We all have stress and pressure in our lives, both personal and work pressures. It seems to be a common theme from both clients and candidates commenting on how busy they are and it doesn’t sound like things are slowing down any time soon. 

Here are a few handy tips that may help in dealing with pressure:  

1. Plan, plan, plan – post-it notes, lists, highlighters – you have name it – I have it! 

2. Everything is urgent but it’s important to prioritise – make a list of the top things that need to be done daily, regardless of what happens. 

3. Highlight when each one is completed. It makes such a difference to your positive mental attitude and feeling of accomplishment. 

4. Identify when it is going to be a busy time and be prepared as much as possible. 

5. Focus on daily tasks and completing those, rather than worrying about what will happen next week, next month etc. 

6. Try not to get overwhelmed by breaking each job down, in order of priority.  

7. Team work – lean on team members that may not be as busy at that point in time, who would be happy to help out. 

8. Work hard – things won’t always be as busy as they are now, so put in the extra effort. The rewards will certainly follow. 

9. Stop procrastinating! I have been meaning to write this blog for the last few weeks and of course, I am now writing it at the last minute! 

10. Change your outlook – think of pressure as being part of life and don’t let it overwhelm you. 

11. Review your previous behaviour and learn from that. Look back on situations and see how you could have done things differently and adopt that next time you are in a similar situation. We aren’t perfect but to really grow we must try and do this. 

12. Look after yourself – eat well, get lots of sleep, exercise, and drink plenty of water! 

13. Breathe 

14. Have fun while doing it! We can’t escape pressure so we may as well push through it and have a smile and a laugh! 

MARIANNE SAVAS
Divisional Manager

As an ex-Accountant by trade, Marianne started her career in recruitment, initially working for Hays in their accounting support division. Over time, she worked her way up to Accounting Manager, looking after a growing team of consultants, specialising in the placement of temporary and permanent staff in commerce and industry within the accounting and office support areas.

Marianne enjoys building long term relationships with people and watching their careers grow over the years. She joined Optimum Consulting in 2013 as Divisional Manager and is responsible for the overseeing of a great team and to grow and develop it further with talented recruiters and a passion for relationship building.