, yet often overlooked. The first thing to keep in mind is to relax a little and take time to plan out our tasks.
Today many of us have a long list of tasks to accomplish each day. These tasks include those at work as well as at home. Some days these responsibilities can seem overwhelming. How can we possibly get everything completed? The truth is that we can't always complete every task placed in front of us.
Once we learn to accept this very simple fact we will be able to effectively deal with the tasks at hand. The first step is to take a few moments to prioritize.
Of the tasks you need to complete, which ones are the most pressing?
Can any of your present tasks be set aside for a later time?
Can you delegate any of the work to others?
Make A To-Do-List! Most of us fail to take the time to simply write a list of the tasks we need to complete. Often we just keep mental notes in our heads. The problem with doing this is the confusion that may ensue. We race around trying to remember everything that needs to be done, too often accomplishing nothing.
One Step At A Time. Focus your thoughts and energy on one task at a time. It is almost always counter productive to attempt working on more than one task at a time. By tackling only one project at a time you'll discover it is completed faster, stress levels are greatly reduced and things run much smoother.
Take A Few Breaks. You should never hesitate to take breaks as you need them. Believe it or not, a fifteen minute break can be as productive as a half hour of work. A short break will rejuvenate and energize you, effectively boosting your productivity.
Delegate A Few Daily Tasks. Most often we will try and accomplish every task on our list by ourselves. This is more likely than not a very unrealistic expectation to place on ourselves. If the number of tasks in front of you seem overwhelming, recruit some help.
By managing your time while completing daily tasks you'll find that you can greatly reduce your stress levels. This results in better health both mentally and physically.
