Finding balance at work
Jennifer Ellis, founder of The Yoga Wellness Company, offers ideas and advice to achieve a healthy work/life balance
T oo often in today’s 24/7 world we can feel as though we’re rushing from pillar to post, struggling to meet work commitments and achieve a healthy work life balance. Over time this takes its toll and impacts on our health and well- being. Many people find space after work to exercise and destress. But the full-on nature of corporate environments means a lot of employees can find themselves drained at the end of the working day and without the energy to take time to nurture their bodies either through exercise or meditative techniques. more attention to our lifestyle choices and decisions; for example, practising meditative exercises helps us to manage stress and build a strong, positive mindset, while chair exercises ensure that we remain agile even while working at a desk. Together, these increase the longevity of our productivity at work. Even with a very limited amount of time you can create space in the office or even Taking a more active role in our personal wellbeing means paying
on the way to work, to bring yourself back into balance. Managing your stress and gaining some much-needed perspective will all increase your productivity in the long run. ● Action not reaction – Our stress increases if we feel a work situation is out of our control. Make a mental note of the aspects you think you can control and focus on them, letting go of those aspects you can’t. ● Plan your breaks – When energy lags, our productivity drops and stress increases. Break each hour of your day down into 50 minutes’ work plus 10 minute break or 45 minutes’ work plus 15 minute break. Use the breaks to stretch, take a walk, do some breathing exercises. ● Simplify and eliminate – Unnecessary distractions and interruptions increase our stress. Think about simplifying your work area into a non-distraction work space and limiting the amount of information on view. Daily commute Make the most of your daily commute.
● When you have less than a five-minute journey: ❍ Take five long, slow, deep, diaphragmatic breaths, lengthening and deepening the exhale. Imagine you are exhaling stress and inhaling energy. ❍ Spend a moment in contemplation and immerse yourself in a memory of a time when you felt most happy and relaxed. ❍ Stand-up and stretch. ● When you have a ten-minute commute: ❍ Walk briskly or climb the stairs instead of taking the escalator. ❍ Do a few stretches in your seat, to loosen up tight muscles. ❍ List five things that are positive or amusing about a tense meeting or situation that you have just come out of. ● When you’re doing a longer commute of fifteen to twenty plus minutes: ❍ Practise fifteen minutes of seated meditation, focusing on the body breathing itself. ❍ Play a piece of music you enjoy. ❍ Write down your anxieties and contemplate them for a while, until you’re no longer feeling stressed about them and are bored of them. Work that body Here are six simple sitting chair yoga
... create space in the office or even on the way to work...
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| Professional in Payroll, Pensions and Reward | July/August 2017 | Issue 32
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