5 mindfulness exercises for reducing stress

1

Start your day slowly

Do you grasp for your mobile phone as soon as you wake up? You should try to avoid doing this. Instead, set your alarm half an hour earlier to get your day off to a more tranquil start and give you time to enjoy breakfast in peace. When you take a shower, concentrate on the scent of your shower gel or your shampoo. Pay attention to how it feels when the water touches your skin.

2

Keep calm in the hectic office environment

When things get a bit stressful in the office and in your job, make a conscious effort to stay focused on the here and now: sit up straight, tune into the exact spot where you’re sitting, how it feels and which parts of your body are tense or relaxed. Take five conscious breaths in and out.

3

A change of scenery brings fresh ideas

Do you need to find a creative solution but just can’t think of anything? Don’t panic, this is a quandary you can get yourself out of: ideas simply need room to blossom. More specifically, room for new perceptions and responses to challenges. Perhaps you could take a short walk out in the fresh air or make a cognisant effort to sit down and enjoy a cup of coffee?

4

Monitor your behaviour at work

Stop for a moment and mentally take a bird’s eye view: What do you hear? What do you see? What are you doing at this very moment? Make sure to pay attention to even small things like the act of typing on the keyboard. Are you pounding away at the keys? Are your shoulders tense? How does the tone of your voice sound when you’re talking on the phone? What words are you using? How is the other person responding?

5

Unwind more quickly after work

Draw a clear line between work and free time. Break away from that office mindset by observing people on public transport on your way home: count how many people are wearing glasses or who is on the phone. This will help you get your mind off things more quickly and get into “out-of-office” mode more easily. Another option could be to find a sport that demands gentle, concentrated attention from you, or one which allows you to work off excess physical and mental energy – and thus reach a more mindful “state” that indirectly makes you feel calmer.