According to CNN-Money.com, Americans spent more than $17 billion for
anti-depressants and anti- anxiety drugs in 2002, up 10% from the year
before and nearly 30% over a two year period.
The Institute for Management Excellence reports that American industry
spends more than $26 billion each year for medical bills and disability
payments with another $10 billion for executive's lost workdays, hospitalization,
and early death.
In addition to these staggering figures, stress takes its toll through
the added costs of quality control, legal challenges, lost opportunities,
poor performance, bad attitudes, and training.
We cannot do much about the skyrocketing costs of medical care and
prescription drugs, but we can take immediate action to control the top
ten causes of stress as identified by The Global Business and Economic
Roundtable on Addiction and Mental Health.
The countdown is:
10. "Workload" – Employees report that they are often
stressed when they have too little or too much to do. Managers need to
divide responsibilities and help employees prioritize work that must
be done. Make sure you understand the impact before shifting responsibilities.
Take into account the cost of stress before you increase anyone’s
workload or hire more people.
9. "Random interruptions" - Telephones, pagers, walk-in visits,
and spontaneous demands from supervisors all contribute to increased
stress. Time management, delegation of responsibilities, and clarification
of expectations can reduce these stressors. 8. "Pervasive uncertainty" – Stress
levels increase rapidly when people are confronted by new requirements
and procedures. Keeping people informed controls stress and increases
productivity. Put details in a memo so they can review the facts following
your explanations.
7. "Mistrust and unfairness" - These situations keep everyone
on edge, create bad attitudes, and lower productivity. It is important
to keep an open line of communication to avoid misunderstanding and know
what people are thinking about your decisions. Managers must consistently
build trust and give equal treatment - just do the right thing.
6. "Unclear policies and no sense of direction" - Lack of
focus causes uncertainty and undermines confidence in management. You
need more than a well-written policy manual. Enforcement of policies
and clear communications are essential.
To make sure everyone gets the message, you can repeat your explanation
in a variety of ways – repetition and feedback are important. Reinforce
policies through memos, articles, bulletin board postings, personal meetings,
and small group discussions.
5. "Career and job ambiguity" - If people are uncertain about
their jobs and careers, there is a feeling of helplessness and of being
out of control. In addition to the trusted job descriptions and annual
personnel reviews, people need to understand a broad range of issues
that affect the company.
News of mergers, consolidations, plant closings, and restructuring
contribute to a feeling of helplessness. Management must keep people
informed about situations that will affect their jobs, or the rumor mill
will add to an already stressful situation.
4. "No feedback - good or bad” – People want to know
whether they are meeting expectations. Consistent, written and verbal,
personalized feedback is required. Some people need more attention than
others, but everyone’s performance is enhanced if leaders frequently
affirm individual efforts.
3. "No appreciation” - Failure to show appreciation generates
stress that endangers productivity throughout the company. There are
many ways to demonstrate appreciation, but the most effective is a sincere
comment about how much the person means to you and the company.
2. "Lack of communications" - Poor communication leads to
decreased performance and increased stress. Management memos and announcements
work well for distributing information, but two-way conversation improves
communication and solicits ideas and suggestions while reducing stress
and complaints.
1. “Lack of control” – Workplace stress is at its greatest
when employees have no say regarding things that affect them. You can decrease
sensitivity to all the other stressors and give a sense of being in control
by involving employees in operating and administrative decisions and acting
on their input. Frontline employees know what they are talking about. Listening
to what they have to say reduces stress and increases productivity.
About the Author
Effective managers understand that stress control is a leadership responsibility
and give it just as much attention as any other management function. For
those who want to explore stress control further, a free 3-session e-course
is available by email request at stresscontrol@sendfree.com
Grasping the concepts and reducing stress one step at a time can have
an amazing impact on your bottom line --and on the lives of those who
do the heavy work.
Dale Collie - professional speaker, former US Army Ranger, CEO, and a Fast
Company top 50 innovative leader. Author of "Winning Under Fire." (McGraw-Hill) collie@couragebuilders.com |