Job Stress Management – Methods Of Managing Stress In The Workplace
For many of us, our jobs are a major cause of the stress in our lives. The sources of stress at the workplace can be long hours and physical exertion, a demanding boss, coworkers that we don’t get along with, or countless other things. Whatever your specific situation may be, it is of little doubt that learning how to reduce and manage job stress is an important part of your overall stress reduction and relaxation strategy.
The causes of job stress can be loosely divided into categories such as interpersonal relationships, the nature of the job itself, and unmet expectations. This article will be a first in a series that will provide the solutions to these various sources of job stress. We will also discuss general strategies how to manage stress and relax during work. This first article in the installment will focus on job stress that stems from relationships in the workplace.
Workplace Stress Management – Conflict & Interpersonal Relationships
Communication and relationships with others are a significant part of most people’s jobs and can also be major causes of stress. Whether it is with coworkers, management, or clients, most of us deal with others in the workplace on a daily basis. As a result, we often find ourselves in conflicts with the people that we work with. These conflicts can be out in the open where all sides are aware of the conflict, or they can be something that we suffer from in silence. For example, an open conflict is one where you and one of your coworkers dislike each other and both of you are aware of that fact. A silent conflict could be your personal negative feelings towards your boss that you cannot directly express to him or her.
A key element in job stress management and solving both types of conflict is to find the middle ground and the balance between assertiveness and compromise with the other party. Read more about Job Stress Management – Methods Of Managing Stress In The Workplace →
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Managing Stress: Doing Good without Stress Overload
When we hear the word stress what usually comes into our minds? None of the good things that come with it, I am sure. And perhaps you are even asking yourself if there are any. My answer is there are. But before we get to that, let us first define stress. Stress is biochemical reaction in our bodies. It is caused by Cortisol, a hormone produced by our adrenal glands; somewhat similar to fight or flight. Cortisol causes our eyes to dilate and our heart to pump faster. It increases our heart rate and blood sugar levels. In some studies, stress is considered to be one of the major factors of 80 percent of major illnesses. Perhaps the logic behind this being that Cortisol suppresses the immune system. However, Cortisol is not all that bad. Like all things, it has two sides. The hormone also helps us stay focused, keep us energized, and keeps us on our toes. Have you ever experienced being stressed out running after a deadline and yet surprisingly, you find that you are able to get the job done with unexpected concentration? This is one of the good effects of Cortisol.
Now, let us get to a more specific type of stress: Occupational or work stress. The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) defines job stress as the harmful physical and emotional responses that occur when the requirements of the job do not match the capabilities, resources, or needs of the worker. Stress also occurs when the situation has high demands and the worker has little or no control over it. Job stress can lead to poor health and injury. However, without stress we’d be unable to react to situations quickly.
Now how does one manage this type of stress? What are the symptoms? The most common symptoms negativism, low morale, fatigues, depression, irritability, physical illness or discomfort such as headaches and neck pains. There are even some instances where stress led to suicide and injury.
There are many reasons for work related stress. One most common reason is when the characteristics of the worker and his capabilities do not match or are not enough to meet the demands of the job. Stressful working conditions also lead to occupational stress. Having a bully in the workplace also leads to tremendous amount of stress and emotional distress. Having employees who are overburdened with tasks also experience stress overload. How tasks are being distributed among people and its design can also contribute to stress. Management style is also a factor and even career concerns such as stability and compensation lead to or contribute to psychological and emotional stress. Poor communication, air and noise pollution within the organization also add to stress. Job related stress has been a known contributing factor to cardiovascular disease, musculoskeletal disorders, psychological disorders and ulcers. The next question is how does one deal with job related stress?
There are many ways to do so but there are also two most common ways to deal with job related stress: organizational change and stress management. In fairness to the two, they both greatly reduce stress.
Organizational change is the most direct way to reduce stress but is also the most expensive and difficult path to choose even if it deals with the root cause of stress at work. Identifying key persons and implementing strategy designs may arouse conflict or interpersonal clash between people involved. Organizational change also causes changes in work routines and in the process hinder production or lower productivity levels and in extreme cases, causes a change in organizational structure. Stress management sessions and seminars have the advantage of being easily achievable and inexpensive but the benefits are often short-lived because it ignores important root cause/s of stress.
A combination of the two approaches provides the most comprehensive approach because it takes care of the root problem and manages to rapidly lower stress levels and its effects.
So why is handling stress important? And how does one prevent work related stress? On an organizational level there are three basic steps: identification, intervention and evaluation. On a personal level, the employee or the business owner should learn to balance work and personal life. Leave work at work and home at home. Finding a balance in life is never easy but the end result is a less stressful and a more fulfilling life.
The author is a SME for an account in Voiceville Communications, Inc.
The Experts Guide To Managing Your Time
Solve all your time management woes. 27 Top Experts spill their secrets, covering procrastination, prioritizing, scheduling, organizing, clutter, work life balance, efficiency, productivity, waste, wastage, to do list,todo, tips, techniques and tricks
The Experts Guide To Managing Your Time
Managing Your Stress in the Workplace
Face it. Even if you are stressed beyond your limits in the office, you can’t do anything about it. After all, what job does not involve any stress? The secret is to make sure that you can manage on the side the job of managing your stress!
Managing your stress however can be really tricky if you are inside the office. The work environment limits the ways that you can manage your stress. For instance, if watching TV or movies relieves your stress, you cannot very well do that inside the office. Neither can you play badminton or sing with a karaoke. The most that you can do is to play some quick computer game, hoping that somehow it can relax you. For some people, this is enough; but for others, it is not.
But there are ways to relieve the stress while sitting on your office chair. Often, the trick is to not wait for the stress levels to go up. As they say in medicine, an ounce of prevention is more than a pound of cure. Don’t wait to get stressed, avoid it like the plague! Here’s how.
1. Eat healthy
People who are basically healthy will have more energy levels on which to work on. They are more able to withstand late nights and are more able to keep up with long brain activities as compared to people who are not. To do this, you’ve got to eat healthy foods especially those that are rich in vitamins, minerals and proteins. Besides, having all the energy that you need will help you cope better with stress when it happens.
2. Sleep
Sleeping provides the body the rest that it needs. Brain activity and bodily functions slow down when people are sleeping. Muscles also relax. When the body lacks sleep, energy levels go down and the brain becomes disoriented. This results to poorer concentration, which in the long run can become detrimental to your job functions. Thus, one way to avoid stress altogether is get the requisite 8 hours or more sleep. It will do you good.
3. Exercise
Another way to combat stress and to prevent it from happening altogether is to have a daily run or an exercise routine. Experts say that a person must work out 30 minutes each day to successfully keep the body in shape and healthy. Exercise strengthens our resistance and surprisingly increases the energy levels. It helps keep the stressors at bay as it relaxes the muscles and keeps the air flowing freely through breathing techniques.
4. Manage time
Nothing can make you more stressful than not managing your time well. Just ask people who are used to cramming for exams or for work assignments. Planning your time right and doing what you are supposed to do on time will help keep the stressors away. Besides, by doing your assignments and work load piece by piece allows you to relax while doing it and gives you enough time to really work on it should the boss decides to have it real early.
5. Smiling
Being happy and optimistic is the number stress buster there is. Do you know that smiling can help keep the muscles in the face relaxed? It actually uses less muscles than when you are frowning. So laugh on the job and keep it cool.
For more information please visit stress relaxation techniques
Managing Workplace Stress
Working for almost ten hours a day everyday for five days (sometimes even more) can be truly stressful. Each day, you wake up in the morning, getting a bit harried since you’re going to be late. You eat a bit of breakfast, drink lots of coffee, and quickly do errands on the way to work. Once you get to the office, the world seems to be different. A whole new scenario away from your comfort zone, the workplace would be your “home” for the whole day.
In the office, there is nothing more to do but work. Of course, work can be fun, if you want it to be. More often than not, work means business. And with this comes stress and anxiety. It is fairly common for people to experience such stress and anxiety when at work, since they are bound by projects, deadlines, reports, and other work related issues for the rest of the day. Stressing about deadlines for example, can give the person a feeling of worry and fear. It means that stress is usually accompanied by anxiety as well. Unfortunately, they go side by side in giving the person more headaches and thus having poor input on their work productivity.
Stress management is critical for people who work tirelessly, also known as workaholics. They are more vulnerable to stress and anxiety, since they are really into their work. These people really give all their best in committing to the best work performance and productivity. Such feelings of heaviness and being tired and worrisome can result in sickness absences in work. By practicing stress management, one can reduce such absences, increase on employee’s commitment to work, increase staff performance and productivity, staff recruitment and retention, staff turnover or leave intentions, good customer satisfaction, and overall organizational reputation and image.
Stress and anxiety cannot be avoided, especially in the workplace. Employees suffering from these feelings are apt to smoke or drink excessively, doing several jobs all at once, missing breaks, rushing, hurrying, being available to everyone, eating on the run, taking work home, and having no time for exercise or relaxation.
