Stress Management Coping Mechanisms for Dealing with Work Related Stress
Unless one has a remarkably charmed life, at some point they will experience work-related stress. Overwhelming stress that could certainly tests one’s ability to cope. Work related stress is defined as: The adverse reaction people have to excessive pressures and other types of demands that are placed on them. But, contrary to popular belief, stress in not an illness. Yet when stress becomes prolonged and excessive, mental and physical illnesses can develop.
A myriad of people tend to get confused with the meaning of stress and pressure. These two words are often deemed the same. Yet there is a difference. Pressure can be a positive motivating factor which is essential for one to carry out a job well and achieve their goals. Stress on the other hand, is a natural reaction to too much pressure placed upon a person. People experience stress when they feel that the demands of their jobs are much greater than the coping abilities. When referred to work, coping means balancing the pressures and demands with knowledge and skill, without feeling pressured.
Whilst some people face what is often deemed ‘par for the course’ as far as office work is concerned, others are basically biologically prone to stress. Of course, outside factors play a major role in one’s susceptibility to stress as well. Persistent and stressful situations, uncooperative work colleagues, obligations, limited time, overbearing bosses, negative attitudes, envy, the size of one’s work load, gossip, bullying and peer pressure are some of the causes of stress within the workplace. Everyone is an individual, so every single human being will respond to stress a little differently.
Of course personality traits come into the equation and sometimes one can over-respond to the stressful events they face. Often times, these are events that others would generally define as minor hiccups. Yet those with a more efficient relaxation response due to genetics will cope with stress much easier. The duration of stressful situations will play a major role in one’s level of anxiety and reaction to stress as well. Older employees often find achieving a relaxation response after stressful events much more difficult.
This is sometimes simply due to aging having worn down the systems within the brain that cope with stress. Yet not one human being is immune to some type of stress in the workplace. The less-educated individual, divorced individuals, single parents, those who are possible targets of racial discrimination or are introverts in a manner of speaking, are usually more prone to stress at work. And with the global economic crisis so evident nowadays, a myriad of people stress about losing their jobs.
Yet stress is often related to feeling unappreciated, doing the job of two because a work colleague won’t pull their weight or one feels as though they’re buckling under due to a horrendous work load. They become clock watchers anxiously awaiting the end of their shift. Unfortunately, stress can lead to a host of medical, emotional and mental ailments such as; heart attacks, strokes, anxiety attacks, depression, low self-esteem, alcoholism, drug abuse and doubts about one’s true worth. Stress can lead to self-harm and suicide. One’s blood pressure can rise and all sorts of problems can occur if one does not learn to manage the stress in some manner.
Work-related stress also leads to a drop in productivity and work attendance. The General Social Survey (otherwise referred to as GSS), a biannual personal interview survey of U.S households conducted by the National Opinion research Centre, asked questions such as how often work is stressful. In the period 1989 to 2002, 30%-40% of those interviewed, reported that their work was ‘often’ or ‘frequently’ stressful. These sources along with other figures suggested a high prevalence of stressful work conditions during the 1990’s.
In a study carried out by Northumberland National Life, 40% of employees said their jobs were ‘very’ or ‘extremely’ stressful. The Families and Work Institutes National Study of the Changing Workforce, showed that 26% of employees felt either ‘burnt out” or stressed ‘often’ or ‘very often’, whilst 36% felt used up by the end of the day. Fortunately, there are a host of ways to increase one’s confidence, stay calm and cope with work related stress. Read on to learn how to regain inner strength and power on when others buckle under the work-related stress.
Enjoy extracurricular activities:
A myriad of individuals do not have a life outside the workplace. They’re over committed to their careers and have nothing to look forward to when the weekend or holidays periods arrive. Yet enjoying extracurricular activities has one focused on something other than the workplace. One takes a mental holiday from all the responsibility, angst and so forth. Perchance you always wished to learn to dance, sing, play a musical instrument or learn to play golf. Providing oneself with some type of enjoyment based on personal interests will lower the stress levels. You will meet new people, make new friends and feel removed from the workplace stress for a while.
Learn to meditate:
Mediate works in the reverse to stress because it restores the body to a calm state. Thus the body repairs itself. Throughout the workday, one experiences a host of stress. This has one mentally preparing to run away from it or stand there and fight it. Whilst a physical response to stress can be a good thing at times, other times it can lead to dangerous situations such as suicide. A prolonged state of agitation can cause harm to one’s self esteem and mental state.
