Stress Management in the Workplace

The first thing that springs to mind when someone mentions stress in the workplace is unhappy staff, employees taking time off work and essentially a drop in productivity. The stress – productivity correlation, however, may not be quite so simple. There are a number of studies that show a certain level of stress does actually increase a person’s productivity depending, of course, on the cause of said stress.

Many people do actually perform best under pressure; be it a student cramming in last minute revision or a senior manager staying up until the early hours to finish that presentation to the board. From a manager’s perspective, it is imperative to allow employees to experience a certain level of stress and pressure to really stretch them to the best of their ability. Deadlines, goals and clearly setting out expectation are all constructive ways of achieving this.

In the same breath, it is very important for a manager to know their employees well enough to spot the signs of too much pressure and unhealthy levels of stress. According to the Labour Force Survey for 2010/2011, depression or anxiety contributed to the loss of 10.8 million working days.

Even the most professional of employees will find it hard to prevent stresses from their private life spilling into their work and so it is important for managers to treat every employee as an individual person. Good man-management is probably the most important trait a manager can posses.

There are ways of reducing work place stress on a larger scale. Team building workshops and trips are a great place to start, as are social activities outside of the work place. On a much more fundamental level, a temperate office climate, a supply of fresh water and plenty of space are all going to contribute to reducing work place stress.

There is plenty of evidence to support the theory that laughter can improve productivity within the workplace. Laughing increases blood flow around the body, as well as reducing the level of hormones in the body that can cause stress and anxiety. Again, there is somewhat of a balancing act to perform as staff will relish any opportunity to sit around in fits of giggles all day!

To conclude, remembering that every employee is human will do wonders for productivity within a company. Clear targets and goals will encourage staff to give their best but be there as a person, rather than a boss, should stress begin to have a detrimental effect on a member of the team.