No matter the industry or stage in your career, stress is inevitable. If you allow that stress to perpetuate, it will eventually hinder your productivity. 

In a Forbes article, written by the Forbes Coaches Council, the Council created 12 tips on how to manage stress while staying productive.

Pause, Process, Proceed

Grace Totoro, a career transitions coach, states:

“Set aside time in your day to handle phone calls, texts and email. If necessary, use auto-reply and voicemail In between work on the functional aspects of your role. When stressed, apply this strategy: Pause, breathe and ask yourself, ‘What is happening now to generate these feelings?’ Process possible solutions to pull yourself together, then proceed with what needs to be done.”

Do The Hardest Things First

John M. O’Connor, the President and CEO of CareerPro, suggests leaving the smaller tasks towards the end of your day or week. 

“… It helps to tackle a portion of a harder project before doing the more common work that needs to be done. When you put off a larger project like a talk, a written piece or a looming project deadline, it weighs on you and makes you less productive on the more normal, basic, but still important tasks.”

Make a List

“The best solution for being productive and alleviating stress is to make a list of things that need to be completed each day. If it is a big project, be sure to break the deliverables down into manageable pieces. It also might make sense to complete a few of the easy things early to feel more accomplished. Another solution is to keep a calendar and backfill the tasks from today until the project is actually due, filling in a timeline of when each step should be completed so that the final piece is completed on-time. Remember is always best to underpromise and overdeliver.” – Kathleen Houlihan, the Founder and CEO of Dream2Career

Turn Off Alerts

Trellish Usher of the T.R. Ellish Group, suggests:

“One of the best productivity tips I recommend and implement, which also reduces stress, is to turn off the notifications on your mobile phone for at least two hours during the workday. …”

Pick Three Essential Things

MJ Impastato, of H2H Systems, suggests reading Essentialismby Greg McKeown.

“… Pick three essential things you must get done that day and focus your energy there. You’ll soon realize your long list of to-dos get done much quicker and with more efficiency. Say goodbye to overwhelm.”

Plan Your Day Around Your Productive Times

Kyle Elliott, of Kyle Elliott Consulting, recommends:

“… Regardless of what your schedule looks like, you need to own it and plan your day to accommodate your energy levels. For the times of day when you are most productive, schedule your most important meetings and projects. Then, for your less productive times, focus on administrative tasks that need to be tended to but require less brain power.”

Spend An Hour On Each Project

“…set a timer and work on it for an hour. Turn off all distractions. Then, take a break and transition to another project. Set that same timer for 60 minutes and take another break.” – Meghan Godorov, of Meghan Godorov Consulting.

Set People Up For Success

Gordon Tredgold of Leadership Principles LLC, suggests:

“If you want people to be productive, set them up for success. People are not afraid of hard work; they are afraid of failure. If they can't see how they will succeed, productivity will go out of the window. A simple approach is to ask them if they have everything they need to be successful. Just asking this question helps. If they say yes, they have taken ownership; if they say no, give them what they need. Having everything you need to be successful is a great way of relieving stress and increasing productivity.”

Put It On Your Calendar

Jane Zaretsky, a corporate trainer and business coach, recommends:

“Your calendar should be the guiding force in your work. If you have everything, including personal time, in your calendar, you use your calendar to tell you what you should be doing and when you should be doing it, and manage that with integrity, you will not stress. …”

Give Your Employees More Autonomy

“To increase productivity and reduce stress, give employees a flexible schedule. As long as employees do their work, they should be given autonomy. People are more productive and out sick less often when they feel trusted and respected.” – Beth Kuhel, Get Hired LLC

Manage Your Internet Time

“By nature, humans are curious. And the internet is the biggest curiosity out there. I employ software on my PC that tracks the sites I go to, and then I can determine a website as distracting, productive or neutral. I then set a limit for 15 minutes maximum of distracting site access over a 9:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. period. … It regulates me; it's my own censor. Freeing up time that I would burn through otherwise allows me to get tasks done and reduce the overall stress and anxiety of work.” – Tyron Giuliani, Selling Made Social

Align With Your Values

“Make sure an activity you do is aligned with your top five values or priorities. If it's not, ask yourself why you are doing it. Maybe you'll still do it, but it needs to be modified to honor your values. When your activities are aligned with your values, you can feel assured that you're going to achieve your deepest desires. Then, put time on your calendar for each activity to confirm they will get done.” – Rosie Guagliardo, InnerBrilliance Coaching