Meditation helps shield one’s mind and aids in preventing more damage. Meditation can reverse one’s stress response and save one from the effects of chronic stress. Whilst one is meditation the heart and breathing rate slows down a little, the blood pressure normalizes and one uses oxygen more efficiently. The mind is not fogged and one’s creativity increases. Find a quiet area free from the onslaught of work related noise. Sit on the floor if possible, in a relaxed position.
Focus on a sound such as “oooooohm” or on your own breathing if you wish. You will need at least five to 20 minutes of distraction free time to yourself to reap the rewards of meditating. Meditation is free and available any time you need it. It’s very effective for short-term stress reduction and long-term health. There is no side-effect to meditation like some medications and herbal therapies. One simply needs a little self-discipline and commitment.
Exercise:
Exercise helps reduce stress because it offers one another outlet to rid themselves of stress and anxiety. Hike, cycle, jog or simply walk around the neighbourhood during your lunch hour if possible. Join a nearby fitness centre and workout on the treadmill at lunch time, before or after work. Ask trainers at the gym for some recommendations in regards to calming, stress relieving exercises.
Volunteer:
Often times, when one sees firsthand the heartache, depression and suffering others go through, their problems don’t seem bad after all. When one does something for the less fortunate it gives them an emotional lift. Try volunteering at thrift stores, hospices, hospitals, local animal shelters, soup kitchens or youth hostels.
Overworked?
Perchance it’s time to have a one-on-one discussion with your superiors. Think ahead and know exactly what you plan on saying. Don’t rush into a discussion whilst you’re annoyed, you may come across as arrogant and place your job on the line. Or you could say something in the heat of anger that can be used against you. Simply say something such as “I’m finding it quite difficult to cope with all this work alone. I’m doing my best to be a good employee, but I’m starting to feel stress and overworked. I’ve been wondering if I could be partnered up with someone else to share the workload so that productivity is not affected.
Feel like you’re being taken advantage of?
Presenting a professional face is all well and good. But not so good if you’re biting your tongue and putting on that happy face for the sake of peace. Often times, one feels as though they’re being taken advantage of yet never speak up. If a work colleague is taking off early and leaving you to finish up, speak up. If you don’t speak up now, things will only get worse.
Maintaining a professional façade whilst being abused isn’t easy.
Nothing is worse than having to maintain a professional façade in the face of verbal abuse, nit-picking and consistent demands. One could be faced with hard to please customers, condescending bosses, verbally abusive clients and clients or bosses who demand the impossible. The best course of action is to remember that you trap more flies with honey than verbal abuse.
Sometimes being overly nice puts a person in their place immediately. Without fuel to add to the flames of verbal abuse one often closes the mouth and realises that the abuse has no effect on their chosen victim. But, no one has the right to be verbally abusive to anyone and if it’s gets beyond a joke, one needs to stand up for themselves.
The author recalls a time when an old work colleague put an arrogant and verbally abusive work mate in his place. He was cussing and cursing and when he’d finished the woman said “Well, if you think I will tolerate such diabolical insolence from a scrap of humanity such as yourself, well you can presume that your presumptions are precisely incorrect!” The man was speechless as the woman walked off. The next day he apologised for his arrogance and agreed that his actions were unwarranted.
If a customer or boss is giving you grief, count to ten and then try mentally envisioning the annoying person dressed in a clown suit. Don’t giggle out loud though, as this could really offend someone and have your job in jeopardy. It will certainly help relieve a little of your stress.The author once had a nit-picking, condescending and extremely lazy and obese boss. Whenever he started his verbal put downs, the author would imagine him dressed in a corset pulled in to give him an 18” waist. This always put her in a much better frame of mind. It helped lower her stress level as well.
Are you feeling somewhat isolated?
Feeling a little isolated and lost with no one to turn to for assistance? At times, one’s employment has a person working alone without a backup support system. When things go wrong the stress is intense. One has no one to discuss any problems with and feels as though they have all the problems of the world on their shoulders.
When one is in a situation such as this, they need to be able to contact their boss either by email, cell phone or fax. They also need to request some type of ongoing support system of some type. Write down a list of the regular problems that crop up and also add the occasional problems you face that are extremely challenging and stressful. Now show this to your boss and ask him/her how they think you should deal with these. Tell them how isolated you feel and that at times, the stress is just a little too much to handle.
Frustrated?
