Study after study tells us the same thing: stress is overwhelmingly changing the working environment as poor health, sleep deprivation, and stress take a toll on people’s lives and worsen their health issues. Modern people feel stressed out on their job, which affects their productivity, relationships, health, and sense of well-being. The latest statistics show that 83% of Americans stress over work-related issues weekly, and 18% of Europeans also claim that they experience stress in the workplace daily. In Los Angeles and New York, the connection between job stress and heart attacks is acknowledged, so when a police officer experiences a heart condition, on or off the job, they classify it as work-related injury and compensate the patient accordingly. Even if many people try to make lists of the most and least stressful occupations, a perfect ranking is impossible to compose. It’s the person-environment relationship that makes a job stressful, not the profession itself. Stress is a personalized condition, and its intensity and symptoms can vary even in identical situations. For example, some police officers consider it more stressful to fill in paperwork than to pursue criminals. With this information in mind, you may wonder if there is a way to reduce your employees’ stress. Let’s take a look at how you can do that.
Lead by Example
To reduce stress in your company, it’s paramount to lead by example. You’re a leader, so it’s essential always to keep a lid on your emotions. Don’t ever allow your emotions, especially the negative ones, to run your actions because negativity, anger, and stress can easily influence your employees’ productivity. When managing a business, the number one rule is to practice what you preach and make sure you relieve stress at the end of the working day. Go to the gym, walk your dog in the park, spend quality time with your family or friends, or do something that relaxes you and boosts your energy levels. You should also promote stress-relieving activities at the office. Instead of organizing meetings in the boardroom, ask your team to meet you in the local park and have a walk while you discuss the latest project’s details. Remind your employees to take regular breaks from their tasks to allow their mind to relax and unwind. Encourage them to book holiday vacations early, to show them that it’s okay to take some time out of the office.
Adopt Workplace Wellness Schemes
Health professionals have said it time and time again that a healthy lifestyle and exercise are crucial for fighting workplace-related stress. Employee benefits like paying a portion or the full price for gym memberships, providing healthy food alternatives at the cafeteria, and organizing group fitness classes encourages employees to stay physically active and adopt a healthy diet. For the employees diagnosed with anxiety and stress who use CBD products to relieve their symptoms, pay a portion of their treatment to encourage them to seek help for their health issues.
Create Social Activities to Encourage Them to Connect
Your employees spend a lot of time together, so it’s essential that they get along to prevent stress. When people enjoy their time at work and like the atmosphere the company creates, they perform, collaborate, and work better. They also are more creative and complete their tasks on time. To encourage your team to connect, set aside an hour weekly when they should come together in a fun environment. Play games, eat lunch, or attend training sessions together. All social activities are good for preventing and reducing stress, team building, and boosting morale.
Create a Chill-out Space
Sometimes your workers need 15 minutes to relax and detach from their tasks. To help them do that, provide them with a room or chill-out zone where they can disengage from technology and spend some time with their thoughts. A fifteen-minute break every couple of hours can dramatically reduce workplace burnout and stress and will leave your employees feeling more re-energized to develop creative solutions for your business.
Communicate with Your Team
Open communication is vital when managing a business, so you should know your employees’ expectations, keep them up to date with the latest changes, and appreciate their performance and results. There’s nothing worse for a worker than their employer keeping them in the dark about their evolution and progress, so communicating clearly with your employees will keep their stress and anxiety levels low. Open communication is a two-way street, so encourage your team to share their thoughts, ideas, and concerns. Their feedback can boost your company’s growth and building strong relationships with your employees creates a healthy overall company culture.
Allow Remote Working
For millennials, the primary stress inducer at their workplace is a stringent schedule. To prevent burnout and stress, allow your employees to work from home, or create a flexible time scheme that enables them to work according to their preferences. Flexi-time schedules are good for employees’ morale and, therefore, can boost your venture’s performance. When you allow your employees to work remotely or choose their program, you tell them you trust that they can manage their time how they find suitable. Working parents appreciate an employer that allows them to modify their schedules according to their children’s needs. For this flexibility to function, communicate openly with your team to let them know your expectations and what parameters they must meet while working. Bottom line: Stress management requires learning skills like time management and problem-solving to help your employees cope with the adversity of the tasks they must complete. Work is a massive source of stress for many people, and the only way to improve your employees’ overall health is to learn how to fight back the negative thoughts when they become overwhelming. Everyone fights stress differently, but your role as a manager is to support the people who work for you and create as stress-free a workplace as possible.
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