It doesn’t matter how much you love your job or the people you work with, having a bad day at work is unavoidable. A bad day at work can kill your mood and make you feel less motivated to go in the next day or crack on with all the jobs on your to-do list. A rubbish day doesn’t even have to mean something went really wrong, it can be a collection of small things that simply tested your patience a little too much, like a dodgy printer, no coffee in the kitchen, or a frustrating colleague. Whatever the cause, a bad day at work can put a dampener on things and make you more inclined to drag your heels on your way in the next day.
Instead of letting a tough day at work ruin a job you otherwise enjoy or get in the way of achieving your bigger aspirations, learning ways to manage your emotions and rebuild your mindset is the key to keeping your head in the game. Practicing tips and tricks to improve your mood will boost your motivation, enhance efficiency, and manage your stress so it doesn’t boil over and make you want to explode.
Dwelling on a bad day or negative emotions can seriously affect your mood, and over time your mental health can start to head downhill. If you don’t work hard to keep your mindset resilient, one bad day can start to escalate into more bad days or spill over into your evenings when you should be relaxing and recharging for the following day. Without enough space to rest and reset, your mood will only worsen, and it can start to impact your work, home, and family life… see the pattern here?
Being able to bounce back from a bad day at work is super important to keep your mental health in good condition. So, here are five steps for you to try the next time you have a challenging day at work:
1. Get outside
When you get back to the comfort of your own home after a bad day at work, you’ll probably be tempted to crawl under the covers and do your best to block out the day you’ve had. Whilst we’re all for a bit of wallowing from time to time, one of the best things you can do for your mood is getting yourself out in the fresh air.
According to research, just spending 10 minutes outside can work to boost your mood and relieve a bit of the stress you’re feeling. So, when your duvet starts to call to you, try your best to ignore it and instead take the opportunity to head outside. Head out into your garden if you have one or take yourself off to a local park or a walk around the block. You’ll be surprised at how much better you’ll feel! Practice some breathing techniques to help your stress and anxiety, and just allow the great outdoors to do its thing.
2. Allow yourself to reflect
Whilst it isn’t always pleasant dwelling on a bad day or thinking about the things that went wrong, it’s actually a pretty important part of healing. BUT, reflecting on your bad day at work needs to be done correctly in order to avoid making the negative emotions worse. What you can do, is turn those negative emotions into positive actions.
The trick is to ask yourself “am I problem-solving or am I ruminating?”. When you’re problem-solving, you’ll be reflecting on why your day might have gone the way it did so you can prevent it from happening again or thinking about how you can improve your day tomorrow. When you start ruminating, you’ll be playing the events of the day over and over without coming up with a useful explanation or solution.
Writing about your day in a journal or simply jotting a few things down in your notes app can be very therapeutic for your mind and allow you to process whatever emotions you might be feeling. Just make sure you’re including the positive aspects of your day too (there will be something!) or read back through previous entries to remind yourself how far you’ve come, and that it is simply a bad day and not a bad life.
3. Be empathetic with others
If another co-worker or someone in the office has caused you frustration or triggered your bad day, take a moment to put yourself in their shoes. Chances are, they’re also having a bad day. Think about what you might need in that situation and try and offer it to them, maybe it’s a few words of encouragement or a self esteem boost.
Before you get cross with them, be empathetic and show them a bit of support instead. You’ll be surprised at how much it helps your own mood too!
4. Talk to someone
Venting about your frustrations to a trusted friend or family member will help alleviate some of the pent-up stress and frustration. By talking about what’s bothered you, you are able to work through and understand what happened as well as find a solution to the problem. Your friend might even be able to offer some sage words of advice or help you understand the situation from a different perspective. If you’ve got a colleague that you feel confident talking to then they might be the most helpful in working through a work-related problem, but just make sure they’re reliable and won’t go and cause you any more drama!
5. Hit the reset button
To prevent your bad day spiralling into a bad week, practice a few mindset-resetting techniques to interrupt the cycle of negativity. The more you let a bad day go on, the more it can feel like unfortunate situations keep happening. Using some tactics to reset your mind can stop the pattern in its tracks and give you a chance to start over. These techniques can help you shake off the negative energy and find positive outcomes for the situation. Here are a few resetting tricks you can try out:
- Take a shower
- Lie down for 15 minutes
- Practice mindfulness
- Use positive affirmations
- Download the Morale app
Morale is here to turn your frown upside down! Our mental health-boosting app will help you bounce back from a bad day at work in no time at all. Simply send and receive daily affirmations amongst your inner circle to give your self esteem a kick and help your mindset become more resilient.
Download it now from Google Play or Apple’s App Store.
If you find yourself in need of a little mental health pick me up, then why not check out our social media. It’s jam-packed with good vibes and mental health tips and tricks, just what you need after a bad day!
Want to know more about us? Send us an email to contact@moraleapp.co and we’d love to chat some more.
