How the Sedona Method Helps You
in Challenging Financial Times
How to Cope With Having
a Heavier Workload
In February 2009, 651,000 Americans lost their jobs, and Standard & Poor is predicting another 2 million job losses by the fall. What this means for those fortunate enough to still be working is a much heavier workload.
Simply put, companies are operating with fewer employees, but they don’t want production to slow down. Many workers are now doing the jobs of two or more people, and struggling to do them well enough to avoid the next round of layoffs.
Many more have taken to working overtime or on the weekends just to keep up. And as for taking vacations, even those who can still afford it may be afraid they won’t have a job anymore when they return.
The end result? Increased stress and anxiety, which takes its toll on everything from your health to your productivity.
"Research shows that increased workloads and time demands are huge in terms of stress on the employee, and stress has many negative effects on just about any health condition," Leah Van Ooyen, manager of workplace health and wellness for Connex Health in Burlington, Ontario told The Globe and Mail. "Even just experiencing stress can drive productivity down if people feel overwhelmed."
The Steep Risks of Working Too Much
Working long hours increases your risk of illness and injury, no matter what your job is, found a study published in Occupational and Environmental Medicine. After analyzing over 100,000 job records from close to 11,000 workers, researchers found those who routinely put in long days or worked overtime were at an increased risk of:
- High blood pressure
- Heart disease
- Depression
- Diabetes
- Chronic infections
- General health complaints
- Death
Overall, the more hours you work, the greater your risk becomes. The study found employees who worked overtime were 61 percent more likely to have a work-related injury or illness than those who did not.
How to Manage a Heavier Workload
With the economy like it is, and heavier workloads becoming a way of life for many, you may have no choice but to grin and bear it. On a practical level, figuring out how to prioritize your tasks, and delegate as much as you can, will be invaluable, as will learning how to avoid distractions and time wasters.
At the same time, dealing with your emotions may be the most important piece of the puzzle, because if you become overwhelmed by stress your health and productivity will plummet.
“No matter how large your workload -- even if you’re the world’s best multi-tasker -- remember you can actually only do one thing at a time. And the reason we struggle when our workload increases is because we resist the increase,” says Hale Dwoskin, CEO and director of training of Sedona Training Associates.
In fact, the resistance you feel toward doing extra work may very well be eating up much of your mental and physical energy. For instance, do you dread going to work, and think about it even when you’re at home? Do you sit at your desk at work mulling over how you’ll never be able to complete all your work?
By resisting in this way, you are focusing your mind on what you don’t want: more work. If you were to instead focus on the task at hand, and stay in the present moment, you’d find that your work gets done with much less mental strife. Often this requires first letting go of your resistance using The Sedona Method.
“If you’re willing to simply allow yourself to let go of the feeling of resistance, you’ll find that you can get more done with less effort,” Dwoskin says. “This does not mean that you should accept a workload that isn’t right for you. It only means that if you’re willing to release you do not need to be overwhelmed or stressed by your workload.”
Further, when you get home from a hard day’s work, the last thing on your mind should be that very work. So take advantage of releasing after your workday to really clear your mind and feel at peace.
“The most powerful way to relax after work is to allow yourself to take a few minutes and release any disappointment, stress, tension, worry or anger you have from your day,” Dwoskin says. “If you’re simply willing to release after your workday, you’ll find that you calm down very quickly and can easily have an enjoyable evening.”
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