10 Brilliantly Simple Ways to Put Your Brain in Rest Mode

To combat burnout, we need free time - time when we do not even think about work matters. If you find it increasingly difficult to leave work outside the office every day, use these tricks to quickly and effectively switch to rest mode.

1. Say "Bye!" working day

Make it a habit at the end of each day to shake hands with work tasks and say goodbye to them. Imagine saying when you close work applications and turn off your computer or before you leave the office: “Good luck! It was a pleasure doing business with you today." In this way, you give yourself a set: no business calls and email checks until the next business day.

2. Turn on the perfect holiday song

People often use motivating music in order to internally prepare for an important event. Try doing the same. Choose a track that will set you up for relaxation and listen to it on your way home from the office or before you turn off your computer if you work remotely. Music will serve as a signal that the work is over.

If you do not want to listen to the same song all the time, make a separate playlist and turn on the tracks in turn.

3. Apply the "file cabinet method"

Imagine a large file cabinet, and then think of all the tasks for tomorrow and mentally place them in drawers. Draw this picture in your head every time you leave work. And don't open mental storage during holidays - only on the next working day.

4. change clothes

If you have a strict dress code at work or you wear a uniform, try to put on comfortable clothes right away at home. Choose things you would never wear to the office, like funny fluffy slippers.

If you work from home and your “uniform” is stretched pants and a T-shirt, change anyway. This will give the brain a signal that the working day is over.

5. Stop talking about work

Often we finish the work, but we continue to talk about it for hours: we retell to friends office dramas or sharing news with family over dinner. It is better to get rid of this habit, because such conversations again direct our attention to work and do not allow us to fully relax and rest.

6. Schedule an interesting activity

For example, board games with friends, a drawing workshop or a family trip to the movies. Entertainment and hobbies that you look forward to are a great way to switch to off-duty mode.

7. "Return" home from work

If you're working remotely, pretend it's not, and after the end of the day, step outside as if you'd just stepped out of the office. Walk around the block for at least 5 minutes and return home. This technique will help clear your head and tune in to rest.

If the weather is bad outside, you can go to another room and listen to a podcast or audiobook, as if you were doing it on your way home from the office.

8. Call or write to a friend

Communication with other people strengthens our connection with the outside world and allows us to forget about work stress. Even a short conversation with a loved one who supports you will remind you that you can talk not only with colleagues or clients.

9. Do breathing exercises

This is one of the most effective and simple ways to relieve the stress of the working day, relax both physically and psychologically. So after you have completed the last task, take 10 slow deep breaths in and out. Pay attention to what changes are happening to your body, how the stomach and chest are filled with air. You will most likely notice that you feel much better.

10. Create a relaxing atmosphere

Make sure that when you return home after work, you find yourself in a comfortable, relaxing environment. Fill your lounge space with cute trinkets and cozy details. Or, on the contrary, remove everything that can annoy you, first of all - any things that will remind you of work.