How to Reduce Stress: Tips for Project Managers

Stress is the health epidemic of the twenty-first century, according to the World Health Organization. It leads to psychological burnout and chronic workplace problems. Gallup conducted a study of 7,500 full-time employees and found that as many as two-thirds suffered from burnout at work. Stress-releasing activities are crucial for your mental well-being, productivity, and job satisfaction. Here are some tips on things you can do to reduce stress.

Embrace The Power of Laughter

Having a good laugh with your team not only brings you closer together – it also reduces stress, functions as an antidepressant, and even protects your heart. Laughter is known to reduce stress-provoking hormones such as cortisol, dopamine, and adrenaline. What’s more, it also increases the level of hormones that promote good health, such as endorphins. You can share some humorous stories to help your people get to know each other better.

Ditch Multitasking

Multitasking increases the production of cortisol, the stress hormone. When our brain constantly shifts gears, it pumps up the stress and tires us out, leaving us feeling mentally exhausted (even when the work day has barely begun). Another study from the University of London proved that multitasking causes a drop in IQ, which is quite terrifying.

NB: On average, business professionals have 30 to 100 ongoing projects. People get interrupted around seven times per hour, which amounts to 2.1 hours of distraction daily. As a consequence, more than 40% of adults claim they struggle to fall asleep because of the stress they’ve gone through during the day. Wondering how you can reduce stress and overcome multitasking? Set priorities!

To avoid multitasking and see what you should focus on, you can use project management tools such as Epicflow, which synchronizes all projects and gives every team member a priority-based task list. Continue reading about how Epicflow leads to less stress and more on-time projects.

Sing Your Heart Out

Japanese and Korean people are known to be hard workers; to reduce work-related stress, they invented karaoke. Harvard Medical School conducted a study which proves that singing two songs a day can improve your health by lowering your blood pressure. It’s also a powerful antidepressant. You can sing at karaoke, in the car, even in the shower – whatever works best for you.

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Unplug and Go Away for The Weekend

Leave all the emails, Skype and Slack messages, and Facebook feeds behind. Disconnect from the digital world and find a place of retreat. You might go to the beach, to a resort, to a city you’ve never visited, or even go hiking. You can go anywhere as long as it takes your mind off work-related troubles and stress. Find an escape place that gives you the feeling of mental and physical bliss.

Get Creative

Doing something creative like painting, crafting, and cooking can give your brain a break from stress and worry. By getting your hands busy, you give your mind some time to recharge. Physical activities not only reduce stress but also help you develop your imagination and creativity, which might be handy in your work later on.

Tip: In her TED talk “How to make stress your friend,” Kelly McGonigal tells you how to take a positive look at stress and reduce it by looking out for others: