Breathe!
One of the easiest and most under-utilised ways of staying calm and finding peace, especially in challenging situations at work, is to just breathe.
Most of the time we don’t even realise that we’re breathing. We’re lucky that the most important action we take is an automatic function which we don’t have to worry about.
Autonomic Nervous System
Not only does our body make sure we breathe continuously and keep us alive, it’s more powerful than our mind. If you’ve ever tried to hold your breath longer than someone else, you’ll know no matter how hard you try to hold onto it, at some point your body will kick in and take over breathing. This is thanks to our Autonomic Nervous System (ANS) which regulates how our body works, including breathing, digesting, heart rate, urination and other functions that we’d end up in a real mess if they weren’t running properly.
A recent study by Yackle et al, has also proven that deep breathing is beneficial, demonstrating there’s a small group of neurons that have the ability to help us stay calm through breathing.
Most of the time we breathe shallowly, taking short breaths throughout the day. If we get stressed at work, we’ll likely breathe even faster, shorter breaths as the fight or flight response gets activated. It may only be the thought of something going wrong that triggers the stress, but the impact is the same.
Being aware of these stressful moments, is a very valuable first step. When you know they’re happening, or even if you expect a stressful moment coming - like before a big meeting or presentation - you can practice deep breathing to find peace in the situation that once used to be a challenge.
Focusing on your breath
By focusing on your breath, you’ll give yourself a tool to help you stay calm in stressful work situations. When you breathe more deeply, you are likely to reduce the impacts of stress hormones, and it can lower your heart rate and blood pressure, making you feel more calm.
The positive effects can be almost instant too. Practicing some simple breathing techniques will help you feel calmer in the moment, as well as giving you tools to find peace when those challenging work situations pop up.
Having the skills to slow down your breathing is helpful so you can call on them in the stressful moments, so practicing them in the less stressful times will help you be better prepared.
4-7-8 Breathing Technique
This is a really easy way to help you feel more at peace and calm at work. It’s useful for those moments where you’re already feeling stressed. It can be even more beneficial by using it before a potentially challenging work situation, like a big event or a difficult conversation with your boss. It’s even useful to practice before any meeting or at random times during the day, to help you stay present and make the day more peaceful.
It was developed by Dr. Andrew Weil and it’s very simple:
Step 1: Take a deep breath in counting from 1 to 4.
Step 2: Hold your breath as you count from 1 to 7.
Step 3: Place the tip of your tongue on the tissue right behind your top front teeth, and exhale forcefully and slowly as you count to 8.
Repeat this 3 or 4 times, and be aware of how your body feels during the exercise.