Our jobs and careers are one of the biggest parts of our lives. We go there almost every day, and spend a large part of our day there. How we take care of ourselves during work hours is important for our health and overall well being. Keeping your work life simple and well maintained is just as important as doing the same in your home life. Here are a few suggestions for keeping stress levels as low as realistically possible at work.

Leave Home 10 Minutes Earlier.

One of the worst ways to start your day is with stress. Sometimes traffic is unpredictable, and you don’t always have control over what goes on out on the road. But being late for work, especially on a regular basis, can take a toll on you and how your employer views you. Leaving a little earlier than usual every day will help take that worry off your shoulders. Besides, would it really be that bad to walk in to work a few minutes early prepared for the day?

Take Your Scheduled Breaks and Vacation.

I cannot stress this enough. If you are unsure about what your company offers, find out asap. Taking a break in the middle of the day is a great refresher to get you through the rest of your day, and vacations give you a break from the week to week normal. If your company doesn’t offer paid vacation, consider saving a little money and taking a few scheduled days off anyway.

Reduce Clutter In Your Workspace.

If your workspace is busy and chaotic, chances are your day is going to feel the same. Get rid of what you don’t need, and keep your space free of dust and dirt. If it looks and feels clean and organized, you are more likely to feel better about your day. Try to give it a good quick clean out and clean up at least every 2 weeks.

Organize and Prioritize Your Responsibilities.

It can feel very overwhelming when it looks like you have a million things to do, and a very limited time to do it. Often, you really don’t have as much as you might think. Make a list if it’s helpful, that way you can see in front of you exactly what you have to do, and as you complete things on your list you will realize that the amount of responsibilities you have to do are really not too unreasonable. Of course, if you do have more to do than you can feesibly accomplish, don’t be afraid to speak up. You will only look bad if your employer knows that you can do it, but choose not to.

Don’t Agonize Over Mistakes, Learn From Them.

Boss wasn’t thrilled with that presentation? Did you turn in your forms past the deadline? Letting yourself stay upset over these things can hamper your performance in other parts of your job, and really just make you feel bad about yourself. Instead, make the choice to learn from it and move on. You can never get better unless you make mistakes from time to time, and to think that you have to be perfect every minute of the day is unreasonable.

For more great tips on simplifying your life in general, check out 21 Easy Hacks To Simplify Your Life!