De-stress Your Work Zone
EVER compared the present day working conditions with those that existed, let us say, about ten years ago? Don't you think technology has made our jobs so much easier now? So many modern gadgets to aid us in speedier and easier dispensing of our duties! We should be a happier lot compared to our predecessors. Then, why do we have so many stressed out employees amidst us today? Something that was a rarity in those days is a common phenomenon now. Why? What is the pattern of these work profiles where people are often stressed out? Is there something that can be done to alter these patterns so that we can prevent young bright employees from getting burnt out so early in their careers?
The cause behind workplace stress is the quality of work, not the time spent working. Otherwise, how else do you explain doctors cheerfully working round the clock, or entrepreneurs happily chalking out strategies at late in the night and still getting up bright and bursting at dawn? So, it is possible to work like that and still retain your enthusiasm and energy. It is all a matter of correct attitude and having the right support system and the deserved incentives. A bad day at the office has little to do with the number of hours you put in working. Workplace stress is really not linked to clocking in more hours. Rather, the culprit for stress in the office is workplace environment.
"We know that Americans work longer hours," says Dan Ganster from the University of Arkansas. "But we were surprised to find that there was no association at all between long work hours and stress."
Less stressed workers, despite the long hours of work on the job, reported more job satisfaction. These workers had more autonomy in their daily routine and had supervisors who were supportive of their work. They also experienced less family-work conflict and had more fringe benefits from their job.
As a manager, it is your duty to be vigilant and detect any early signs of such a problem among your team members and take corrective steps. You should also create a stress- free environment for them to work in.
In other words, do take time off to De-Stress your work zone! It pays.
Look around. Do you see signs of stress syndrome in your work force? When that happens, they feel they can't do a job well unless they are under pressure. They tend to work themselves up into unwarranted fits of temper over seemingly trivial issues. When they complete a project, they go around like they have lost a purpose in life. They tend to lose their focus on work, and as days go by become less efficient and fail to deliver on time. The breaks taken get more frequent than ever and longer than permitted. Be warned, stress is creeping up on them!
Then, how do you keep this monster away from your doorstep?
Do not set up unfeasible goals - NEVER! It is sure to send them into a tizzy. Set up challenging but reachable goals. Break up each project into smaller modules spread over the available time. It helps. Educate your work force on judicious use of time. Most of them tend to fit in lunchtime along with finishing pending projects. Discourage this. In fact, do up the pantry tastefully with some green plants and a few lounge chairs and interesting magazines, maybe a few indoor games. Pin a daily jokes bulletin. And encourage your team to have their lunch in a relaxed manner, together and in an unhurried fashion. If you can be a little unconventional, it is not a bad idea to have soft pipe music playing in the background.
Organise a monthly yoga session or workshops on stress management. Try to improve their work environment by providing such options as flexible hours. The focus should really be on these kinds of factors, not so much just on the straight number of hours worked. Give the message loud and clear that the number of hours they put in is really not of any importance as much as the quality of work turned out. Be supportive. Tell them they always have a patient ear in you no matter what their problem. It always pays to have a sympathetic ear.
While there may be an event, which may seem intrinsically stressful, it is truly how an individual perceives and reacts to an event that determines whether or not the stress response is activated.
MALLIKA JAYASHEELA
faqs@cnkonline.com
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