Striving for happiness is a constant challenge. It becomes nearly impossible when we face big changes at home or work.

Unless we set boundaries, unrelieved anxiety can fester into life-threatening health issues – not to mention problems with our spouses and families.

We’re all stressed out
I neglected the danger signs when my father passed away, my workload increased, and the demands of my job permeated my life. Tension and worry gave way to a major depression. Ultimately, I missed several weeks of work.
When you’re sweating to meet goals and deadlines, long hours are expected, and personal life is diminished. Your focus becomes success at any cost, and work becomes your life. If enough time passes, you begin to think that this is the New Normal.

Make life better
Gwen Moran, writing in Inc. Magazine, acknowledges the conundrum. “Into each life, some annoyances, obstacles, and misfortune will fall,” Moran says. “And while some self-help gurus will tell you to simply ditch what’s making you unhappy or holding you back, sometimes, it’s not that easy.”

In her story, “6 Tricks for Surviving Work and Personal Adversity,” Moran quotes Linda Hoopes, author of “Prosilience: Building Your Resilience for a Turbulent World.”

“Everybody has those constraints and situations that we don’t want to be in,” says Hoopes, a licensed clinical social worker and resilience expert. “Sometimes, you’re stuck with them for the time being. But there are things that you can do to make many situations better and cultivate greater resilience, even as you look for long-term solutions or resolutions.”

Small rewards can help
If your situation is long-lasting, it helps to pay special attention to your own comfort and relief.

That doesn’t mean an expensive weekend trip to a fancy spa. Ongoing self-care that helps relieve stress, promotes deep sleep, and offers a respite from your unrelenting pressures is optimal.

Commonly suggested remedies like long, hot baths with scented bubbles, facials, massages, yoga, exercise, and acupuncture really work. Taking an hour to read for pleasure, or sitting on your patio for a few minutes listening to birdsong, playing with your dog, or calling your best friend are small indulgences with big rewards.

Make lists
Break down your responsibilities, list them, and give each a priority. This will not only help keep you organized – it also will force you to focus on the things that matter rather than the self-critical voice in your head.
Is change possible?

Change what you can about your situation, advises Hoopes. “Even within a bad situation, you can make small changes to improve it and turn it into motivation to make bigger changes,” she notes. “You can look for opportunities to learn new skills, even in a job you hate. If you’re managing caretaking responsibilities, you might be able to enlist help from others to get some time for yourself. Think creatively about your situation and how you might be able to make small changes to improve it.”

Track your progress
Moran says one important way to combat job fatigue is to reframe your situation. Instead of complaining about what you cannot change, try listing the ways you have benefitted the company, the professional honors you’ve earned, or the ways you have grown professionally. Seeing yourself more objectively helps when the boss bears down.

When I made the career switch from journalism to public relations, I was apprehensive about working for a public relations agency. I worried about reputation and integrity and how I would perform.

Mostly I worried about tracking 15-minute increments of billable time for every task and assignment. What if I didn’t fulfill client expectations in the budgeted time? What if I was too slow?


Time is Money
It turns out that tracking my time during my six years at a full-service PR agency taught me one of the most valuable workplace lessons: Time is money, just as Benjamin Franklin said.

Today, years later and now an independent consultant, I appreciate that lesson every day. When providing cost estimates to my clients I break down each task according to the time required and quote my price based on those estimates.

Tracking every 15-minute time increment may seem overwhelming or unnecessary, but trust me, it’s a discipline I rely upon every day and a detail my clients appreciate. They pay me to juggle multiple projects, accomplish complicated assignments quickly and accurately, and provide an accounting of where I spend my time.

Even Small Periods of Time are Valuable
Because time is money, even the 10 minutes you spend waiting in a client’s office offers valuable opportunities. I’ve become quite skilled at identifying small tasks that I can squeeze between longer, more complicated assignments.
If you have just a few moments, consider checking one of these things off your list.
1. Create your daily to-do list.
2. Prioritize your tasks.
3. Clean out your purse, desk drawer, or briefcase.
4. Organize emails into folders.
5. Clear the top of your desk.
6. Do 10 reps of an arm or shoulder exercise.
7. Do some deep breathing and a short meditative exercise.

If you have 15 minutes to kill, how about getting these chores done?
1. Think carefully about a work problem for which you need solutions.
2. Take a short walk around the office, or better yet, outside in the fresh air.
3. Call your doctor, chiropractor, or dentist to make that long-postponed appointment.
4. Schedule the gardener to trim trees and shrubbery.
5. Stop by the dry cleaners to pick up or drop off clothing.
6. Phone your mother.

If you have 20-30 minutes, try doing these things:
1. Use this time for creativity – think about new ways to approach your work.
2. Read one of the articles you’ve saved for when you have a few extra minutes.
3. Listen to an audiobook.
4. Eat a healthy snack.
5. Check out online management tools, like Asana or Basecamp.

Whether you have just five minutes between appointments or find yourself with a chunk of unscheduled time, you can be prepared to bang out some chores, errands, and other to-do items. Keep your calendar handy, use your smartphone to check off your progress, and always have a book or article with you to read. You won’t regret living with the adage ‘time is money’ in the forefront of your mind.