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The Times of India
Title : Stressed at work?
Author : Latha Nambisan
Location :
Article Date : 09/10/2014
CHANCES ARE,THE RESPONSE TO THIS QUESTION WILL RANGE FROM `YES'TO `YES,
ALL THE TIME'
Traditional assumptions are that the biggest cause of occupational stress centre around work-life
balance.Maybe yes, but work-life balance related stress is often overrated there are deeper reasons that
cause deeper unhappiness. Given that all stress is not work-life balance related, the moot question is how
can a person deal with stress and move across the continuum from distress to eustress?
As with every other problem that organisations and people face, it is important to understand root causes
before rushing into remedial action.Higher stress levels in organisations could be due to a variety of
factors, most of them resulting in a sense of the world spiraling out of control.
External and internal changes in organisations can cause deep stress. While external changes have the
ability to leave one unprepared and gasping for breath, internal changes are often more devastating at a
personal level. The pace of organisational growth leading to leadership changes and the associated subtle
cultural shifts can be very stressful for people. Especially, if one has been a star campaigner in the
organisation so far, having the rug pulled from under one's feet is never a pleasant experience.
Recognising the source of trauma is the first step, realising the inevitability of the change and riding the
change instead of fighting it is the next. Letting go of the old, recognising the changes and embracing the
new with an open mind and changing with the times can move a person from one end of the stress index
to the other end.
Internal organisational issues on collaboration are great sources of angst. Organisations where individual
ownership and heroism have been celebrated have the most issues with collaboration. A sense of
helplessness, anger and irritation at being dependent on someone else can cause deep stress.And there's
no getting away from it as a person moves up the organisation, learning to collaborate is a key ingredient
to success. Communicating expectations clearly and often, embracing some formal systems of direction
setting, sharing and review instead of informal corridor conversations can go a long way in dealing with
this.
As organisations scale, there are several challenges around clarity on goals and processes. These can be
particularly frustrating, especially if someone is a new kid on the block. Most people, who have been
around for a long time, assume that goals and processes are `common-sensical' and do not understand the
need to communicate.In situations like these, it is best to ask, ask and ask until absolute clarity is
received or arrived at.
The next step and perhaps, the easiest one to fix is the stress caused due to a lack of skills new needs,
new context! Understanding this and investing in some education should fix this! Finally, there is one
other source of stress that can gnaw away at the soul.This is a sense of a lack of appreciation, that elusive
promotion or that salary increase that someone deserves but no one else seems to acknowledge. Rather
than carrying this heavy burden around, it's time to talk to someone trustworthy someone who can give
honest feedback, someone who can explain if one's expectations are justified or not, candidly and
objectively.
So what's your particular source of stress? Reflecting about it and dealing with it can bring that much-
needed measure of peace and well-being.
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The author is EVP HR at Servion