1. In times like today, can anyone afford to complain about too much work?

"Many people now see themselves only as unemployed on probation, are overly grateful that even give them a person a job," says the Munich sociologist and author Jakob Schrenk. This leads to an ideal of self-exploitation, in which more and more participate. But does that really have to be? Perhaps one can also reflect on the fear of losing the job or not being good enough to achieve a more relaxed inner attitude.

2. Easily said. We have been cut jobs, we all have much more to do than before ...

... and that of course leads to stress. Incidentally, the phenomenon is affecting more and more Germans. A survey by the ISO Institute in Cologne found that 42 percent of employees are always or often under time pressure. One in five is usually or always at the limits of his ability. This is also due to the fact that workers toil today in a lone way and climb up their personal working Mount Everest relatively easily every day. One should try to talk to the supervisor that for a long time too few people have had to do too much work - and how to change that.

3. Then it just says: we have to save. That brings nothing!

It may be that working hours can not be reduced immediately. But at least we could distance ourselves a bit from the job now and then. Experts like Schrenk, for example, are calling for a clearer separation of free time and working hours, so that the head has the opportunity to switch off, even when spare time is scanty.

4. How should this work?

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With very simple measures: At least one day a week must be free. Every day there is a lunch break. The working day ends the moment you turn off the computer - documents never come home. And: The Diensthandy is not turned on until the new day begins, and certainly not on vacation. Anyone who is constantly available allows his supervisor and his colleagues far too much access to themselves. This then acts as if the salary is a kind of flatrate for 24-hour availability. And someday you will believe that yourself.

On the next page: A hobby - what is it?

5. But sometimes I have to work a few hours on the weekend. What is so bad about it?

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"Behind it is a gigantic self-deception," says work expert Schrenk. Fast half an hour on Sunday in the office or review the documents for Monday ... It only stays at half the hour, but it will be jerk, twitch two out of it. And you spend the whole day mentally thinking that you have to toil again right away, but actually do not feel like it. Where is the recovery effect? Sounds like bullock, but is scientifically proven: Who can rest, works faster and more efficient. Sociologist Schrenk even demands that people who work a lot grow a hobby that challenges them mentally and in time. Learning to play the piano, climbing, dancing the tango ... Many people have completely forgotten that they have other sides than those of the perfectly functioning employee.

6. A hobby, should that be a joke? I am already stressed out!

Then it's high time to think about whether the balance is still right. Negative stress often results from the feeling of losing control. American neurobiologist Amy Arnsten has found that in stressful situations, the forebrain loses its ability to distinguish between important and unimportant information. So we are not overwhelmed because we do not have time. But we have no time, just because we are overwhelmed. High time to slow down a bit. In Zen Buddhism it also means: If you are in a hurry, go slowly.

7. Why should I slow down?

Because it brings a kinder look to life and to work. It may be that it saves time to drive or to quickly write an e-mail. But it is hidden that walking is a completely different experience than a car ride. And a personal conversation is something other than an e-mail. To save too much time often robs you of the fun. And so you drag yourself through working days like lead on your feet, instead of designing them yourself.

8. Unfortunately, I'm currently light years away from decelerating. What helps me now?

A good trick is to pause for a moment and ask yourself, "What do I gain by scrapping?" A few seconds, at best minutes. In contrast, there is the power that is lost through hectic rush: because everyone needs a rest after a spurt, to calm down, or may have to correct careless mistakes.So, breathe three times. Then make a priority list in your head: What needs to be done first? And then go ... Stress management starts in your head.

On the next page: Already at a red light I get nervous

9. But I feel totally overloaded. At every red traffic light, I get nervous because I think: crap, again wasted a few seconds ... What's going on?

"I have no time" - a fatal phrase that looks like a self-hypnosis. When this sense of life overreaches, we get into a treacherous spinning top, which turns faster and faster. We just work and gradually unlearn that there are other options as well. The Berlin coach Olaf Georg Klein advises rushed people to an experiment. They should replace the word "time" with the word "life" and feel what is happening inside them. Then the perception changes instantly: Instead of "I have no time" you always say in the future "I have no life" or "I suffer from a life shortage" or "I have a life problem" - this changes the view of one's own sense of time tremendously. "I have no time" sounds abstract, outside of my own responsibility. "I have no life", on the other hand, hits the heart and the soul, shakes us up. And then we can begin to think about where our time or life thieves are.

10. My colleague got sick. Now I have to work for two. How do I keep the overview?

First, it's about recognizing and slowing down the inner saboteurs. In stressful moments, negative thoughts often emerge that add to the pressure, such as: "I never can." If you get caught, it helps, loud "Stop!" to say - and to distract for a moment: to go out for about five minutes or to breathe deeply into the stomach with closed eyes and do a minimed meditation on the following questions: How would a neutral observer evaluate the situation? How will you think about it in a year? That ensures distance.

11. My lover is already lamenting that I neglect him ...

Then you should thank him warmly. "Reliable social relationships can help a lot to counteract the acceleration delusion," says time expert Klein. That's because they force us to think about our own work and time concept. The partner mirrors us mercilessly, which is not right at the moment. It often happens, for example, that we are so stressed because we are afraid of missing something. But do you really have to be in every conference instead of sitting at the dinner table? How often can a movie break because of the job?

On the next page: switching back a gear - I can not afford it!

12. How can I better organize my day?

It's best to keep track of your work over a few days. How long did you need for something? What has interrupted or disturbed you? Such logs show where you can optimize your workflow. Anyone who is torn from his job for only three minutes needs a full two minutes to concentrate each time. Incidentally, this also applies to every click on the mail.

