How Can Museum Workers Feel Less Stressed?

Stress is an inescapable part of life. Nowhere is this more true than on the job and that goes for Museum Workers too. The pressure to be productive and feelings of worry, anxiety, and stress may seem to go hand in hand. But in fact, the opposite can be true. Increasing productivity can really help relieve stress.

Here are six productivity tactics that also help museum workers a get rid of stress.

Jump right in

Stress doesn’t stand still. If you put a task off, your stress will only rise. The task will seem more and more foreboding the longer you put it off. The only way to combat this is to just get started. Aim to start working on your biggest, most intimidating project as soon as possible. Simply taking the first step will relieve much of the pressure hanging over you.

Make a to-do list

Knowing exactly what you need to accomplish on a given day is invaluable. A to-do list helps organise the day. Looking over your to-do list, you will be able to prioritise your most important tasks. Bringing clarity to your day in this manner will reduce stress and anxiety, since you’ll have a clear plan to guide you.

Don’t multi-task

Having seemingly a million things to get done is incredibly stressful. However, trying to take care of all your projects at once won’t help. Multi-tasking sounds like a great idea, but it doesn’t work. You can’t truly focus while constantly switching from one task to another. As a result, hardly anything gets done, and you only feel more anxious and overwhelmed.

Get organised

Disorder is the best friend of stress. If your work space is a mess, you will feel like a mess psychologically as well. Stress will grow. Keeping a clean, orderly desk is a way of telling yourself that you are an organised, competent person who gets stuff done. The same rule applies to digital spaces, such as your email inbox.

Block out distractions

Modern technologies like email and smart phones can be huge boons to productivity — or enormous barriers. Constantly having to deal with new messages is often stressful. While completely disconnecting isn’t an option, temporarily switching off alerts is a great way to get more stuff done.

Take breaks

Working non-stop in your museum job only increases worry and stress. You need time to decompress, allowing the psychological pressure you are experiencing to release itself. Relaxing a little boosts productivity in the end as well. That’s because it’s impossible to do your best work when you are seriously stressed. A balanced approach to rest and productivity is what works best long-term.

The paradox of responsibility and work is that the more you seek to escape your responsibilities, the more anxiety and misery they cause. If you have a huge project hanging over your head, getting it done is the only truly effective way of dealing with the stress you are experiencing. That’s why improving productivity and lowering stress are actually tied closely together. The more work you get done, the less stressed you will be.