Stress management can be easy if all the employees in the workplace support and contribute to the prevention of stress in the office. A simple stress policy, for example, can help in reducing such stress during office hours. The company implements a stress policy by identifying all the workplace stressors and give out risk assessments to stop stress, providing training in good management skills for all supervisory staff, giving confidential counseling for staff affected by stress and anxiety, among many others. This kind of policy can decrease stress in the workplace, if properly executed.
Supervisory personnel could also help an employee suffering from stress and anxiety in the workplace. By understanding his/ her current situation, giving support, and developing a plan to deal with the pressure and stress, they can ensure good employee performance by working together in omitting stress and anxiety at work. Remember, a happy worker is a productive worker.
Read about dragon arum, dwarf weeping cherry tree and other information at the Gardening Central website.
Managing Wellbeing and Preventing Stress at Work
www.mas.org.uk Alan Bradshaw and Professor Derek Mowbray discuss the forthcoming Management Advisory Service seminars on Managing Wellbeing and Preventing Stress at Work. They discuss: the reasons why managing wellbeing and preventing stress are such important issues; Professor Mowbray’s recently published Agenda on Wellbeing and Performance, the links between the topics covered in the seminar and recent Government initiatives on wellbeing and stress at work; and why managers are critically important in managing wellbeing and preventing psychological distress. The Seminars take place in Edinburgh, London, Liverpool, Newcastle and Cheltenham
Managing Fear & Anxiety, Overcoming Fright, Panic, Worry
HOW TO MANAGE ANXIETY, CONTROL FEAR, OVERCOME FRIGHT, PANIC, WORRY
Fear, anxiety are controllable. Panic, worry, fright can be rid of. Knowing what are, how work, fear, anxiety, helps solve problems, control fear and anxiety.
Anxiety and fear causes crisis. One must understand fear and anxiety, how fear and anxiety work, to control anxiety, manage fear. Can be overcome anxiety and fear.
Managing fear, overcoming anxiety can be without expensive books, courses. Overcoming children’s fears, anxieties, controlling, managing adult fear and anxiety is possible. Here is, whether in child or adult, how to control, manage, overcome fear and anxiety.
Fear and anxiety, being afraid and anxious, begin when we are, or feel, vulnerable. We experience uneasiness and concern which frightens, makes fearful. This causes timidity, and timidity gives rise to a state of alarm which sometimes involves such hesitation that shrinks us from dealing with a matter or situation that needs to be resolved. The pain and emotion, the tension and stress of fear and anxiety is accompanied by a feeling of helplessness which is negative thought which so affects the functioning of the nervous system in dealing with fear and anxiety.
Fright, fear, anxiety, can cause crises, neurosis; the dread, terror, horror of phobia is fear. Worrying, most worries, are fear; but, often, we can’t cope with worry. Positive thinking helps but is not coping with fear, controlling fear, dealing with worry; to control fear, anxiety, we must know how fear and anxiety work.
Fear and anxiety effect automatically. Our autonomic nervous system regulates how body organs work. Chiefly a part of the autonomic nervous system, called ’sympathetic’, automatically interacts with our mind when we worry, experience anxiety, fear.
When fear is felt the mind signals a threat, danger, or emergency physically (e.g. a hand raised in anger) or psychologically (e.g. distrust); the sympathetic nervous system immediately comes into action to help protect or defend ourselves to our best possible advantage. Suddenly automatically we breath more oxygen which, with cyclic biochemical reactions, energises our ‘electron transport chain’ and synthesises with other substances in our body, upon that fear signal. This synthesising upon that fear signal urgently turns on electrical impulses which fire from cell to cell at very high speeds communicating that fear to the control centre in the brain.
In our fear and anxiety, the brain instantly issues commands to the organs to take action. Our organs immediately divert and concentrate energies from other organs to those relevant to our fear and anxiety. The pupils of our eyes grow bigger to see better, the blood vessels expand to more and faster supply, to enable our muscles to react. In aid of that the body produces adrenaline to enhance alertness and our actions for ‘flight’ or ‘fight’, as our values dictate, and as we feel directed by our fear, anxiety.
Anxiety and fear are not cured by medication. Drugs only help coping with worry; only help cope with fear or anxiety. It is generally agreed by expert that if we know how to, we can better control fear, manage anxiety. Panic confuses and causes worry; but, except for phobias (when one must consult a doctor), it isn’t complicated to manage fear, control anxiety.
Adult fear and anxiety is mostly due to problems; e.g., worry over debt, disapproval, separation, failure.
Children have no adult problems; child fear or anxiety is feeling inadequate about the frightening unknown.
