How to Leave the Work Stress at Work

If you’re struggling to find that perfect work-life balance (and honestly, who isn’t?) there is one tiny habit that can give you a major step in the right direction. It all comes down to leaving the stress at work so you can enjoy your time at home. Easier said than done though, right? But it’s worth a try.

Here’s the trick: an end-of-the-day routine can send a signal to your brain that a) work is done and b) you are leaving work and c) you will soon be entering a work-free zone. It doesn’t have to be anything elaborate. According to the Harvard Business Review, a short routine or ritual can “lower our anxiety before we engage in high-stakes performance tasks, increase our enjoyment of the activity at hand, and even help us recover faster when we experience failure or loss.”

Here are some ways you can reclaim your time and retrain your brain to let go:

• meditate for two minutes in your car before driving home or once you pull into your driveway
• read a compelling book or listen to a favorite podcast on your commute home
• scroll through your favorite family photos at the end of each day to signify it’s now family time
• take a post-work pre-home trip to the gym
• pull over at a scenic overlook or go for a short walk to decompress for a few minutes before heading home
• prepare for the following day at the end of today’s workday so you aren’t fearing or dreading what’s to come

How do you “clock out” of work each day?

Image via Ronel Reyes/Flickr.