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In this installment of our 4-part series, we'll review
helpful strategies leaders and managers can use to
assist their employees in managing workplace stress
effectively in order to create a healthier work
environment.
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According to a recent study, approximately 40% of
employees experience persistent stress or excessive
anxiety on a daily basis in the workplace.
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Jeanne Segal, Ph.D. over at helpguide.org has this to say:
“Stress isn’t always bad. Stress within your comfort zone can
help you stay focused, energetic, and able to meet new
challenges in the workplace. Stress is what keeps you on
your toes during a presentation or alert to prevent accidents
or costly mistakes at work."
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"But in today’s hectic world, the workplace can often seem like
an emotional roller coaster. Long hours, tight deadlines, and
ever increasing demands can leave you feeling...overwhelmed
by stress. When stress exceeds your comfort zone, it stops
being helpful and can start causing major damage to your
mind and body as well as your job satisfaction.”
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Therefore, “Creating a psychologically healthy workplace is
good for employees and business results,” says Norman B.
Anderson, PhD, chief executive officer of the American
Psychological Association. “This is a growing trend and it is
our hope that all organizations will eventually have some
type of psychologically healthy workplace program.”
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The question is:
How can leaders assist their employees in managing
workplace stress effectively in order to create a
healthier work environment?
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1. Money
For many people, the economy feels strained, leaving them with no
other choice than to live paycheck to paycheck. This unfortunately
means that such people don’t have the means to create a financial
cushion should they ever be laid off. In fact, many employees may
stress over whether or not they’ll receive their paychecks on time.
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1. Money
One good way to remedy this is to educate your employees at least
quarterly on the financial stability of the company. You may want to
also consider providing financial stewardship resources to
employees. This can take the form of lunch-and-learn programs
where you bring in a financial expert, one-on-one coaching, or more
robust workshops.
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1. Money
When your employees feel financially secure, they’re able to show up
to their work with 100% of their mind and heart invested because
money becomes one less thing they have to worry over.
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2. Lack of Job Security
Many employees question whether or not they have a future with a
company. Will they ever get promoted? Will they ever get a raise? Or
will they be laid off at the first downturn? These days, especially with
older employees, it isn’t so easy to simply transition from one job to
another.
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2. Lack of Job Security
One way to remedy this is to implement regular performance reviews
—preferably on a quarterly basis. This demonstrates to employees
that their hard work is not being overlooked and also creates an open
forum where they can discuss any challenges with or expectations of
their career.
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3. Lack of Opportunities
Do you know which team members are interested in advancing within
the company? Who is hoping to climb the ranks to perhaps one day
lead a team of their own? Unfortunately, some employees feel as if
they’ll always be at the lower rungs of the company hierarchy.
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3. Lack of Opportunities
Consider having one-on-one conversations with your employees and
get to know what their goals are. Then connect them with the right
resources (be it a mentor or further training) to help facilitate their
forward-motion.
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4. Negative Relationships
According to a recent study, 67% of workers reported that having
friends at work makes their job more fun and enjoyable. Human
beings are social beings, which means that we crave healthy,
empowering relationships the way we crave air, food, and water.
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4. Negative Relationships
In the workplace, not everyone will get along, but what you can do is
identify team members who are natural-born leaders. These
individuals have phenomenal interpersonal skills and can foster
teamwork among your employees, ensuring that everyone feels like
they belong.
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5. An Unpleasant Working Environment
This goes hand-in-hand with the preceding factor, since negative
relationships can make for an unpleasant working environment. How
to fix this? Hold team-building activities. These activities can help your
employees get to know each other better, and can also help to break
up routine.
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5. An Unpleasant Working Environment
Celebrating people’s birthdays and other special occasions, for
example, is a great way to have a bit of fun and lighten the mood in a
working environment. Many other companies have started to
introduce perks at the workplace such as napping rooms, on-site
fitness centers, free massages, free food, and more.
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The contributing factors to stress are many, but fortunately, so are
the solutions. When leaders who are dedicated to the well-being of
their employees commit themselves to creating healthier and happier
working environments, they not only invest in their team but in the
company’s overall well-being as well.
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A company can only be as strong as its moving parts, after all. Which
of the five strategies discussed will you start implementing in the
workplace to help your employees combat stress?
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In Part 3 of this series, we'll examine 5 more factors that
contribute to workplace stress, and how leaders can
troubleshoot them.
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We hope you enjoyed this presentation!
Visit www.shapingchange.com.au for more resources on
leadership development, change management, emotional
intelligence, and more!