60 seconds to a stress-free work day

Katja Govorushchenko/iStock
Katja Govorushchenko/iStock

Your boss is screaming at you, anxiety is pulsing through your veins, and there's no time to get to a yoga class. What can you do to eliminate stress at the moment of impact? Try out these simple stress-busting exercises...

  • Clean up quickly: Give away stuff you don't use. According to the Wall Sreet Journal, the average executive pilfers six weeks a year searching for important documents buried in clutter. Combat stress by clearing your desktop of items that you don't use on a daily basis. Store everything else in drawers, on shelves, or in your supply closet. If you don't use something -- those kitschy bulletin board push pins a client sent for Christmas -- give it away to a coworker who might be able to find a use for it.


  • Listen to music: Put those headphones on and tune into relaxing music. No, we're not talking elevator notes or sitar serenades. Try these hip anti-stress songs...


  • Retail therapy: According to doctors at Emory University, shopping can give your brain's pleasure centers a rush of feel-good dopamine that drops off after you leave the store. The same principle can be applied to online shopping -- you're just a few clicks away from your favorite store. Add some items to your shopping bag when you're feeling under pressure then check out later in the day.


  • Sort it out: Sort day-to-day papers into action files. Label them clearly: Bills to pay, receipts to enter, papers to photocopy, data for reports, items to discuss with your boss or papers to forward to another department. If the information isn't important enough to have its own label, it either belongs in another folder or in the trash.


  • Think pink: Yes, you can think your way out of stress. Close your eyes and focus your thoughts on the color rose. Imagine yourself enveloped in a blanket of rose. Keep your mind on this color and breathe slowly. Don't worry if your mind strays; just keep bringing your thoughts back to the color rose. This will have an amazing, calming effect on you.


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Reprinted with Permission of Hearst Communications, Inc.