Adults cope with both, whether it is fear or anxiety arising from adult problems or child fear and anxiety over inability to protect or defend as adults can.
In child fear control, managing child fear and anxiety it often suffices to ensure an “I am protected” feeling for the child. A child’s fear, e.g., of the dark is over anxiety that something may go wrong or be hurtful; e.g. a dim light helps ease that fear, anxiety, but the child needs assurance that you are nearby and can protect from or defend against what is causing the child’s fear and anxiety. If fear of the unknown is, e.g., anxiety over a new environment, accompany the child until it is realised that there is nothing to fear.
In adults fear and anxiety does not go away because of their being fear and anxiety with good reason. Adult fear and anxiety involve not unreasonable worry but possible significant consequences. But an adult can control worry, even overcome fear, anxiety.
Coping with, overcoming fear and anxiety begins with realising that problems are solvable, consequences avoidable. This enables to cope with fear and anxiety.
Adults suffer fear and anxiety for two reasons. They do not know how to solve the problem; and, it never occurs to most to find out because panic causes confusion. Panic prevents rational thinking, they can not think how to, e.g., reason arguments, acceptably put a hurt right; they, e.g., forget or never find out that an offer to pay by instalments may not be lawfully refused. The problem seems unsolvable, panic becomes fear, anxiety; worry makes fear worse.
Anxiety and fear often result from failure to clearly identify the problem. That is the cause of panic, a problem’s becoming worse, of the fear and anxiety.
Problem solving involves rational though, and that necessitates calmness. If angry, do ‘count to ten’.
Avoiding panic is avoiding fear and anxiety. If feeling panicky, take a deep breath: inhale, hold it to the count of three, exhale slowly; this is regarded as regulating oxygen intake and avoiding the above-mentioned body functions and chemical reactions which substitute to normal body and mind functions the limited, concentrated, emergency, urgent functioning. You will feel less urgency, less rushed, less panicky and less likely to suffer fear and anxiety.
Similarly easy it becomes then to replace the reduced likelihood of fear, anxiety with rational thought. One only needs to know how to do so.
One cannot apply rational thought to a problem if one is confused. The panic was due to not knowing what to do, confusion. One needs to clear one’s head in order to think and substitute to avoided panic, and reduced fear and anxiety, rational thought.
One’s bodily functions and mental functions interact. Adrenaline enhances what the brain signals. If it signals an emergency, it enhances urgency; if it signals calm though, then it enhances that. This is the basis of ‘positive thinking’. Such automatic biological, electrochemical, functioning of the nervous system enhances mental functions, confusion is rid of. Then can be clearly seen the problem and properly explored the ways of solving it without panic worsening it, causing fear and anxiety.
Then you can identify your fear. What is it that you fear, why? What part or parts of the problem is it that is causing you the worry, the anxiety, the fear? Think of what exactly it is you fear, are afraid of. ‘Know your enemy’ to easier mange anxiety, overcome fear.
One can learn to control one’s fear and, in the verses of Orhan Seyfi Ari in his Mystic Man (translated), one can enjoy the feeling that…
“Neither anxiety has he, nor fear,
The World’s like a rubber ball under his feet rather,
The Sun in one hand, and the Moon in the other.”
Calmness helps solution, managing fear and anxiety.
The author’s favourite site is: Teacher of Teachers
You Can Learn How to Handle Work Stress – Managing Stress in the Workplace
We all have times when we are at work and get very stressed out because of what someone might have said or that we now have more work than before. Whatever the situation is that is causing the stress it is important to learn good Stress Management skills. If we want to be thought of as an ideal employee and advance in our career we need to get our stress under control.
Learn How To: Get the Perfect Job
Stress is one of the leading causes of strokes and heart attacks and at the workplace we encounter very stressful situations all the time but handling the situation is most important to dealing with these stresses. Having some stress can help us to be more motivated but too much stress can overwhelm us and actually make us less productive.
Learn About: Positive Work Habits
If you are in a situation where you are being overloaded with the amount of work you are being asked to do then maybe you should talk with your supervisor and see about reducing the load or breaking it up so you don’t get everything at once. If the stress is coming form another worker you need to not let the situation get worse by doing nothing. You should confront the person and do whatever it takes to resolve the issue so that you can be productive and not fear going to work everyday.
It is also important to understand that if you are under a lot of stress at work that it will carry over into your personal life as well. It can cause you to have stress with your wife and kids and even in severe cases destroy a marriage.
Just remember that you want to Manage your Stress at work so that you can have a great career.
Bryan Burbank is an Expert in Jobs for more information go to: http://www.findanotherjob.com