Perchance you feel unappreciated and feel that you deserve a little more acknowledgement for your efforts. Perhaps you are working with a team of people who fail to pull their weight. You feel as if you are doing their work as well as your own. It’s time to speak up and not allow others to take advantage of you.
This doesn’t mean that there is any need to instigate a full on battle in the workplace. It simply means that you need to take a stand and say something such as “I’m here to do the work I was employed to do. I only have so many hands and one brain. I’m buckling under here; so we need to try to work as a team or the entire industry will suffer. Besides, this stress is no good for anyone’s health.”
You may need to have a one-on-one with the boss if nothing changes. Otherwise you can end up more stressed than you ever thought possible. Choose your words well and watch how you present your case. Sometimes it’s not what you say, but how you say it that wins respect.
Suffer from burn out?
From feeling imprisoned by cell phones, computers and fax machines to feeling suffocated by paperwork, one can eventually feel the effects of stress related burn out. Thus, emotional and physical exhaustion had finally taken its toll. The powers that be are far too dependent on you, the deadlines have you in a blind panic, the arrogant co-worker is making errors you have to rectify and you feel as if you are on the brink of a nervous breakdown.
Burn out leads to stress, so nip it in the bud now. How? First and foremost get your priorities in order. Although the boss may be adamant that something needs to be dealt with immediately, you determine a realistic time for the completion of the job. No one can perform miracles, so simply tell the boss the estimated time of completion and impress upon him/her that this is the best you can do. Everyone’s sense of necessity differs so if possible, try to compromise.
Breakdown large tasks into smaller manageable tasks:
The big picture may be a little overwhelming but when one breaks down large tasks into a few little realistic tasks, they seem more attainable. Doing this helps one to pace their goals and focus on the main objective. When the tasks are smaller one stays on track a lot easier.
Don’t procrastinate or attempt to avoid any tasks”
When one procrastinate or does anything within their power to avoid a task, they only make life harder for themselves. The tasks will only multiply and leave one with less time to complete them. One then gets into a blind panic attempting to juggle many tasks at once. This leads to stress and possible altercations with the boss and work peers. Take one step at a time and things will eventually fall into place.
De-clutter your work zone:
Clutter adds to frustration and stress in the workplace. Finding things becomes a chore and interferes with what is relevant and what is not. Urgent paperwork gets mixed up with those that have been completed. One cannot prioritize if they have a mountain of paperwork they need to sift through before they get started. Clutter interferes with distracts one’s attention. One eventually feels somewhat suffocated and closed in and this leads to stress.
Give yourself some time-out:
Push the chair back from the desk, shut the door if possible and give yourself a few minutes of ‘me’ time. Meditate or simply take a five minute power nap. A myriad of businesses nowadays, are realising that their employees need some time out to relieve stress. They know that productivity is low when their employees are stressed. So kick the shoes off and read a good book for five minutes.
Take a walk at lunch time and this will release what medical experts call the ‘happy endorphins’. Enjoy some picturesque scenery and improve your mood. When you get back to work you will find that it’s much easier to focus. This is because you’ve taken the strain from your brain and replaced it with inner peace.
Seek support:
Seek out a sympathetic superior or someone in the Human Resources department and communicate your concerns about workplace stress. This may help improve your workplace conditions. Try to establish or reinforce a network of friends in the workplace as well as at home. You will then have someone to talk to at work as well as after work. Try to eliminate unnecessary tasks and focus on positive outcomes.
Execute a career change:
If your job is truly insufferable, plan and execute a career change as soon as possible for your own peace of mind. If for some reason this is not possible, ensure you enjoy some pleasant daily activities in your free time. Do remember that most bosses are victims of stress as well. If your boss is approachable, make an appointment to sit down and talk with him/her. You could become very close friends and may end up supporting each other during trying times.
Whilst a plethora of employees simply wish to lock themselves away from work commitments at times, it’s not possible. One needs an income to survive. Yet one can certainly lower their stress levels if they remember that each day is a new day. Don’t push yourself too hard, prioritise and take it one step at a time, one task at a time.
Seek professional help:
If workplace stress has started to infringe on your quality of life and happiness or if you are showing any signs of depression, seek counselling immediately. There is no shame whatsoever about seeking help for work related stress.
Author's Note:
A host of studies have shown that those people who have a very good network of friends and even those who have had support off complete strangers, are happy and healthy despite the stresses of life.
Information source:
http://www.cdc.gov/niosh/programs/workorg/economics.html
