4 Ways to Practice Self-Care in the Workplace

Let's face it. Our work lives can be quite stressful and take a toll on us, both emotionally and physically. It can be easy to get wrapped up in the urgency of it all and then fail to recognize what we're experiencing.

When our work situation takes us to the breaking point it is likely to impact our personal and home life, too, and so it's important to develop a practice of self-care in the office.

Consider the following four elements of a self-care plan and adjust them, as necessary, to your work situation.

Surround yourself with support. Unless you're the boss, you can't pick your team but you can choose the colleagues you grab lunch with, or meet up for a coffee break with, or hang out with after work. Build a supportive and encouraging group of colleagues around you to be a source of strength when things are tough and stressful at work. These colleagues can share an encouraging word around the coffee machine or crack the right joke to put things in perspective. Seek out positive people and you'll feel less stressed.

Create a healthy and encouraging work space. Put up some inspiring and motivational quotes t around your desk or on your computer. Always be surrounded by the encouraging wisdom of others you admire and respect. In addition, keep your work space organized and clean. Consider adding a plant to help clean the air and provide a little color. And put up some art by your favorite artist.

Take time to move. Schedule regular time in your day to get away from your desk or work area and take a walk. Adding some physical activity to your day can help refresh and re-energize you, and a comfortable walk allows you get away alone and come up with a new, creative approach to a problem you might be dealing with.

Recognize your successes and victories. Each day and every week brings some successes with it. Be sure to slow down enough to recognize those victories and acknowledge them. Write them down and allow yourself to enjoy even the small successes.

Applying these four practices to your regular work routine can help prevent the stressful times from overwhelming you and negatively impacting your satisfaction on the job and your enjoyment at home.

4 Things to Do Once You've Been Promoted

So, you got the big news: all the hard work has paid off and you've been promoted to that job you've been coveting and working toward for months. Now what? This isn't a time to kick back and relax.

Take the following steps to continue your career momentum:

1. Celebrate and be grateful. Yes, you certainly deserve to celebrate your accomplishment. Enjoy that night out with friends and family and be grateful. And then be grateful every day. You'll want to remember the importance of being thankful on those days you question if you really all the responsibility of this new job.

2. Listen and Learn. Begin to listen to others you'll be working with and for. Hear their frustrations in the job, along with the things they enjoy and the processes that are going well. Begin to understand your role and how you can best support those around you, in addition to considering how to best apply your strengths and knowledge to the new position. Learn as much as you can from others and seek to serve those you work with, particularly those who report to you.

3. Find an ally. Often when a promotion occurs it means that at least one other person you'll work closely with was passed over for the job. These can be tricky situations and so it's important to find someone to discuss issues and concerns with. Find an ally and a mentor to help you move through the transition to your new role, especially in those early months when emotions are raw and everyone is still finding there way around the new structure.

4. Give yourself some slack. You'll make mistakes. That is a given. You'll need to learn how to quickly move on from your mistakes, own them responsibly, and learn from them. Learning from mistakes does not mean that you spend hours dwelling on them in an attempt to get things right. A good leader knows that you need to let your decisions go and move on.

Daily Leap Career Video of the Week: 4 Ways to Become More Disciplined

Each week we present our Daily Leap Career Video of the Week. The video we share presents news or advice related to career and life development, searching for a job, the economy and employment, and other career-related topics.

In the video below Brendon Burchard offers four tips to become more disciplined, starting with a daily morning practice of bringing your attention to the benefits and payoffs of what you're working toward.

5 Steps to Deal with Work or Career Anxiety

Many people experience anxiety or fears related to their work or job situation. For some, there is a generalized anxiety about facing the day, dealing with unexpected occurrences, or communicating with colleagues. Others who are unemployed may find it increasingly difficult to take the necessary steps toward getting a job.

Here a five ways that you can deal with work or career-related anxiety and fears.

1. Acknowledge the anxiety. Recognize that the anxiety and fear is there and is not unique to you. Understand that your anxiety does not have to control and define you and that you can take steps to minimize the impact on your career and job happiness.

2. Meditate. Simply taking 5 minutes in the morning to sit and meditate can bring significant benefits. Meditation has been shown to reduce anxiety and depression and many successful entrepreneurs laud its impact on their success.

3. Set one simple goal. Achieving one goal, even a simple one, can have a ripple effect and enable you to move forward more effectively. Apply for one job, call one friend, attend one networking event, make one proposal, ask one question. It only takes one. And you must do one before you can do two.

4. Accountability. Let at least one other person know about your fears and anxiety and let that person know about the one goal you set. Ask them to hold you accountable and support you in achieving the goal and developing other strategies and plans to help ease your anxieties.

5. Celebrate. It does not matter how simple the goal or how small the achievement. Reward yourself with a celebration for taking a step forward and there will be many more opportunities to celebrate as you move forward and deal with your anxieties and fears. Be sure to include your support person in your celebration!

A final note: If necessary, seek out professional assistance. Many therapists or career counselors can assist with helping to recognize the causes of anxiety and develop effective strategies to help work through the fears.

Daily Leap Career Video of the Week: Celebrate Success

Each week we present our Daily Leap Career Video of the Week. The video we share presents news or advice related to career development, searching for a job, the economy and employment, and other career-related topics.

As we come to the end of 2014 it's a good time to recognize and celebrate your successes and wins during the past year. In the following video business coach Tom Ferry talks about the importance of celebrating even the small wins we encounter in our lives.

What successes are you celebrating?