Work-Related Stress Minimizing Tips for Type A Personalities

Prone to being aggressive over-achievers, Type A personality types thrive on pressure. Even if it means being hostile, Type A's will do what it takes to make the deadline or accomplish what mere mortals cannot. As such, the work environment is a particularly stressful one for these individuals. Always striving to be the best without fail can be quite a burden. While striving for first place in the workplace may not be a bad thing, doing so regardless of the cost can have serious negative side affects. Shortness of breath, difficulty sleeping, poor relationships with others, chronic illness, greater susceptibility to common ailments, decreased ability to heal properly from wounds and severe fatigue are just a few of the problems that Type A personalities face more often than their Type B counterparts. If you find yourself getting the job done in the workplace more often than your co-workers but find yourself feeling less happy and fulfilled, something's amiss. To ease the pressure that you naturally place on yourself without sacrificing performance, take advantage of the following work-related stress minimizing tips for Type A personalities.

Type A Stress Buster #1: Limit tasks to one or two at a time. Multi-tasking is a trademark of Type A personalities. However, just because you're able to talk on the phone with a client, email your boss, research a marketing scheme, and develop a presentation at the same time doesn't mean that each task is getting the best of your efforts. Even Type A's are only capable of so much perfection, and allocating too little of your concentration to too many places will inevitably affect the outcome of each project or task. Limit yourself to just a couple of activities as once, which will not only minimize stress but will also minimize the amount of time it actually takes to do each job well. If you're not convinced, give it a try and watch the clock. You'll likely find that it took the same amount of time or less to get everything done, or that everything at least got accomplished with a little more polish and attention to detail.

Type A Stress Buster #2: Learn to say "no." Accept not pleasing everyone. The consequences won't be nearly as harsh as you imagine. Others will learn to respect your time, leaving you less likely to stay overburdened.

Type A Stress Buster #3: Give yourself permission to have the occasional mental stray, and don't punish yourself for getting off course a bit from time to time. Putting off a "menacing" daydream may leave you with a muffled sense of concentration until you finally allow yourself to indulge in it.

Type A Stress Buster #4: Add something to look forward to during your lunch break. Ok, first take your lunch break for once. Then plan to at least occasionally spend it with friends or reading something you love that has nothing to do with work, and you'll gain both a refreshed mind and a renewed sense of energy.

Type A Stress Buster #5: Schedule regular five minute breaks when under deadline. When the clock is ticking fast, Type A's can focus on nothing but the task at hand...or so they think. The truth is, after an extended period of deep concentration on one subject the mind can become fuzzy. Talk a walk down the hall and back and allow yourself a moment for a drink of water to get the blood flowing to the brain again.

Type A Stress Buster #6: Handle all emails at regular times. Even if it's once in the morning, once in the afternoon, and again before you go home, make your email handling times regular to cut down on stressful interruptions. Type A's hate putting off email, but a scheduled opening time will alleviate that stress.

Type A Stress Buster #7: Arrive early, go home on time. Working overtime is a given for Type A's. However, working early rather than late will put much less pressure on your relationships with family and friends. Get into the office while everyone else is asleep and use your best energies during those early morning moments. Go home when it's time to go home, and rest assured that you've maximized your brain's most productive hours.

Remember that being a Type A personality can work for you on the job, but when we allow those over-zealous tendencies to trickle into evenings and weekends we are stripping ourselves of healthier energy output opportunities. Find something else to excel at during your off hours that constitutes a hobby or other unpaid interest, and work on your relationships. With your more productive work habits, you'll alleviate stress in all areas of your life effectively in no time.