Coping with workplace stress

Workplace stress: Stressors, Causes and Remedies:

While we discuss about workplace stress, some amount of stress is common and sometimes required too, in normal part of the workplace. However, excessive and specific stress symptoms and their consequences can interfere with our productivity and reduce our physical and emotional health. The ways to manage workplace stress is not about making huge changes. Rather, stress management requires focus on the one thing that’s always within your control and practising coping mechanisms. Stress Management is the major portion of soft skills.

Stress effect

The types and causes of stress at workplace are:

Role & Task Stressors

·         Role ambiguity

·         Single and multiple role conflict

·         Transition

·         Entrapment

·         Nature of the task and risk involved

·         Decision-making

·         Under/over stimulation

People related

·         Relationship with superiors, peers, subordinates and clients

·         Interpersonal conflict,

·         Harassment

·         Animosities

·         Bullying

·         Victimization

·         Organizational politics

Personal

·         Undisciplined working nature

·         Non assertiveness – Either aggressive or submissive

·         Poor time/change management

·         Incompetence

                    Some Tips to cope with workplace stress:

Schedule, plan and balance:

By analysing your schedule, responsibilities, and daily tasks, make them comfortable the way it fits your ability and the desired result. Understanding and aware of the difference between organisational expectations and yours will help balancing. It may look huge many times.

It may be helpful to draw some discipline measures by yourself and it is done strictly follow that. Since it is your own code prepared the way you are comfortable this will clear some pressure areas in our brain.

Prioritise tasks:

Make a list of tasks you have to do, and tackle them in order of importance. Do the high-priority items first. If you have something particularly unpleasant to do, get it over with early. The rest of your day will be more pleasant as a result.

Avoid over commitment:

This one reduces your perceived load of work. If you complain too much of work, try to distinguish between the most important and the less ones.   

Punctuality:

This term itself is stressful to some of us being and being in the place bit earlier is less stressful than on time. Even 10-15 minutes can make the difference between frantically rushing to your desk and having time to ease into your day. Don’t add to your stress levels by running late.

Taking breaks:

Make sure to take short breaks throughout the day to take a walk or sit back and clear your mind. Also try to get away from your desk or work station for lunch. Stepping away from work to briefly relax and recharge will help you be more, not less, productive.

Break a big task into small steps:

If a large task seems overwhelming, make a step-by-step plan. Focus on one manageable step at a time, rather than taking on everything at once.

Delegate or find alternate sources:

Y may not have to do it all yourself. If other people can take care of the task, why not let them? Let go of the desire to control or oversee every little step. You’ll be letting go of unnecessary stress in the process.

Willingness to change/compromise:

The statement “I never compromise” is destructive to yourself and others.

When you ask someone to contribute differently to a task, revise a deadline, or change their behaviour at work, be willing to do the same. Sometimes, if you can both bend a little, you’ll be able to find a happy middle ground that reduces the stress levels for everyone concerned.

Boil down expectations:

Invalidate, change, modify or null your expectations and the logic is everybody has got expectations and values her/his own. The employer/organisation has got expectations too and more valuable than the individuals. This is not because we are paid but it is collective and directed to the desired results to be produced.

'Avoid perfectionism':

If you are a perfectionist, you might think of changing your views entirely. It is considered as a disorder by psychiatrists. Nobody is perfect in the world and nothing is perfectly done. This is the most uncollectible form of expectations.   

Managing procrastination:

Procrastination is a result of excessive stress and procrastination increases the stress very dangerously. This is a very unproductive consequence of stress and will lead to total collapse. “This topic will be a freestanding post in coming days.”

A tip for now:

Breaking tasks into tiny pieces and practice per day 10 minutes only on stressful tasks and see the magic.

Improve your emotional Intelligence:

Emotional intelligence in the workplace has four major components:

Self-awareness – The ability to recognize your emotions and their impact while using gut feelings to guide your decisions

Self-management – The ability to control your emotions and behaviour and adapt to changing circumstances

Social awareness – The ability to sense, understand, and react to other's emotions and feel comfortable socially

Relationship management – The ability to inspire, influence, and connect to others and manage conflict

work and stress

Last but most important suggestion:

Depersonalise your professional matters at work place. If you personalise your workplace matters like positions, superior and others’ behaviours, it is a voluntary act of inviting unmanageable stress.

Functional and dysfunctional response to workplace stress:

Functional

• Identify & understand causes
• Reset goals
• Change and adapt behaviour suit people and circumstances
• Change until desired effects produces

Dysfunctional:

• Get drunk
• Get violent
• Fall ill
• Absent from work
• Turn in low quality work
• Get disappointed, dejected, depressed

You may also want to read understanding stress management

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