Relaxation: evening rituals of top managers

Berlin Off to the sofa: For many people that is enough as an evening contrast to their job. It’s not enough for Reinhild Fürstenberg. Only when she digs in the garden soil with her hands does she have the feeling that she is slowly coming down. “I do something completely different in the evening than what I did at work during the day,” says the health scientist and founder of the Hamburg Fürstenberg Institute, which supports companies, managers and employees with mental health.

Psychologists call this “pattern disruption”. Actively ending an activity brings inner distance. Switching from the office chair to the sofa does not bring this: “The thoughts then often continue to revolve around the job,” says Fürstenberg.

Ideally, the working day should be designed in such a way that it does not run at high pressure all the time. Gradually reducing daily activity promotes good sleep, motivation and performance. And there are even more strategies: The Handelsblatt has asked executives from Taxfix, Accenture, UFA and other companies about their daily financial statements.