Life is rough right now. When this coronavirus pandemic started, many of us were overjoyed to be working from home. But 10 months later, we’re all feeling a little stir-crazy. The walls are closing in. We actually miss stupid water-cooler small-talk with our coworkers. (And we never thought we’d say that.)
On top of quarantine cabin fever, the world outside is in complete chaos – and we can’t stop clicking on news sites, turning on the radio stations, or watching the news channels that keep us informed of how it’s getting worse and worse every day. With unprecedented events like the Capitol insurrection and Trump’s second impeachment going on, how are we supposed to get any work done?
There is a way, and today, we’re going to show you how to get there. Just use these 10 tips to stay on task, increase your productivity, and keep on truckin’. Society may be falling apart, but your career doesn’t have to.
Cover Photo: Geber86 (Getty Images)
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Taking It Easy Guide
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Get enough sleep.
Your brain needs a break from all the information it's taking in every day. Sleep is the gray matter's time to clean out the garbage and prepare for a fresh onslaught of bad news. Make sure you're clocking at least six hours of zzzs, with eight being ideal.
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Stay hydrated.
You can't think straight if your brain isn't nice and juicy. The daily water intake recommendation for men is 15.5 cups. Fill up a big water bottle at the start of your day and aim to finish it by the time you log off.
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Keep your hands busy.
If you can't stop doomscrolling, find something other than your laptop, tablet, or phone to occupy your hands, especially during conference calls. Take up knitting or baking or whittling -- anything you can do to keep from reaching for your nearest device.
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Jack off.
What you do with your 10-minute breaks is your business, and we can't think of a more efficient stress-reliever than this. Just make sure you've left the Zoom session before you beat off.
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Install a net nanny.
Exercising willpower to stay away from sites you shouldn't be on during the day is hard. Get a tech friend to install a net nanny program on your devices and block you from the most irresistible of URLs during your workday hours.
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Go outside.
The great thinkers of the past often came up with their most brilliant ideas while outdoors on a walk. We don't want to put that much pressure on you, so just head outside for some fresh air, a change of scenery, and a little movement. If a breakthrough comes, by all means, welcome it.
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Phone a friend.
No, you may not text instead. There's something extra reassuring about hearing a friendly voice on the phone that will help relieve some of the anxiety from those other voices you have constantly playing in your head -- by which we mean NPR correspondents with their depressing reports.
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Find a therapist.
Your friends can only listen to you bitch for so long. Besides, their advice isn't any good. Talk through your worries with a pro. They're worth every penny.
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Toke up.
Anxiety is a real and debilitating psychological condition. If weed helps you chill out, calm down, and focus, by all means, indulge. Just try to keep your smoke seshes off the boss' radar (unless they're into that kind of thing).
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Wear a blindfold.
If all else fails, invest in a blindfold and let the chips fall where they may. Who needs eyesight when all there is to see is the dumpster fire that is the world? If you aced typing in middle school like we did, you don't need to look at the keyboard to write that quarterly report anyway.
