Stress Relief Blog

If you own a business and have employees, stress is undermining your efforts to grow that bottom line. Work-related stress cost business owners billions of dollars each year in lost man-hours, lowered productivity, greater worker turnover and medical costs that keep business health insurance premiums rising year in and year out.

Just look at the statistics from the U.S. National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH):

40% of all workers report that their jobs are very or extremely stressful

Fully one-quarter of workers report jobs are the #1 stressor in their lives

29% of respondents claim that they are stressed while on the job 26% complain of job “burn out”

Job stress is more common than stress caused by family or financial problems

50% of workers claim they need help learning to cope with work-related stress; 42% felt their co-workers needed to learn stress management techniques.

So what are the results of workplace stress?

More violence in the workplace (14% of survey takers stated that they wanted to strike a co-worker in the past 12 months but didn’t), higher absenteeism, lower quality of work, lack of motivation, workplace intimidation by superiors and coworkers and, 20% of all workers have quit a job because of job stress.

What is the cure for work place stress?

It might seem obvious that more vacation time, better communication between employer and employee and smaller workloads should solve the problem but the fact is, stress is simply a part of the modern workplace.

The average worker will hold five jobs during a career. Some of that number lives in constant fear of lay-offs and firings. And training that new hire to the same level of productivity as the employee who quits can take months, costing the business owner money everyday.

The cure is not shorter hours, more vacation and lighter work loads. The business’ bottom line will still suffer. The cure is to make sure your employees understand the mechanisms of stress and, further, how to lessen stress on the job through stress
management techniques.

Not an easy thing to do. Stress is a natural reaction to perceptions of danger. It also affects each individual differently. There are people who thrive on stress. It motivates them to do better. Others crumple under a bad quarterly report or a reprimand from management.

There is no one cure – no magic pill – to cure job stress because of the individualized nature of the reaction. What works for one employee won’t be effective for his or her co-worker. Each employee must learn to come to terms with daily stress in an individual way – a way that works.

What On-the Job Practices can the Business Owner apply?

Knowing this, the smart business owner is going to find the resources needed to address work place anxiety and stress on a one-to-one basis. Providing employees with outlets for stress is one way management can help. Teaching employees time-tested stress management techniques is critical to solving the work stress problem.

While there is no one “cure-all” there are things you, the business owner, can do to improve the work environment and bring down stress levels for everyone from assembly line workers to top managers.

Start by creating an open work environment, one in which your door is always open. Having a highly-placed, company official with which to discuss even small problems goes a long way to lowering levels of stress.

Monitor middle managers and create a policy that lowers stress. These men and women are sometimes called “flak-catchers” because they catch flak from those working under them and from superiors who expect those quotas to be met.

Provide a quiet space in the office or factory where workers can go to relax. No loud noises, no talking – just peaceful, quiet, meditative time.

Hire a stress management consultant and hold regular seminars on the topic of stress and stress management. If you feel this is a waste of money, consider what you lose everyday in lack of worker focus caused by job stress. These counselors and teachers can show your employees how to manage the inevitable stress of many of today’s high-pressured jobs.

Praise loudly; criticize softly. Share the successes of an employee with others. It’s a natural morale booster. However, when criticism is in order, close the door and do it quietly. Reprimanding an employee in front of co-workers creates stress.

Encourage meditation during work breaks. A quick walk around the building or a few minutes in the meditation room will work wonders. Some practitioners have developed directed therapies that work in just 20 minutes. And they’re effective.

Surprise employees with a special lunch, a special celebration or an unexpected day off for a job well done. Feeling that your hard efforts are noticed and pay off is a great way to manage stress OTJ.

Encourage employees to seek counseling outside of the work place, and if your health insurance plan doesn’t cover this kind of treatment, work out an arrangement with a stress management specialist to ensure that workers learn the basics of stress management.

Look, there’s no way to eliminate stress on the job. It’s there – the 800-pound gorilla in the room. But you can improve your employees’ ability to manage stress and cope with the pressures of their daily routines.

Call a stress management consultant today. See an improvement in the company’s bottom line tomorrow.

It works. Really!

** “If you’ve enjoyed this article, please be sure to forward it to a friend.”

Cecil McIntosh, The EYC™ Stress Circuit Breaker with 14 years of experience helping Entrepreneurs like you, stay focused, get more done and find more time, so that you can live in the moment. He is a published author of many audio Relaxation Programs using accelerated learning approaches and a Teacher, NLP Trainer and Coach. You can reach Cecil at cecil.mcintosh@gmail.com

Want to learn better stress management techniques for workplace stress? Or ** IS YOUR LIFE TOO BUSY … TOO MUCH STRESS? ** Do you want to find more time to enjoy stress relief? – Split Second Stress Relief

[tags] workplace stress, work-related stress, stress management, stress, business owner, meditation, high pressured jobs, Cecil McIntosh, technorti [/tags]

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