says. “I once worked with a nightmare woman
who constantly berated me,” she reports. “I
visualized a ferret head above her neck, which
was not only funny but helped remove me
from taking anything she said personally.”
Put things in perspective. When you
feel frazzled, stop and rate your stress level
from 1 to 10, with 1 being you missed out on
office doughnuts and 10 meaning you were
just fired, says Zoglio. “Rating your stress puts
things in perspective, which helps avoid overreaction.” Similarly, she suggests taking a
“gratitude break” and listing three things—
maybe your health, job and friendships—for
which you’re thankful. Your focus instantly
shifts from what’s wrong to what’s right. Even
in the midst of a pressure-filled situation, it’s
calming to remind yourself that the stressors
will eventually pass.
Photo opportunity. Humans’ brains are
wired to instantly respond to visuals, says
McLaren. By turning to a calming image on
your computer screen or office wall, she says,
you’ll quickly “feel” yourself walking along
that favorite beach or fishing from that boat,
which will help you temporarily disengage
from a stressful environment.
Do a good deed. Take a minute or two to
help an employee who is confronting a personal crisis. Or compliment a co-worker on
her presentation. “Positive psychology studies
indicate that when we’re helping or giving to
someone,” says Zoglio, “it [quickly] makes us
feel fuller, more confident and uplifted.”
Write it down. Writing down your feelings is a vehicle for quickly helping to transfer
stress from your mind to the paper or computer, says McLaren. Writing helps qualify
and quantify what you’re stressed about, she
says, providing a more objective—and
calmer—understanding of the situation. C
Harvey Meyer is a St. Louis Park, Minnesota,
freelancer.
VEER
mon relaxing technique for starting
meditation, Cora says, adding that
deeper breaths help oxygenate your
blood, reducing the chances you’ll
experience high blood pressure,
headaches and fatigue, among other
stress-related ailments.—HM
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