Not going to lie: temporary work is one of the most stressful situations to be in. From living contract to contract, to having to reapply to temp jobs again and again, the process seems never ending. This can lead to feelings of insecurity, financial insecurity, and even housing insecurity and a lack of established patterns.
Each of these can lead to a lot of additional stress that no one, including you, needs. This is why it is very important to use de-stressing strategies that help you decompress and let go of the stress.
Meditation
One thing that helps a lot when things are unstable or they feel unstable, is meditation and mindfulness. It may seem like some sort of out there thing for you if you have never tried.
The practice of meditation has been proven to decrease stress, aid in emotional stability and control, and help bring a sense of peace to your life. You can use many forms of meditation. There’s deep breathing, patterned breathing, musical meditation, and much more.
Since there are so many ways for meditation to be used, it’s important to remember to try what works best for you. Meditation can occur at any time of the day and, once you get the hang of it, even 15 minute breaks can become a meditation moment!
Getting Outside
Every season has a downside: spring is so full of pollen it’s hard to breathe, summer is hotter than the devil’s … you know, winter brings snow and slipping, and finally fall brings plenty of random weather all the time. Even though the weather can affect the day, it’s important to go outside and get sunlight when you can.
Many humans have a vitamin D deficiency because most of our time is spent indoors at a desk. The human body desperately needs vitamin D to regulate hormones, nutrition, and sleep. If it is hard to remember to go outside, set reminders on your phone or better yet, work going outside into your daily routine.
Once something becomes a part of your habits, you’ll be able to keep up the work and keep up your outside time. No matter where you are in the world during your temp work, you can take a few moments to go outside and refresh your mind.
Hobbies
When you travel for temp work, it’s not really possible to pick up your whole life and travel. Some people may have storage rooms that they pay for to house major things like big pieces of furniture or heirloom items. Other than that though, you have to be able to take something from home that keeps you sane and connected to what you call home.
One way to do this other than blankets, pillows, and photos is to bring your hobbies with you. For gamers, bring as much of your set-up as you can. For artists, pack your medium that you use and plenty of supplies. For musicians, be sure to bring your gear so that you can record and listen on the go. For crafters, pick maybe one or two specific things that you like to do and bring them.
There’s something that everyone can use to succeed. Maybe, just maybe, the place you are staying has hiking trails, bike rentals, maybe even kayak rentals that are close by. If you are more of an outside person, make sure you research where you are going so that you can still follow your passions and hobbies.
This is going to really help when you are so far from home.
Make Something Regular and Secure
Work is secure while it’s there. It’s important that no matter where you go, you maintain a routine that has been set in place. Going with the flow can only work for so long for most people: otherwise tasks get lost by the wayside, projects are left alone, and you may even lose track of time constantly.
Not really the best place to be, huh?
Routine has been proven to be a huge help when regulating stress and trying to make sure that you are taking care of yourself emotionally, mentally, and physically. This is why schedules are so important when you are traveling.
It is going to take a hot minute to settle into a routine, however, once you do, you are going to be grateful that you worked on trying to keep your life as stable as you can when doing temp work.
Conclusion
There’s no joke about it: temporary work is hard and it is stressful. There are always healthy and safe ways to decrease your stress like those mentioned here. Make sure you are staying on a schedule, doing what you love, getting some sun, and meditating. The stress will just melt away!
