The productivity of our work depends not only on our working conditions and motivation. It depends on our state of health. With good health, we are able to move mountains. If you have a headache, if your blood pressure jumps or your heart pounds furiously, you want to go home.
Good health is the key to a successful career. And for this you need to do more than buying fashionable furniture for the office, a beautiful diary and a business suit. Monitor your health not only at home, but at work as well.
How to get and stay healthy?
An optimal schedule
The shortest working days are in the developed countries of Europe, such as Norway, Sweden, Germany, Denmark and Luxembourg. This suggests a reasonable approach to working time. According to statistics, the GDP of these countries exceeds the GDP of many other countries in Europe and the world.
The optimal schedule is not working more than 12 hours per day 7 days per week. This is either a free schedule, or flexible as is common in the UK or Sweden. But first, decide whether are you a lark or an owl and plan your work day according. Naturally, keep complex tasks for when you feel the most active.
Science shows that people who plan their working hours are more likely to have normal blood pressure, better brain functioning and less chance of stress.
Sufficient and healthy sleep
A healthy sleep is inseparably linked with working capacity during the day. Studies have shown that a lack of sleep negatively affects productivity.
A normal duration of sleep should be at least 7-9 hours. The less you sleep, the more your body gets tired, which leads to the development of various diseases. For example, according to statistics in the US, lack of sleep becomes one of the main causes of stroke. Scientists have calculated that citizens’ lack of sleep cost from 280 to 411 billion dollars a year for the American economy. These data confirm the study of American Strategic Research Center of the European division RAND.
Of course, it is possible to operate like Napoleon, who conquered Europe on 4 hours a night. But heroics are mostly useless. A lack of sleep will damage your body, promote weight gain and memory problems and adversely affect your career.
Try to go to bed and wake up at the same time. This will help to maintain a good mood, and determine the time of maximum productivity during a work.
Balanced diet
Productivity and nutrition are interconnected. Nutritionists do not recommend replacing proper breakfasts and lunches at work with fast food and sweets. Provide your body with adequate nutrition, which will supply the brain with energy. And forget about snacks on the run and coffee, which you can drink by the liter during working hours. This overloads a cardiovascular system and brain. Snacking can lead to problems with the digestive system including ulcers.
Breaks
Brain and body should be rested throughout the day. Try not to push yourself to work through force. Do not forget to take small walks in the fresh air for 10-15 minutes after every 2 hours of intensive work. If there is no way to leave an office, an easy workout at your workplace will help. To overcome stress and difficult working moments use techniques of respiratory exercises and meditation. Small troubles and conflicts at work can undermine health, and promote diseases in the nervous system.
Conditions
The workplace also affects our health. Do not collect piles of papers on a desktop, collecting dust. Adjust your chair to the right height. Be sure to pay attention to the issue of airing a room. And surround yourself with things which help to remove fatigue and stress and are able to distract from work for a few minutes and charge positive energy (like statues, magnets, and photos). Carefully review your attitude towards work in the light of such simple moves. Your health is in your hands even at work. Self-discipline at the workplace in combination with care of your health has a huge impact on making important decisions in business and, of course, your income.
