How are you feeling? How is your morale? Is it low and impacting on your productivity and creativity? Then it’s quite likely that you are suffering from the impact of work place stress.
Having worked with a wide range of individuals at many levels of organisations who have dealt with the negative effects of workplace stress, it’s a fact that those who recognise and address this increasingly common affliction get the most out of their working lives.
In a recent labour force survey it was stated that:
• Staff take an average of 12 sick days a year, also 60- to 80% of primary care doctor visits are related to stress, yet only 3% of patients receive stress management help (JAMA Intern Med. 2013; 173(1): 76-77).
• The American Psychological report stated that 42 % of Americans report lying awake at night due to stress.
So where do you begin?
• Firstly and most importantly recognise that your emotional wellbeing is key to increasing productivity and creativity.
• Acknowledge that wellbeing doesn’t mean treating yourself to a cake or chocolates every now and again or coming to work on a Friday dressed casually. Even taking a holiday doesn’t really work as unless you deal with your workplace stress before you go, you only end up taking it with you.
• Consider how you really feel about the working environment, the way you are being managed or your current workload.
• Ensure that your organisation understands and recognises staff wellbeing and stress in the workplace. The days of ‘just get on with it and pull yourself together’ just don’t work in today’s always on, increasingly demanding working environment.
• Realise the value and benefit of investing time and money in your emotional wellbeing. See it as an investment in the business as you would a new piece of machinery or marketing campaign.
• Put in place a commitment and structure that recognises the value and benefit from regular life coaching sessions that cover stress management, assertiveness, mindfulness and self-esteem.
Recognise the situation? Want to begin to introduce the cure?
Contact us at Irwin Edgehill Training and discuss our range of services and solutions we offer to begin to address work place stress. Email: info@irwinedgehilltraining.co.uk or call 07842 435921.
Irwin Edgehill Training 