The best way for us to sneak some time for self-care and stress reduction at work is to create a relaxing space that reminds us of what we love to do outside of work. That’s right. When we bring in personal objects that we are passionate about to work, it makes our work space less dreary and more inviting for us. The whole idea is to give our mind and body a way to mentally reflect, refresh, and relax. This special spot doesn’t have to take up our whole office or cubicle.
Prime Our Environment
Having positive and purposeful reminders of the feeling state that we want to achieve is the best way to do it. Priming our environment with inspiring images, empowering quotes, objects, and aromatherapy is a wonderful way to get started without breaking the bank. Priming, in this case, means mindfully using visual, kinesthetic, auditory, and olfactory reminders to help us achieve the feeling state that we want.
Suggestions to Get Started
For the sake of offering different types of settings, I will use the example of the hiker, the ocean lover, the gardener, and the sports lover in the following examples. Here are four easy suggestions to get started in creating a relaxing workspace for stress reduction within minutes:
1. Visual (Seeing)
“The only thing worse than being blind is having sight but no vision.”
~ Helen Keller
The Hiker – Have pictures of the mountains and the hiking trails.
The Ocean Lover – Have a picture of you on the beach or a boat.
The Gardener – Have a picture of you with your prize plant or vegetable from your garden.
The Sports Lover – Have a picture of you at a sports game.
2. Kinesthetic (Touching)
“Often the hands will solve a mystery that the intellect has
struggled with in vain.” ~ Carl Jung
The Hiker – Have a piece of rock from your latest hike.
The Ocean Lover – Have a big shell or starfish.
The Gardener – Have either a real potted plant.
The Sports Lover – Have a ball from your favorite sport.
3. Auditory (Hearing)
“One good thing about music, when it hits you, you feel no pain.”
~ Bob Marley
The Hiker – Listen to acoustic music or country music.
The Ocean Lover – Listen to island music or ocean sounds.
The Gardener – Listen to music that you like to listen to when gardening.
The Sports Lover – Listen to music like the Rocky theme or music that is used during the game.
4. Olfactory (Smelling)
“Stop and smell the roses.” ~ Walter Hagen
The Hiker – Have a scent of evergreen or cedar.
The Ocean Lover – Have the scent of the tropics that has the coconut or lemon scent.
The Gardener – Have scent of lavender, rose, or peppermint.
The Sports Lover – Smell the leather from the ball that you have.
Inviting Workspace
Creating your special relaxing space and priming your environment can show off your personality and can help you feel more comfortable. The more inviting you can make your work space, the easier it will be for you to mindfully take a few minutes to stop, reflect, refresh, and of course relax.
Learn More
To learn more on how you can reduce your stress and increase your sense of well-being creatively at work contact me for coaching at [email protected]. Also, for those of us who enjoy coloring de-stress, my coloring book, The Happiness Result Art Therapy Coloring Book – Express & Enjoy Yourself is going to be available at the end of October! Visit www.TheHappinessResult.com to get your copy.
