Best Practice strategies to handle stress

We all get stressed some time in our lives. Some handle it better, while others struggle to find the perfect balance.

Although Australia offers 20 days annual leave per year plus public holidays, these holidays seem to just come and go! Not to mention, there’s a large proportion of people out there who don’t even take their breaks. This means they don’t even give their tired bodies the breaks required.

Whether it’s because you have an imminent deadline that you have no idea how you will achieve, a colleague that has the knack of getting under your skin or just because you had a bad night of sleep, we all experience moments of overwhelming stress at work.

Stress can cause a great toll on you both physically and mentally and it is crucial that stress is managed properly for you to live a happy and healthy life. Here a couple of stress management tips for you:

• Exercise – Physical activities releases endorphins that boost your mood and make you feel good. Exercises can help relieve stress and burn away anger, tension, and frustration. This will be a good method to take your mind off the pile of work sitting on your desk
• Be social – Social engagement is a quick way connect with other humans who makes you feel safe and understood. This will also help avoid overreacting to internal or external events that you perceive as threatening.
• Avoid unnecessary stress – When handling predictable stressors, you can think of the four A’s: avoid, alter, adapt or accept.
• Alter the situation – When you can’t avoid the stressful situation, you can try to change it. This includes: talking about your feelings, be willing to compromise, manage your time better and don’t overwork yourself.
• Adapt to the stressor – Each time you think of a negative thought about yourself or the situation, you will only feel more stressed. A way to beat this is to reframe the problem and look at it in a positive light. You can also look at the big picture and see if this stress is worth it in the long run. Also, if you are a perfectionist, you will need to readjust your standards.
• Accept the things you can’t change – Some forms of stresses are unavoidable and sometimes, it is just best to accept the situation. When faced with many challenges, look at it as an opportunity to develop and grow. If you contributed to the stressful situation, take some time to breathe, reflect and learn from your mistakes. Don’t forget that everyone makes mistakes so it is important that you forgive yourself!
• Make time to relax and have fun – Live life with a positive attitude and enjoy some me-time and have a good laugh. Once you are recharged, you are ready to take on more challenges!
• Live a healthy life – To put this simply: Eat healthy, sleep early, avoid drugs, cigarettes and alcohol and don’t forget to smile :)

“Very little is needed to make a happy life; it is all within yourself, in your way of thinking” Marcus Aurelius

Being brought up in a typical Chinese family in Australia, Vivian takes pride as an ABC (Australia-born Chinese) where she happily embraces both the Chinese and Australian cultures. 

In high school, Vivian wanted to become a fashion designer, however she has developed a passion for running events after working backstage for multiple live shows. Prior to starting at Akolade, Vivian worked 4 years in the wine industry and she misses the wine tasting sessions and openly drinking on the job. As the Marketing Coordinator, Vivian enjoys using her creativity to design unique and fun campaigns for each event. In her spare time, Vivian loves to spend time with her two adorable cat and dog.