13. How can I save time?

Best with planning: What is really important today? How much time do I need for this? How do I get started? Such things can be fixed on a list every morning. Time researchers know: If you plan your working day for ten minutes the night before, you will save an hour the next day. It is important not to plan more than 60 percent of the working time so that there is still time for the unforeseen. And: Do not write down more than five, six things for one day, so you do not lose track. For annoying routine work is worth a Jour fixe: Who always does a certain thing at a certain time or on a certain day, does not give time to delay.

14. I have the feeling that I can not switch off because of all the work. Am I on my way to burnout?

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It's best to listen to your body. He gives you clear signals. The most important sign of burnout is the feeling of being constantly exhausted. In addition, there are often headaches, stomach ache, frequent colds. Many sufferers can not sleep. By then you should pull the inner brake very quickly. Clearly, certain relaxation techniques and time saving models could help in the short term. But at some point you can not avoid asking what is fundamentally wrong at work.

15. What could go wrong?

Quite Elementary: Maybe you're actually working too much. Maybe you are not very happy with your job. Or you yourself are coming too short at the moment. Nothing in the world stresses people more than working against their own inner interests. But you lose sight of everyday life often out of sight. That's why it pays to think regularly about what's important to you in life. Life coaches recommend that they consciously take a break as often as possible - without a TV, without a newspaper, just to synchronize their mind and soul once again.

16 But to complain that everything is too much for me, that I want to work less and slower: That's when I seem like the last sissy ...

In western societies, we are educated to do as much as possible. To pay attention to yourself, to have fun, we prefer to resist. "Even everyday activities seem to be meaningful only when they are referred to as work," says time expert Klein. Thus parenting becomes parenting, love relationship work and unhappiness mourning. To escape this trap, it is important to rethink. Is the opposite of a lot of work really laziness? You might as well call it leisure and rest.

On the next page: Work-life balance - how does it work?

17. Suppose I come to the conclusion that the job in my life is really taking up too much space - what could I do?

Then it would be time to take a step down and think about your own priorities. Does the big career and a lot of money really have to be? Or would it not be worthwhile to work less and have more fun for it? The trend is called "Downshifting". A prominent example is provided by MTV's former Communications Director, Angie Sebrich. Glamorous job with lots of great evening appointments, but unfortunately also with 80-hour week - at some point she threw out, today runs a youth hostel in the mountains and has plenty of time for her husband and children.

18. I can not afford to just leave my job.

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Downshifts can also be done on a small scale. The most important thing is to recognize your own priorities and appreciate your own wishes a little more. "What you can learn from downshifters is that we are not defenseless at the merits of the meritocracy and that it is worth simply saying no," says sociologist Schrenk. For example, one could consider reducing the job by 20 percent - and replacing the more expensive car for a cheaper one, moving into a smaller flat or not going on a luxury holiday in the future, but rather camping in the Bavarian Forest. Or even easier: one terminates the mobile phone contract and has no computer at home, so is no longer available at any time.

19. What does a good balance between leisure and work actually mean?

Behind it is the question of how to deal with yourself, with the space and the time that surround you, if you lead a life that basically suits you. "It's about living in time rather than trying to do something with time, it's about serenity instead of fear of failure and mindfulness instead of time stress, presence in the present," says time expert Klein.

20. What's the point of being more careful?

It provides more awareness. Those who do half things absent-mindedly five things next to each other, involuntarily get bogged down. That's why it pays to pause several times a day while you work, simply focusing on what you're doing: drinking a cup of coffee, feeling your fingers on the keyboard, listening fully in a conference. The effect is almost like that of regular meditation. Those who practice mindfulness for a few weeks get a better sense of themselves and their needs, become calmer and more focused.

On the next page: you are not alone!

21. But with mindfulness the day will not be any longer ...

Yes, I felt it. Lack of mindfulness costs a lot of power. In Buddhism, therefore, it is one of the essential exercises to perceive the here and now so intensely that time is not only stretched, but literally stands still. The best example of this is the sword fighting of Zen Buddhism. The fighters learn to closely observe everything that contains the moment and only then to react. This technique makes the swordsman extremely fast. And extremely relaxed.

To read more: Olaf Georg Klein: "Time as Art of Living", Verlag Klaus Wagenbach, 203 pp., 18.90 Euro Jakob Schrenk: "The Art of Self-Exploitation: How We Lose Our Lifetime Work", Dumont Verlag, 224 pp., 16, 90 euros

Stress in the job - do we complain too much?

Stick to it: 47 percent of all men and women interviewed are available for their jobs around the clock - even on vacation or in sickness. The younger the interviewees, the more present: Among the under-30s, 60 per cent are on long-term reception. 44% of all surveyed men and 36% of women feel the pressure to perform is extremely high. Make it longer: Everybody believes that especially women with part-time jobs are under particular pressure. Men see this as similar as the women themselves. Shutdown: One in three say they occasionally feel that the job is eating him up. About a quarter of the interviewees can also turn off after work or complain that the work affects their privacy. Keep shut up: However, a majority of all respondents - namely 58 percent - the whining about too much work as a luxury problem. One should be glad to have work at all.One in four thinks Job-Jammerer is badly organized: If you work too much, you do not properly integrate the work. To remain optimistic: The majority of the respondents are quite positive about the future in terms of workload: Only one in five fears that they will have to work more in the coming year because of the financial crisis than at present. And only one in nine is afraid to lose their job without overtime.

Source: FORSA, October 2008

How to Reduce Stress in the Workplace (May 2024).