Overcome the Top 10 Causes of Workplace Stress

Workplace stress is on the rise and it's costing
corporate America a fortune. Some estimate that
80% of health care costs are stress related, and
these expenses go right to the bottom line.

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.

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

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