How to minimize stress when commuting to the office
May 23, 2009 by admin
Filed under Time & Stress Management
Employees who have a full time job with a commute may find themselves stressed out due to the extra hours traveling back and forth to work. A commute essentially extends the work day and this can take its toll on a person’s body and mind.
One of the best ways to combat commuter stress is to perceive commuting as a positive instead of a negative. While commuting is time consuming, it also provides an opportunity of some quiet time you can use to reconnect with yourself or indulge in something you enjoy.
What you can do to minimize commuting stress depends on whether you travel by car or by train. The former is quieter, but the latter offers more flexibility of the things you can do. Here are a few tips to minimize your stress when going back and forth to work:
*Listen to music
If you travel alone, you can bring along some of your favorite CDs or MP3s. Depending on your personality, loud music may energize you and get you going and serve as a stress-buster, or if you prefer soothing sounds, the melodies of calming music can do wonders to increase feelings of relaxation.
Many people travel with a partner to work to help scale back commuting costs. If you travel with someone, this is a great opportunity to converse and talk about non-stressful things and decompress. For some people even a lively debate can release pent up stress and as a result you may feel a sense of serenity before you get to work.
*Thinking time
Commuting is the ideal time to set back and think through anything which has been plaguing you. At first thought, this may sound more stressful, but in reality much stress is brought on due to being overwhelmed.
After you think things through and come up with some solutions, this can help alleviate stress and before you know it, your commute is finished. Not only are you at your destination, you may have even resolved some issues which have been on your mind.
*Book on tape
Books on tape are a great relaxation technique. Choose something that is interesting and will engross you. If you choose something so intriguing, you may not even notice you’re commuting.
*Read
For many reading is therapeutic and a good way to pass the time. Try selecting a favorite book, newspaper, magazine or other enjoyable reading material.
If the stressful events in the news aggravate you, commuting may not be the best time to catch up on world and national events. Instead, read the comics and save the news for when you get home.
Commuting makes for elongated work days, but if you are proactive and use your commuting time wisely and in an enjoyable fashion, it does make the time go by more quickly. Look at the time spent community as an asset and not a liability and it will make it easier to bear.