Do you have a toolkit (literal, or metaphorical) that you can dig into when stress is impacting your productivity? If so, what do you keep in it? If not, what things would you need for it to contain? 

Having the right tools to keep you on track with your priorities is the best way to prepare for the curve balls life throws your way. Although we can’t control everything that happens to or around us, we can equip ourselves with helpful strategies and self–care habits that help us be productive. 

Everyone experiences sadness, disappointment, anger and frustration, whether it is from an internal or external source. How you handle these various forms of hurt and negative emotion will determine the impact they will have on your ability to process them, return to a more positive state, maintain health and wellness and be more productive.  

What’s in Your Productivity Toolkit? 

Here’s what Sports Psychologist Dr. Jarrod Spencer recommends having in your toolkit to help you stay healthy and productive: 

Sleep

Sleep is the #1 priority. Getting 7-9 hours of sleep each night, consistently, is important for productivity and for effectively dealing with stress, hurt and other negative emotions. At least three straight nights of consistent sleep leaves your body and mind feeling good and recharged. The rejuvenation provided by adequate sleep allows us to think more clearly in order to solve problems, learn and retain new information, and gives us the cognitive capacity to better manage our emotions. 

Physical Activity

Regular exercise is an imperative tool. Sweat every day and release those feel-good brain chemicals! If this is hard to do because you have no energy and you’re emotionally tired, take an introspective walk. Get some fresh air and a little movement – it can help a lot. Exercise helps with brain fog, stress relief, and boosts your energy levels throughout the day. Exercise also enhances your creativity. It allows you to learn things more quickly, sharpens your memory and improves concentration. All of these benefits are important when effectively dealing with negative emotions or hurt.  

Catharsis

Once you have regained some energy through consistent sleep and exercise, the next step is processing these emotions properly. This allows you to let out what you’re feeling and not let the negative energy get pent up inside you. Processing emotions also teaches you valuable knowledge about life and about yourself. Cry, vent, talk it out, yell, release. Who do you like to listen to and take advice from? Who is your sounding board? Make sure it is someone you feel comfortable with and someone you can trust to be non-judgmental. 

Activities and Hobbies

Try a new activity or pursue a hobby. Make art and express your emotion through your creations. Explore different mediums, try new artistic avenues. Don’t worry about being perfect or even good at it. Just have fun and create whatever comes to mind. What do you like to do for fun that recharges or energizes you? What new activity would you like to try? Use this outlet to release tension, relieve stress, and have fun.

Outside Help

Sometimes we can’t cure the hurt ourselves and need to seek outside help. Diagnosed depression is a medical condition and there are certain physiological factors involved. Talk to your physician and consider therapy, especially if depression, anger, or hurt is impacting your productivity, energy, interest and ability to engage with things you used to enjoy.

Be the Light

When you lift up and encourage others, positivity around you expands and serves you, too. Know someone else who is hurting or going through a stressful time? Validate. Empathize. Encourage. Support. Maybe you can be their outlet or bring some fun into their life by introducing them to your latest hobby. Let your light shine! 

Acceptance

It’s perfectly ok and healthy to feel emotion, even negative ones. Lows come with the highs; feeling this entire range of emotion is what makes us human. Experience it. Process it. Learn from it, and then select some options from this toolkit to help you move forward and maintain good health and productivity. 

Let’s build your toolkit!

Having the right tools to deal with the emotions and hurt that is inevitable in life is so important in order to maintain the best, healthiest, most productive version of yourself. Your toolkit will help you get done what you want and need to throughout your day, week and life. 

Your toolkit and its contents can also be preventative. By utilizing these tools even when you’re feeling well, you’ll have the resilience to effectively deal during times of stress. 

How do you handle stress and not let it derail you? Do you need help building your productivity toolkit? There are several ways that Simply Placed can help! Start by scheduling your free no-risk Discovery Call today.