Stress at Work and Best Practice in Stress Management

There are many myths and misconceptions about stress, so I thought that I would write a summary for you.

Q:  Is stress is good for me?     A:  No! Pressure is good for you but stress is not.

Q: What is the difference between pressure and stress?   A: Pressure motivates and is within your control and you can usually manage it.  Stress is the adverse reaction people have to excessive pressure or other types of demands placed upon them.

Q:  What causes stress?  A:  Fundamentally, it is the way that we think about a
situation rather than the situation itself, that causes stress.

Q:  What is a stress ‘carrier’?   A:  People who exhibit stress-producing behaviour but are  unaware of the impact of their conduct upon others.

Q:  What are some of the physical reactions to stress?  A:   Dry mouth, anxiety, rapid breathing, moist palms.

Q:  What are some of the symptoms of prolonged stress?  A: Sleep problems, headaches, anger, indigestion.

Q:  What are some of the causes of workplace stressA:   Long working hours, lack of autonomy, excessive expectations, uncertainty, work under-load / overload

Q:  What are some of the effects of workplace stress?   A:   Poor performance and productivity, low morale, reduced commitment and increased absenteeism

Q:  What can the organisation do to manage stressA:  Introduce Best Practice with primary, secondary and tertiary levels of intervention.

Q:  What is the primary level intervention?  A:  The primary level deals with the assessment of risk and its prevention by introducing appropriate interventions, reviewing the needs of the organisation and implementing an anti-stress policy.

Q:  I am the CEO of a pharmaceutical company and want to assess the risk of stress in my organisation. How can I do this?  A:  You will need to ensure
that:  a) Demands upon employees are realistic.  b)  Change is
managed effectively.  c)  Procedures for dealing with grievances are
introduced. d)  Teams are allowed some control over their work
e)  Role conflict and ambiguity are avoided f) Published support is
available within the organisation.

Q:  What is the secondary level intervention? A: This includes training, education and implementation

Q:  I am a training director of an IT company?  What training initiatives have
been proven to work?  A:  There are two training initiatives that will help reduce stress in your organisation:  a) Stress awareness and resilience training for all employees.   Many organisations cannot eradicate stress but they can
strengthen the resilience of their employees to manage it effectively.  Individuals
can be taught how to increase their capacity to tolerate excessive demands and
learn how to ‘bounce back’ from challenges.  b)  Stress Management training for all Managers.  Managers need to recognise the signs and symptoms of stress in both themselves and in others and know how to deal with it quickly and efficiently so that team performance is not impaired.

Q:  What is the 3rd level intervention? A:  Dealing with stress-related problems in the workplace by timely interventions and by offering coaching, counselling, mediation and regular staff appraisals.

Q:  I am a Manager and I assume that you would say that I have a fundamental role
in managing stress in my team? A:  Exactly so.  Your role is to manage people and you need to communicate, ‘walk the talk’, be approachable and value individual and team effort by recognition.

Q: What are the benefits of taking action to manage work stress? A: The organisation will benefit from reduced absenteeism, improved staff morale and increased productivity.

Q: What is your key message? A:  Create a healthy workplace culture where you have motivated and resilient teams who love what they do!  Engage, involve and inspire them and lead by inspiration and motivation.

Q:  What do I do next?  A:  You could buy a copy of my new book, Show Stress Who’s Boss! and put theseinterventions into practice.

Is this all difficult to do?  No!  Is it costly to implement?  No!  Then how many companies
are actually committed to doing it?  Now that’s another question for another time!

Keys Points

  1. Excessive pressure = stress
  2. Anti-stress interventions, work!
  3. Resilience is the key to beating stress!

Reprinted with the kind permission of Gulf News

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Work Stress Expert, Carole Spiers will deliver a charismatic, high-impact keynote presentation, Show Stress Who’s Boss! based on her new book, at your next conference.  Contact us [email protected] or call + 44 (0) 20 8954 1593

Proven Work Stress Solutions

Take a look at our corporate website where you will find work stress management techniques.  www.carolespiersgroup.co.uk or call + 44 (0) 20 8954 1593

Learn How to Deal with Stress

Carole’s book, Show Stress Who’s Boss! shows you how to deal with stress, manage your stress & anxiety and overcome symptoms of stress.  You’ll find tools and stress management techniques to make your life stress-free.  Inside this book you’ll find 4 proven steps to relive your stress symptoms.  Buy your personally signed copy and receive a FREE stress test card. http://www.showstresswhosboss.co.uk

Also available in Kindle version.

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