Research in the area has indicated that the percentage of people who are stressed at work is very high and, worse yet, the numbers continue to rise steadily. According to a survey of more than 2,000 full-time employees aged 18 to 60, more than half of the employees are stressed for at least 60% of the work week. Job stress, as such, is a typical variant in companies.
It is also no secret that an increasing percentage of professionals say they would like to change jobs because they feel stressed and tired. So far this year, 70% say they are actively looking for a new job. This means that job abandonment is a constant concern for human resources leaders and managers. How can you prevent it? What should I do to avoid job stress in my work teams?
89% of companies believe that their employees change companies in search of a salary increase. However, only 12% of employees earn more in their new job. So why do more and more people decide to quit their jobs and leave in search of new opportunities?
Job Stress: A Common Business Variant
Job stress has significant health consequences ranging from relatively benign ones (such as more colds and flus) to potentially serious ones (such as heart disease and metabolic syndrome). While stress at work is common, finding a low-stress job is not so easy. A more realistic approach is to adopt effective coping strategies to reduce job stress in your current job, including seeking help from professionals in the field. Those who, through programs specifically designed to improve work wellness and increase workplace productivity, help combat and eliminate job stress.
“Those who believe that they can overcome a state of depression, languor, burnout at work, emotional fatigue due to their toxic routine, in a solitary manner, are deluded and digging their own hole with their own thoughts.
We are social beings for better and for worse, and if we don’t celebrate the good with others, or share our toxic thoughts with people who can help us, we will be damaging our immune, emotional and cognitive systems”.
José L. Meléndez CEO and co-founder of ChVmpion Mind
ChVmpion Mind offers effective and proven work stress management techniques…
ChVmpion mind is a business coaching platform, which aims to help employees and leaders of a company to achieve professional goals and improve in their personal lives. To do this, it offers different stress management techniques that you can try in your company, through the 21-week program that helps to optimize the conditions of all your employees and prevents illnesses and their serious consequences.
One of the most remarkable aspects of ChVmpion Mind is that it helps you to create, apply and maintain healthy habits in your daily life. And that, undoubtedly, allow you to prevent and combat work-related stress in your company.
So… How to prevent work stress in your company from a personal perspective?
Start the day off right
After struggling to get the kids fed and to school, dodging traffic and fighting road rage, drinking coffee instead of a healthy breakfast, many people arrive at work tired and stressed. This makes them more likely to suffer from stress in the workplace. You may be surprised at how affected you feel by work stress when you have a busy morning. When you start your day with planning, good nutrition and a positive attitude, you may find that your work stress is more easily reduced.
Be clear on requirements
One factor contributing to job stress is unclear requirements for employees. If you don’t know exactly what is expected of you, or if the requirements for your role keep changing without notice, you may feel extremely stressed. If you find that you’re not doing well enough, it may be helpful to talk to your supervisor. You can take the time to go over expectations and discuss strategies for meeting them – this can relieve stress for both of you!
Stay away from conflict
Interpersonal conflicts affect physical and emotional health. It can be difficult to escape conflict between co-workers. So, it’s a good idea to avoid conflict at work as much as you can. Don’t gossip, don’t share too many personal opinions about religion and politics, and stay away from heavy office humor. When possible, try to avoid people who don’t work well with others. If you encounter conflict anyway, make sure you know how to handle it appropriately. Keeping your distance from everyday conflicts helps prevent stress in your environment and company.
Stay organized
Even if you are a naturally disorganized person, planning ahead to stay organized can greatly decrease work stress. Being organized with your time means less rushing in the morning to avoid being late and less rushing to leave at the end of the day. Staying organized can also mean avoiding the negative effects of clutter and being more efficient with your work.
Make yourself comfortable
Another surprising source of job stress at work is physical discomfort, often related to where you perform most of your daily tasks (such as your desk). You may not notice you’re stressed if you’re sitting in an uncomfortable chair for only a few minutes, but if you practically live in that chair when you’re at work, you may have back pain and be more reactive to stress. Even little things like office noise can be distracting and cause feelings of low-grade frustration. Do what you can to create a quiet, comfortable and relaxing workspace.
Forget about multitasking
Multitasking was once heralded as a fantastic way to maximize time and get more done in a day. However, people eventually began to realize that if they had a phone to their ear and were crunching numbers at the same time, their speed and accuracy (not to mention sanity) often suffered. There is a certain feeling of burnout that comes from splitting your focus and it doesn’t work well for most people. Instead of multitasking to do everything at once, try another cognitive strategy like chunking. Executing one task at a time is a great way to reduce work stress.
Take a walk at lunch
Many people feel the ill effects of leading a sedentary lifestyle. You can combat the physical and mental effects of work stress by getting some exercise during your lunch hour. If your schedule allows, you can try taking short exercise breaks throughout the day. This can help you let off steam, improve your mood and get in better shape. A change of scenery, even if it’s just around the block after lunch can be an incentive to return to your post with more calm and no stress.
Keep perfectionism in check
Being a high achiever can make you feel good about yourself and help you excel at work. But, being a perfectionist can create problems for you (and those around you). You may not be able to do everything perfectly, especially in a busy, fast-paced job. A good strategy to avoid the perfectionism trap is to always strive to do your best and make time to congratulate yourself for your efforts. You may find that your results are better and you will be much less stressed at work. Sometimes it is necessary to curtail our own intentions to conquer every aspect of work that we set out to do. Knowing that we can’t do it all will make us a little more human, calm and undoubtedly take us away from work stress.
