Managing Stress

In this time of increasingly rapid change, stress is to be expected in the workplace. The key to managing the impact stress has on you and your team is evaluation of the sources of stress, and awareness of our own power to manage its effects.

Feeling Stressed-Out? Take Charge!

Stress has a powerful physiological effect. It causes your breathing to become rapid and shallow, your muscles to tense, and your heart to beat faster. So, address these symptoms first: when under stress, take a very deep breath, stretch your muscles, and concentrate on slowing your heart rate.

Stress is also mental. Be conscious of when you’re under stress. Acknowledge it. One CEO we’ve met jots down whatever is causing him stress at the time. The act of writing it down, he says, goes a long way to reduce the stress. Sometimes he balls up the note and trashes it – symbolism that further helps him to detach from the stress.

There are an infinite number of reasons why we get stressed, and ways to reduce stress. Our coaching work with executives has shown that preparing for what you anticipate will be a stressful situation is an effective stress-reducing tactic both before and during the event. Likewise, regularly monitoring your ongoing stress factors can greatly help you understand, manage, and control your reaction to them.

Use the lists below to check off the sources of stress in your life, add any that may be missing, identify those you can change, and consider which stress relievers you can employ. When you take charge, you take a lot of the air out of stress. And that makes for a much healthier and happier work and personal life.

Stress On the job
  • Too much work to handle within timeframe
  • Work that is beyond your level of expertise
  • Lack of information you need to reach your objective
  • Lack of clarity about expectations others have of you
  • Lack of resources
  • Lack of higher-level support
  • Constant monitoring and evaluation
  • High need to stay in control
  • High need for approval from others
  • Personal values out of sync with organization’s values
  • Difficult team members
  • Dangerous conditions
  • Inadequate workspace
  • Noise
  • Highly demanding clients/customers
Stress Off the Job
  • Health problems, yours or those of significant others
  • Money worries
  • Concerns about children
  • Long commute to work
  • Inadequate sleep
  • Lack of supportive relationships
  • Relationship problems
  • Uncertainty about life goals
Simple Stress Relievers
  • Regular exercise
  • Improved nutrition
  • Adequate sleep, including daytime naps
  • Entertainment that provides a mental “break”
  • Time off, either at home or away
  • Loving relationships
  • Meditation
  • Pets
  • Hobbies
  • Changing jobs or careers
  • Changing the work/non-work balance

Help — I don’t have enough time!

Most professionals complain that they simply do not have enough time to get things done. Use this checklist to make note of what you can do differently—in both your professional and personal life — to give yourself more time. Remember that even small timesaving behaviors can add up quickly.

Areas of Focus and Review

Delegation: Are you delegating as much as possible to others?

Conciseness: Are you too longwinded, spending more time talking than necessary?

Cutting off the source: Can the source of the work be changed to reduce the load?

Technology: Can you use email, voicemail, computers, and/or personal assistant devices more effectively?

Self-organization: Can you improve how you file, find, and schedule things?

Time allocation: Are you overbooking your time?  Do you leave enough leeway for the inevitable “fire?” Should you schedule some time during which you are not to be interrupted?

Work organization: Can you reorganize the team (change who does what, adjust who reports to you and how often) for more efficiency?

Preparation and Planning: Are you planning ahead each day, week, and month to operate more efficiently? Are you starting from scratch instead of developing a template (e.g., packing for travel from scratch rather than having travel-ready provisions)?

Analysis: Have you analyzed how you spend your time in order to see and then adjust how it is being used?

Prioritizing: Are you tackling the highest priority first?

Expectations: Are your expectations of yourself and others realistic?

Communication: Are you copied on emails, memos, and phone messages on a “need to know” basis?  Can you reduce their number? Before you respond, are you clear about the points you want to make? Are there alternative ways to communicate that take less time?

Meetings: Do you schedule and attend the correct number of meetings? Do you plan and stick to the agenda and time allotted? Are you concise and do you require others to be concise?

Listening: Do you lose time because you did not listen well in the first place? (see Listening article on reverse side of newsletter)

Saying “No”: Do you need to turn down more, and brave any negative reactions that result?

Changing the System: Can you change the system at its core? (e.g., change the authority structure, increase skill levels, reduce external demands, etc.)

Also see the following articles from SUCCESS STRATEGIES, the WBW & Associates, LLC. newsletter:

“Is it Really Workload that is Stressing You Out?” Winter/Spring 2005

“Managing Organization Stress” Winter 2004

“The Ups and Downs of Organizational Stress” Winter 2004

“Time Management Focus and Review” Winter 2001

Contact WBW & Associates, LLC to explore your situation and discuss how we can be of help.

© Copyright 2009 WBW & Associates, LLC. All rights reserved.