Seven healthy work habits
14 January 2022
It is important to pay attention to your health, not just in your private life, but also at work. Do you exercise enough? Do you avoid spending hours staring at your screen? Or do you do everything at the same time and does that create too much chaos in your head? Then be sure to read on, as we list the seven most healthy work habits for you!
- Move at work
No matter what kind of work you do, it is important to keep moving during your working day. Working in healthcare, education or construction often makes this easy for you. But you can also move around at the office. For example, you can see if there are any meetings that you can have while walking, or look online for some exercises you can do from your desk chair. More exercise increases your ability to think and plan, and sufficient exercise is also good for your body.
- Strengthen your body
A strong body is extremely important. It makes you a lot fitter and in turn determines how energetic you feel on a daily basis. Sitting around all day and hardly moving at all weakens your body. Fortunately, you can strengthen your body by making small adjustments to your working day. If you do not live too far from the office, cycle to work or cycle to the station instead of taking the bus. And take the stairs once in a while to get to your floor. Do you work on the ground floor? Challenge yourself every day to walk to the fifth floor and back at least once.
- Look for stress
Stress is actually not so bad for you. As long as it is short-lived stress, which challenges you. It is important, however, to rest after a stressful moment. Otherwise, the stress will only build. For example, step outside your comfort zone and do not shy away from challenges. In this way, you will also discover other qualities you have.
- Do one thing at a time
Multitasking, we all do it. But does it work well? Not really. Doing one thing at a time increases your performance and makes you feel more relaxed. How do you make sure then you stay focused on one thing? Naturally, this is different for everyone.
For example, see if you can divide your work into different blocks. Or put your phone away when you’re in a meeting, turn off e-mail pop-ups and don’t answer colleagues’ questions during your focus blocks. In this way, you make sure that you are not distracted by other things and you work undisturbed. The advantage? Everything in order and a finished to-do list.
- Recharge yourself
Rest is very important, and not just in the world of sports. It is exactly the same at work. Short rest periods ensure that you have energy throughout the day. That is why it is important that you do not just keep on working. Think about what would make you feel relaxed and try to add this to your working day. These moments do not have to last for hours: You can start by taking two minutes to get some fresh air after every meeting. Or by turning off your computer completely during lunch.
- Regulate your emotions
Do you feel a negative emotion coming on, are you not feeling well or are you angry at everyone and everything for a day? If so, regulating your emotions at work is not always easy. However, there are three scientifically proven techniques that help you regulate your emotions. In the end, it will give you more energy than suppressing the negative emotions.
1. Label your emotions. Give your emotion a short description. You then acknowledge it without letting the emotions get the better of you.
2. Recognise the context of emotions. This is how you get the emotion under control. For example, you can interpret the event differently, which changes your emotion.
3. Change your emotion. Consciously think of a positive experience when a negative emotion arises.
4. Define your priorities
Prioritising at work is important in order to perform well. This way, you concentrate on understanding new ideas, remembering things and making decisions. Priorities are best set when you are rested and fresh, which the above points will help you with.
If you want to know more about healthy work habits, download the e-book by Rogier van Hoorn of HC Health here.
How financially fit are you?
Besides a healthy life, you want a healthy pension. By staying aware of the pension market and react to it in a flexible way, we keep your pension in top condition. Do you already have a pension scheme with BeFrank? Then you can see how your pension is doing on your Personal Pension page. Here you will also find the most important updates. Do you not have a pension scheme with BeFrank yet? Ask your employer about the possibilities.