Stress: A Common Worry These Days
Worried about COVID. Worried about family, coworkers, friends. Isolating from others. Working from home. Few social activities.
Stress has always been part of our lives, and it isn’t always bad. In fact, a little bit of stress can help us stay focused, energetic and able to meet new challenges in the workplace.
In the past year, however, it seems like stress is more prevalent, harder to shake off. And when stress exceeds our ability to cope, it stops being helpful and starts causing damage to our minds and bodies.
When we feel overwhelmed, we lose confidence and may become angry, irritable or withdrawn. Other signs of excessive stress include …
Feeling anxious or depressed. Apathy, loss of interest in work. Trouble concentrating. Problems sleeping. Fatigue. Muscle tension or headaches. Stomach problems. Social withdrawal. Using alcohol or drugs to cope.
Here are some things we can do to help reduce that stress.
- Reach out. Turn to coworkers for support. Sometimes the best stress reducer is simply sharing our stress with someone close to us. The act of talking it out and getting support and sympathy can be a highly-effective way of blowing off steam and regaining a sense of calm. The other person doesn’t have to “fix” our problems; they just need to be a good listener.
- Support our health with exercise and nutrition. Both will help us feel stronger and more resilient to stress.
- Don’t skimp on sleep. This impacts our daytime productivity, creativity, problem-solving skills and ability to focus. The better rested we are, the better equipped we’ll be to tackle our job responsibilities and cope with workplace stress.
- Prioritize and organize. Take practical steps to retain control of our lives.
Managers can help
As a manager or employer, you can help lower workplace stress. The first step is to act as a positive role model. If you can remain calm in stressful situations, it’s much easier for your employees to follow suit.
- Talk to employees. Listen. Share information. If possible, communicate one-on-one.
- Deal with workplace conflicts in a positive way. Respect the dignity of each employee; establish a zero-tolerance policy for harassment.
- Give workers opportunities to participate in decisions that affect their jobs.
- Avoid unrealistic deadlines.
- Offer rewards and incentives. Praise work accomplishments verbally and organization-wide.
Source: HelpGuide, a nonprofit mental health organization
