Frustration, worry, anger, excitement, happiness, relief. All of these are emotions you may experience while at work. And while it is never good to repress or suppress emotions — positive or negative — our emotions must be managed to allow us to function in various situations. Here are some tips to manage our emotions at work.
- Practice Deep Breathing. Regulating our breathing can help with emotions like anxiety, worry, frustration, and anger. Take deep breaths, inhaling and exhaling slowly until you start to feel relaxed.
- The 10-second Rule. The 10-second rule is especially helpful if you are feeling angry, frustrated, or even irate. If you feel your temper rising, try and count to 10 to recompose yourself. If possible, excuse yourself from the situation to get some distance but do reassure the other party that you will come back to deal with the matter.
- Know Your Triggers. It helps when you can recognize what upsets or angers you. This way, you can prepare yourself to remain calm and plan your reaction should the situation occur.
- Journal Your Thoughts. Journaling to process emotions can help make sense of your feelings, identify them, understand where they originate, and learn how to best respond to them. Find a private place, write for 15-20 minutes, and without censoring. Use prompts to explore and process emotions.
- Boost Your Mood Through Exercise. As we know, exercise is a good way to get a solid dose of mood-enhancing endorphins. Instead of losing your cool, plan on hitting the treadmill or going to a kickboxing class to let the anger out of your system.
- Give Yourself Time to Process. In this day of instant communication, it’s easy to just shoot off an email or text that you may regret later. Never let your anger or unhappiness cloud your judgment. You can always type an email and save it as a draft to reread with a clear mind the next day. A second pair of eyes is always a good idea, too!
