1 - Force yourself to separate work and personal life: Social psychologists support that your ability to do a good job while at work depends on whether or not you have a home life that refreshes and restores you. If you cannot stop thinking about the projects you have to complete after leaving the office, try to create a mental filing cabinet. It would act as your actual project cabinet since you will allow yourself to sit down, open it and deal with your work worries. Then force yourself to mentally close the cabinet and do something else. You can try this on Fridays before leaving the office or each night at a certain time. The most important thing is to lock the cabinet before attempting to direct your attention to something less stressful.

2 - Avoid multitasking except while being at the office: A rather usual bad tactic today's working professionals suffer from is subconsciously taking the office habits -especially that of multitasking- home with them. It is not rare that people find themselves washing dishes or cleaning their drawers while phoning a friend or checking their mails. Living everyday in the overdrive has resulted in multitasking when one ought to relax. Although some consider this as a normal routine, our bodies do not. In order to balance work, play, and rest, try to write down five ways work blends into your free time. Then select one to focus on. If for example you tend to check your e-mails every hour while at home, cut back initially by half and then more until you get it down to once a night. By transforming mindless habits into conscious choices, you will limit your body's stress and gain control over your free time during the day or night.

3 - Socialize outside your work: To lead a more fulfilling personal life, expand your exposure to people you do not work with. Otherwise, you will constantly be pushed into the role you play while being at the office. Meet your friends, get our more often, sign up for a photography class, join the gym or volunteer your services for a cause. Meeting people and exchanging ideas is a very healthy way of finding the necessary balance within and gradually advance your abilities and social skills.

4 - Stop talking about work: People tend to develop social circles and share common experiences. When these circles are familiar or come from your work industry, try to avoid spending all your free time talking about issues that you would normally discuss during a lunch brake. Introduce new subjects and direct the conversation towards new issues of interest. Sports, arts, politics, and travel, can be very exciting subjects for your friends to dive into and by the end of the evening you will appreciate the fact that you learned something that was both entertaining and relaxing.

5 - Your home is your sanctuary: To prevent work from invading your home, create a personal project that will keep you busy but at the same time help you relax and recharge. You can gain a lot from painting, cooking a special dinner for your friends or investing time to start a home-improvement project. Invent new ways of keeping yourself active and your body and mind will thank you for having diverse interests.

Kadence Buchanan
Writes articles for http://allaboutourhealth.net/