7 Tips For Working Under Pressure When Stressed

You know that feeling, where there’s so much you have to do that it feels like you’re suffocating?

Or when people are all relying on you, and you worry that you can’t live up to their expectations?

Don’t worry, you’re not alone. The truth is, we’ve all experienced a type of this feeling, and I can safely say that it’s not the most fun.

Stress can impact our lives by making us more messy, and less careful and attentive. When we feel overwhelmed, we may end up cheating or skipping parts of our work just to finish. All we want is that feeling to be gone.

Unfortunately, there’s no magic solution that can rid us of stress immediately while working under pressure, but there are ways that we can learn to cope with it, and turn it into something more beneficial.

#1. Give Yourself Time to Breathe

We’ve all heard this one, haven’t we? “Just give yourself a break, and trust me, you’ll feel better!”

You might roll your eyes, saying that you aren’t able to do this, because you have too much work to do to even have time for a break. But when I say this, I don’t mean take a vacation or have an hour long bubble bath.

Just take a moment, – 10 seconds is even enough – close your eyes, and take a deep breath. In your mind, go through everything you need to do, every plan you have for the day.

Make it a goal for your to start working right when you open your eyes again. Don’t even hesitate for a second before standing up and doing what you need to do, or else that might just give you enough time to decide that you’ll wait until tomorrow.

#2. Perfect Timing

Once you’ve finally decided what you need to work on, the best thing to do is to write down a schedule of what you’re going to do for the day.

Give every task a designated time, so that you know exactly when you’ll need to do something.

When you write a schedule with certain times for every task, your mind will be able to see what you need to do more clearly, and it won’t all be a jumble of words in your head anymore. Organization will help calm the storm.

#3. Think Of Why You’re Stressed

Why are you stressed?

Is it for a multitude of reasons? Is there so much going on that you don’t know where to start?

Have you been procrastinating while the piles of work keep getting higher and higher, and now you don’t know what to do?

Are people relying on you to do something and you don’t want to disappoint them?

Working under pressure is never easy, but finding the reason behind the stress can help you see what needs to be done first, and what steps you need to take to get there.

#4. Stay Focused

It’s easy for your mind to wander off, or find things that it could be doing instead of the task.

That’s why it’s extremely important for you to make an effort to stay alert and pay attention to what you’re doing.

When you feel yourself dozing off and notice it, then snap your attention back to what you need to do. It’s easier said than done, but with enough practice, you’ll be able to work under pressure with pure focus.

#5. Don’t Neglect Your Body

If you aren’t feeling motivated, then I recommend taking a short nap, going for a quick run, or grabbing a glass of water and a bite to eat. We all need to fuel ourselves.

How else will we finish the tasks well if we aren’t taking care of our brain and body?

You should never neglect your health so that you can have more time to do work. Your energy levels will decrease, you won’t be as efficient, and you’ll feel horrible. Taking care of yourself will benefit your work pace and focus.

#6. Encourage Yourself

Telling yourself that it’s too hard will only make matters worse. Put effort into reminding yourself that you can do it, and that you’re strong enough to finish.

Remind yourself that it’s achievable, and you’ll probably see a difference in your attitude toward the task. Sure, it’s hard, but not impossible. If you keep trying, you’ll eventually find a way to finish it.

Think about how you’ll feel when you finish; you won’t be so stressed about it anymore!