Do you have a job where you can leave your work stress at work?

[Anonymous]

I am constantly stressed about my job. It's the first thing I think of (and not in a good way) when I wake up and often I can't sleep worrying about work. If you're able to turn off stressing about work at the end of the day, what do you do? I need a change . . .

[Anonymous]

May just be your personality. I've had both consuming jobs and those not so much. Yet I still worry/stress. More about the people dynamic as my compan is very political/popularity contest to get ahead. Always feel like I'm watching my back (paranoid much - lol!!)

[Anonymous]

I am a teacher. Kind of. It really depends on the day. My first year I brought everything home with me- literally and figuratively. But you can't live that way.

[Anonymous]

Occasionally, but I've gotten much better at compartmentalizing and setting boundaries. I have a stressful job (mental health) but also a lot of support for colleagues and family. Plus I do whatever self-care I need t avoid burnout.

[Anonymous]

My no-stress job was on the production line in the auto industry. The job IS the line. When you walk away, the next shift takes over and there is basically nothing to do until you return to your station the next day.

The downside is that the line doesn't stop. No taking a phone call in the middle of the day, no doing online bill pay during a conference call, no closing your eyes for 60 seconds to reset and no showing up late because daycare drop-off was messed up. Surprising to me how engaging it was - modern carmaking requires focus, an ability to learn new technologies and constantly adapt.

And then it all got shut down.

[Anonymous]

I do. But it was a choice. Before having kids, I let my work stress come home with me all the time and consume my every waking thought. After kids, I was too busy/tired/drained to care. I decided something had to give, so I made the conscious effort to get as much off my plate as possible at the end of every day and then to walk away. It took a few months to adjust, but I am NOT going back.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I do. But it was a choice. Before having kids, I let my work stress come home with me all the time and consume my every waking thought. After kids, I was too busy/tired/drained to care. I decided something had to give, so I made the conscious effort to get as much off my plate as possible at the end of every day and then to walk away. It took a few months to adjust, but I am NOT going back.

Me too.

It helps that I have a job that forbids telecommuting and billing from home. So while I might stress and need to vent about job security or some drama that might have happened at work, I made the decision that if they don't want me working, then I shouldn't be wasting precious time and energy at home thinking about it. Granted, that doesn't always work because I do care about the job, but it's what I tell myself in order to re-focus on my family and personal life when I'm away from the office.

[Anonymous]

My no-stress job was on the production line in the auto industry. The job IS the line.

Interesting. Mine was waiting tables in a busy restaurant. Very stressful work, but it's over when it's over, you don't take it home.

[Anonymous]

Historian

[Anonymous]

I think you can do this at most jobs -- if you set your mind to it. Set realistic goals for what you want to accomplish that day and wrap those things up before you leave. I usually try to wrap everything up by 15 min before I am supposed to leave so I can have a calm moment or two at the end of the day and feel "done" when I walk out of the office. If you can't get through your to do list, take a breath, remind yourself that you did your best and it can all wait until tomorrow. If you work with others, let them know "X came up today, so I couldn't accomplish Y on our project, but I will work on it tomorrow." Push back on co-workers/bosses who try to overload you with work, and talk to them about "prioritizing" rather than accepting unrealistic production targets. Meditate, exercise, or find other healthy ways to de-stress.

[Anonymous]

Possibly, but my job has allowed me the opportuntiy of flex work arrangement, meaning that I leave at 4 every day but I catch up most evenings. So I might be able to 'leave it behind' if I left at 530 or 6. But instead, I'm in an 'always working' mode with my spare time - including weekends and early mornings.

Also, this isn't a complaint.

[Anonymous]

My mom had one. University Librarian.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Possibly, but my job has allowed me the opportuntiy of flex work arrangement, meaning that I leave at 4 every day but I catch up most evenings. So I might be able to 'leave it behind' if I left at 530 or 6. But instead, I'm in an 'always working' mode with my spare time - including weekends and early mornings.

Also, this isn't a complaint.

If you agree to "catch up" on whatever they need you to do for as many hours as it takes, then, yes, you could be working all the time, and then it's not possible to leave work or work strees, because you're always on call or working. To leave the work stress behind you need to have on and off time. So if you leave at 4pm instead of 6:30, committ to doing 2.5 hours of work each night and no more. If you do your 2.5 hours and you're still not "caught up", then you need to start talking to your supervisors about prioritizing work, etc. You need to shift expectations away from the idea that you will work as long as needed to get "caught up" and towards the idea that your work hours are finite and you need to prioritize what gets done within those hours in order to be most efficient.

[Anonymous]

With modern technology causing us to be reachable anytime, anywhere, I can see how this is deleterious for many people who constantly expect a call back, an update, etc, even at night. A friend is in public relations and wants to get out because he is on call all the time. It is too draining to be always in "work mode".

[Anonymous]

I think a lot of this is personality rather than job. I'm working on it