if job stress is wearing you down and you want more leisure time, but you can't -- or don't want to -- quit altogether, it can be easy to feel stuck. but there's an alternative to consider: a voluntary demotion. plenty of professionals dream of scaling back on their workload or ceding management responsibility, here's how to do it:

　　如果工作压力实在令你不堪重负，你希望能有更多的闲暇时光，但却不能──或者不愿意──完全放弃工作，就会很容易把自己搞得疲累不堪。不过还有一个选择可以考虑：主动降职。很多专业人士都梦想着自己的工作量能够少一些或者少背负一些管理责任，不妨参考以下几点建议：

　　adjust your thinking

　　调整思路

　　start out by re-evaluating your goals and how you measure yourself. a successful career doesn't have to include a 60-hour-a-week beeline to the top, says joel mausner, a business psychologist at workplace psychology, a consulting firm in new york. he recommends first considering how you want to live your work and home lives. research routes to advancement within your company or industry that will satisfy the personal need you have, be it family time, less travel or the pursuit of a hobby. 'the harder part is being able to accept the idea that you're limiting your ambitions,' mr. mausner says.

　　重新确立目标及以及对自己的评判标准。纽约职场心理学咨询公司(workplace psychology)的职场心理学家乔尔•莫斯内(joel mausner)表示，事业成功并不意味着就得每周连轴转地工作60个小时。他建议，不妨先考虑一下你自己对于事业和家庭生活有何打算。提前调研一下，在你公司或者所从事行业内有哪些职场发展道路可以同时满足你的个人需求，比如可以多些时间跟家人共处、少出差、有时间从事自己的业余爱好，等等。莫斯内表示，“有一点会比较难以接受，那就是：你的雄心壮志会受到一定的限制。”

　　boss less

　　少管些人

　　if you're a manager, downscaling could mean applying your skills to a position that doesn't involve overseeing employees. 'not everybody is cut out to be a manager,' says lynne eisaguirre, an employment attorney and consultant from denver. she has seen many talented technical employees promoted into management jobs that didn't suit them. some return to their old jobs or make a lateral move. if you have proven yourself and provide something valuable to the firm, asking for a downward move or a move to a role with fewer direct reports won't be viewed as negatively.

　　如果你是一位主管，降级可能意味着你可以就任一个不需要监管别人的职位。丹佛劳工律师兼顾问琳恩•伊莎圭尔(lynne eisaguirre)表示，“不是每个人都适合担任管理职务的。”她见证了很多技术人员被提拔到管理岗位却无法胜任的案例。他们当中有些人后来又回到了原先的岗位或者调至其他平级职位。如果你已经为公司做出了有益的贡献，自身的价值已经得到了证实，那么当你主动提出降级或者调任一个可以少管些人的岗位时，别人也是不会看低你的。

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（实习编辑：高奕飞）