It's important to try and keep things in perspective and find ways of reducing stress if things seem to be getting on top of you. In addition, it's easy to miss the signs of stress if your plate is full. We can create less stress if we manage our time and resources well. You can save yourself time and stress if you organize your workday from the very beginning. You can save yourself some stress if you plan ahead of time, such as allow extra time for journeys.

Here are a few tips to reduce potentially stressful situations:

We all have exactly the same amount of precious time, 24 hours in every day, to get things done. If you are working (or partying) 16 hours a day, you will have reduced your available time for rest. Get enough sleep, usually seven to eight hours a night. That way your mind and body will function better.

Give yourself realistic and attainable objectives.

Work to live not the other way round. Make time for your family and social life. It is not always apparent that continually putting work before family is one of the biggest stress factors, usually self justified by saying “I need to earn the money for a better life”!

This can have a double whammy effect, not only you getting stressed about earning more money or looking for the next promotion, but the stress effects on a family that only see you occasionally and even then you are too tired or still concentrating on work to interact In a positive way.

Whatever your workday time period consists of, once it is finished, STOP working, then devote the rest of your day to none work related activities.

During your work period try to factor in a catch up period of time every day, if you don't need to use it take that time to relax. DON'T miss out on meal breaks or other rest periods, in general you will find you are more productive after a short break.

Know your limitations. Pace yourself for the days tasks, not only will this be of physical benefit but also less stressful mentally. This doesn't stop you from trying to improve your productivity, find ways to work smarter not harder for greater results.

De stress before sleep.

Before retiring for the night (or day if you are a night worker) set some time at one side to clear your mind both from today's activity and the anticipation of tomorrows.

As I do most of my work on the computer after the grandchildren are settled in bed my mind clearing exercise is 10 to 15 minuets playing spider solitaire, concentrating on achieving a score of 100 or less clears the mind of all other thoughts. Then it's off to bed for a good sleep.

It's important to try and keep things in perspective and find ways of reducing stress if things seem to be getting on top of you. Furthermore, it's easy to miss the signs of stress if your plate is full. Stress is the body's natural response to pressures or stressful situations we find ourselves in, and which we are not certain we can cope with effectively. Get organized and manage your time. Over-commitment and poor time management are two of the greatest sources of stress.