How to Handle Pressure at Work (Examples and Tips for Managing)

After this stage then comes to burn out which is a feeling extreme exhaustion as a result of having worked too much and too hard and having been subjected to undue pressure.

workload on employees

The main causes of work pressure, is it responsible for burnout?

The main causes of work pressure, is it responsible for burnout? : The causes of high work pressure are diverse. High work pressure leads to stress, anxiety, overload and burnout. The high workload is therefore often an important cause of long term absence. A solid burnout quickly costs €80,000

In this article, we show the main causes of work pressure. Likely you will already know what is written at the beginning of the article, although towards the end we will go into more detail of the depths of work pressure and burnout.

Types of Pressure

Internal pressure is the pressure you put on yourself. This can be a demand by yourself of yourself to work harder and achieve more. It can be a push by yourself to become the best at something in your organization. These demands that you make of yourself and which you struggle with can lead to a massive amount of pressure. If left unchecked and not properly dealt with, it will take its toll both physically and mentally.

The other type of pressure we usually contend with is external pressure. As the name suggests, this refers to the pressure that is placed on us from the outside. An example is a manager that micromanages you or having to work under very demanding circumstances and conditions.

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The bigger challenge is to identify the people who are burdened by too much stress. It’s tricky because some people will have an obvious, frenetic, or panicked stress response, whereas others will withdraw and direct their stress inward. Because there is no single pattern, you’re looking for deviations from an employee’s normal behavior. Is someone working considerably longer hours, failing to take breaks or to get lunch, behaving irritably with coworkers? On the other end of the spectrum, is someone becoming disturbingly quiet? Are they interacting with you noticeably less frequently? Is their body language demonstrating fatigue or cause for concern? Those changes might suggest too much stress.

Once you have a sense of the stress levels on your team, you’ll know whether you need to dial the heat up, or bring it back down from a boil to a simmer. There are several techniques you can use for each scenario.

If you believe there is too little stress on your team and that it will take a little more discomfort before your employees are in the productive range of distress, you have a variety of options to choose from. To make the suggestions concrete, I’m going to use the example of the introduction of a new sales culture. This is a common transformation and one that will stall with too little heat and blow up with too much.

Increase the frequency and pointedness of coaching. It’s easy to stick to the status quo when no one is watching. The moment that an employee knows that you’re noticing her behavior, the stress levels will naturally rise. The secret to coaching toward an optimal level of stress is to increase the frequency of the feedback you provide, but decrease the intensity. Imagine you have rolled out new sales management software but you’re struggling to get all of the salespeople to input their activity. Try simple feedback such as, “It’s Wednesday and I’m only seeing three opportunities in the funnel for this week.” Pair the feedback with a question such as, “What time of day works best for you to input your meetings?”

Comments

Stress at work (or in any other context for that matter) can tax our body, mind and overall well-being in many ways. I truly believe that meditation and mindfulness can radically reduce stress and anxiety. I am passionate about this topic and I have dedicated a lot of time on the subject of meditation during commute. After all, most people who commute to and from work, spend a considerable amount of prime time on public transport. Time that can be used to improve the quality of our life, not only professionally. For me, meditating on the London Underground on my way to work (and back) has been a life changing habit.
Here is my experience:
https://howtomeditate.online/how-i-meditate-on-the-tube/
https://howtomeditate.online/a-beginners-guide-to-meditation-during-commute/

This is a very useful and important article that inspires us to adopt the process of Mindfulness, meditation and Yoga in life to overcome physical and mental stress in today’s stressed society. Your heartfelt thanks for this excellent article.

Here is also a great article on how to out-perform under work pressure
Super easy 5 ways :https://www.gameplan-a.com/2019/04/5-ways-you-can-out-perform-under-work-pressure/?section=main

I have to stress that mindfulness is 100% a key and powerful tool for stress management, and I would generally do not object to the use of technological aids such as apps, however I would not put all my hopes on using apps for meditation and mindfulness.
It could surly be the “gateway” for more advanced Technics and understanding but not an alternative.

Principles to Remember

Jay Gadi, engineering manager at SoapBox, the management software company based in Toronto, admits that it’s been a “tough time” for his team and his company.

During the first week of the quarantine, SoapBox laid off half its staff. Morale took a hit. “We lost some great colleagues,” he says. “And everyone was already under a lot of stress.”

Further Reading

Coronavirus: Leadership and Recovery

But Jay is determined to try to think about the situation as positively as he can. “We are in crisis and this is really hard, but I like to think about it differently: This is probably the biggest growth opportunity that I will ever have in my career,” he says. “If I can manage through this and make sure my team weathers this storm, we will all come out [the better for it.]”

To that end, Jay is using this time to accomplish professional tasks that he’d temporarily put aside. For instance, he is learning a new programming language. He is also focusing on the ways in which he relates to, and motivates, his team members. He has increased his one-on-one meetings with his direct reports and is making a special effort to connect with them on a more personal level. “This time is stressful, and I want to be empathetic. I am constantly asking: how are you doing?” he says. “I am also showing my vulnerability by talking about what I am experiencing, too.”

Each workday at 1pm, he runs a virtual meditation session for his team. It’s not mandatory, but he says that many employees enjoy it. “After lunch, I open up a group chat, and we do a Headspace meditation to relieve stress,” he says.

He is also devoting more time to mentoring younger developers outside of his immediate work circle. Building relationships with others is something he enjoys and feels good about. “I like helping people and giving feedback — it’s one of the reasons I got into management.”

References:

https://milltain.com/management/the-main-causes-of-work-pressure/
https://opensourcedworkplace.com/news/how-to-handle-pressure-at-work-examples-and-tips-for-managing
https://hbr.org/2016/07/how-to-put-the-right-amount-of-pressure-on-your-team
https://www.health.harvard.edu/blog/how-to-handle-stress-at-work-2019041716436
https://hbr.org/2020/04/how-to-handle-the-pressure-of-being-a-manager-right-now

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