For decades, we’ve been advised to leave our emotions outside the door when we enter the office for better efficiency at work. For years and years, we’ve been pretending that we have a switch that we can use to turn off our human side to become emotionless robots. In fact, for the longest time, mental health was not even discussed at the workplace. Even today, how many of us can take the way we feel to our managers?
If you’re going through a bad phase, will you discuss it with your manager? If you have an anxiety disorder, will your organisation not look at you differently? Ideally, you should be able to talk about it and companies should take a more humane approach to professionalism. Having said that, often, our emotions can affect our efficiency at work—and that’s okay, once in a while. But if it happens often, it begins to affect your overall job performance and productivity.
Are your emotions affecting your efficiency at work?
Ask yourself these questions. If you answer yes to most of them, then your productivity is getting hampered.
· Do I find it hard to focus on a task when I feel moody?
· Does work pressure make me crumble?
· Do I often miss deadlines because I have been anxious?
· Do I feel demotivated at work?
· Have I become pessimistic about my job?
It’s okay to feel negative emotions and you can heal yourself while still being productive. Here are five ways to not let your emotions affect your efficiency at work.
Recognise that emotions are natural
Often, for several reasons, we can feel our efficiency at work declining. You could be feeling that your scope of work is limited. Maybe you feel angry because someone else got the promotion you deserved. Or it could be the work stress is getting to you. Whatever emotion you’re feeling, acceptance is the first step to dealing with it. Do not feel guilty for being human; it only adds to the frustration of the whole thing.
Identify triggers and keep them at one arm’s distance
What affects your mood? What makes you feel overwhelmed, angry, or stressed? When starting an assignment, ensure that your focus is entirely on the task at hand. If it requires you to let your colleagues know you will be busy with something, do that. If it requires you to let your family know that you are not to be disturbed for that period, do it. If your phone distracts you, keep it away.
Practice non-attachment
Over a period of time, many of us tend to get very attached to the company, the brand, or the project we are working on. While this attachment often fosters passion and dedication in our work, it can also lead to negative emotions the moment something goes wrong. You could feel the impact of work hiccups giving you stress, and eventually resulting in diminished productivity. Keep possessiveness, insecurities, and anxiety at bay by looking at your tasks objectively to improve efficiency at work. Of course, it’s easier said than done. But you can remind yourself each day to detach your self-worth from your work, so you don’t take every hiccup as a personal failure or get territorial about your projects.
Practice relaxation techniques before you start your workday
Studies reveal that most adults do not prefer talking to people in the first hour of waking up. Sure, many of us speak to our significant others as we lay in bed, but those sweet nothings actually have the power to boost our mood. Studies also suggest that the way we begin our day sets the tone for the rest of it, so avoid stressors in the morning. Instead, refrain from checking your workgroups and emails the first thing in the morning.
Wake up much before your reporting time and clear your mind, so you can start feeling emotionally resilient. Practice relaxation techniques like breathing exercises, meditation, a physical activity, or listening to soothing sounds. Anything that soothes you works, even something as simple as enjoying a scrumptious breakfast and a cup of tea while looking outside the window. And if you feel yourself getting stressed during the workday, take a five-minute break and try a few of these relaxation techniques.
Express your emotions but in a solution-oriented way
If your work is overwhelming you, or if you are experiencing anxiety due to a certain task, you don’t have to bottle it up and pretend to be nailing everything. Seek help. If you have more than what you can manage on your plate, let your manager know. When you feel anger or frustration, express your concerns in a way that seeks a solution. Don’t rant, don’t get disrespectful. But have a voice and set boundaries. Bottling your concerns inside will only lead to burnout, further demotivating you and affecting your efficiency at work.
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