Keeping up Mental Health During a Busy Work Day

mindfulness at work

Mindfulness is about maintaining your thoughts at the present moment and focusing on the current tasks, instead off looking back at the past or jumping to the future and is a part of having good mental health. It is about knowing what your current emotions and senses are without being tempted or distracted by them. Sounds easy but the fact is that the majority of us have active working lives and personal lives which could leave us feeling anxious, stressed and over-committed. Luckily, there are a couple of straightforward things we can do to bring a sense of calm and attention to our normal workdays. Try these techniques for yourself or think about hiring a business coach to help you and others become more mindful at work.

Keep your focus on a single task at one time.

Attempt to break down projects into small tasks which you could concentrate on one at a time. Compose a ‘to do’ list at the beginning of the day that is realistic that you attain. Consider highlighting a couple of things which are the most crucial and concentrate your energy on these. If you do worker productivity monitoring pay attention to the amount of time you are spending on tasks and how to maximise time.

Pay attention to your body.

Take a few minutes to see how your body feels. Where would you feel pressure or tightness? Where would you feel comfortable or uncomfortable? Attempt to observe your present physical condition. Alternately, try tensing different areas of the human body and then letting it all go.

Pay attention to breathing.

Make a habit of paying focus on your breath. Have a little time to see where you feel that the motion of breath most ardently. It could be the stomach since it rises and drops. It may be the mouth or nose, in which you inhale and exhale. Do not attempt to restrain the breath. Just bring your focus on it, just because it is there and it may help you relax.

Notice the noises around you

Have a moment to detect the sounds around you. Do not get caught up in the talks of the others but instead focus your attention on the pitch and tone of their voices around you. Look closely at noises you may usually only notice from the background the rhythm of typing on the hum of a system. Try counting the number of distinct sounds you’ll be able to see in the distance of a couple of minutes.

Pay focus on regular sensations.

Decide on a regular action, like drinking tea or eating an apple, and also concentrate on your own sensory experience. See the warmth and feel of the teacup in your hands, how it feels in your lips. See the flavour and smell of this liquid as it enters your mouth and melts down your own throat. If eating an apple, then try to notice everything about it before you take a bite, the colour, odour, firmness, identifying marks and form. Look closely at the burst of flavour as you make your first snack and take note of each tactile sensation you have while swallowing it.

Create a thought-list.

Should you find your head is Littered with too many ideas at the same time, have a moment to compose a list of things which are on your mind. Then put the list off and tell yourself you’ll give yourself the time to consider them afterwards, in the present time, you’re focusing on the job at hand.

Accept that your day is busy.

As opposed to feeling dreadful and helpless, acknowledge that you are busy and have multiple responsibilities that are a part of your job.

Let things go

Accept that there’s never sufficient time to get everything done. Concentrate on the most crucial tasks and allow the other things wait. Do not dwell on past mistakes. Take note of what matters to improve in the long run and get your thoughts back to what you are doing at present.

Have something to look forward to

When stressed at work, plan a small retreat or activity to come home to, this will motivate you to complete your tasks and deserve a reward. Rewards could be a relaxing hydrafacial treatment to rejuvenate or muscle relaxants from the skin clinic to look refreshed.

Notice transitions

When arriving in and departing work, have a psychological pause and attempt to be conscious of the transition of mental states, instead of rushing from one thing to another. Consider taking a few moments to listen to what you are doing; perhaps it is turning off the PC or closing the door. Try to notice the sounds and sensations of everything you are doing and give yourself a minute to transition out of location to another.

Author: Contributor