Stress is par for the course in the world of work. One half of those who took part in a survey by CareerBuilders.Com say they feel they are under a “great deal of stress.” Three out of four report they are feeling the stress effects of job burnout.
Who’s to blame?
Sixteen percent put the blame on their colleagues. Other causes listed: unrealistic workload, tight deadlines, last-minute projects and bosses who meddle.
“High pressure work environments are taking their toll on workers’ morale,” said Rosemary Haefner, CareerBuilders’ v.p. for human resources. “This can be detrimental to both workers, whose health and career progress may suffer, and employers, who pick up the tab in higher insurance costs and lost productivity.”
In our more rational moments we know no situation, in and of itself, causes stress; stress grows out of how we react to that situation. Of course, that is correct. But it’s a hard matter to put this law of common sense to work when the stress causers go into play.
Each of us has his trigger points where stress kicks in. What’s stress for me may be a walk in the park for you. Each of us develops his own mechanics for dealing with stress.
One thing is common for all of us. It helps to have someone with whom we can discuss our stress problems. I invite you to share your thoughts via Re: Your Career. You can do this anonymously if you prefer.
What causes you the greatest stress on the job?
How do you cope with that stress?
Share your thoughts; help yourself; help others.
Ramon
I just went into business for myself. I’m working on some projects with another consultant who now is asking me to change my voice mail greeting to say her business name, asking that I spend the summer working only on her accounts and talks down to me constantly. I am building my own client base, but slowly because she’s keeping me busy. At the same time, she doesn’t pay on time, her checks bounce and she post-dates my payments when there’s not sufficient funds in her account to pay me. I rescued a client for her that was close to resigning with her. Because I’m swamped on her projects, I’m now relying on my fees to her and can barely service my own clients or build up my own base. Now I have digestive health problems and I’m feeling tense almost 24/7. Just the mention of her name makes me freeze. What should I do?
Anonymous
I’m glad to hear that you value The Career Accelerator.
You don’t say how long you have been in your present job. As a general proposition, you should hang on for at least a year to 18 months before you make a change.
I urge you to make your best effort, starting with your boss, to open up the channels of communication. I’d tell him that you are sure you could do a better job if the two of you could work in a good open two-way communications mode.
You could start by convincing your boss to work to let you work with him to set goals for your performance and to have him give you feedback as to how you are performing against those goals.
If you have people reporting to you, set up the two-way communications policy with them. Your good example could very well convince others to embrace open communications.
As for polishing your resume, I am a firm believer in the idea that everyone should keep his resume up to date. You never know when your will need.
I wish you success…
Ramon
LKR…
Sounds as if you are in a real snakepit. I think you are wise to be looking for another position. Life is too short…
Here are some thoughts re what you should do until you land another position.
1. Take this time to review where you’ve been, where you want to go and what it will take to get there. Set goals and lay out a plan to reach them.
2. Be careful in selecting those with whom you will share your plans to change jobs. Avoid being caught up in the gossip mill.
3. Don’t burn bridges now and after your leave your present employer. Don’t bad-mouth your present employer.
4. Continue to make your best effort to do a good job even under the present conditions.
5. Conduct your search for a new position at full speed. Once you’ve made up your mind to change, don’t make the effort in fits and starts.
6. Realize it takes time to find a new job. Don’t give up.
I wish you success.
Ramon
Ramon…I’m in pretty much the same situation at Frustrated in Denver. The company I work for is privately held and probably does between $30 and $40 million. The founder who is still running it is tight as a tick and doesn’t share anything with those less than his right hand men, including big raises and bonus’. My question is how long do I give this situation? I can push for open communication and work with my boss on goals and rewards but I am probably not going to get very far. Should I give it the rest of the year to see if miracles do happen or should I polish up my resume? Thanks for you help and I enjoy your advice column.
I recently applied for an open position. Our current head manager has a style of making multiple changes in decisons, sometimes within an hour, sometimes without communication, so we never know where we stand. I went towards HR with my application but ran into him first. To be polite, I said, “What should I do with this?” (He is very paranoid) He said “You give it to me” Well, our policy was that everyone who applies gets an interview and the best interview gets the job. Somehow, my application never got to HR. HR denied any knowlege of ever recieving it. (I think I can trust the person in HR who told me this) The main manager just picked a cashier this week for the job, without telling her immediate supervisor and put her in training. This meant the immediate supervisor had to change the schedule because she already had this cashier in. I am now actively seeking new jobs, even if it means taking a paycut. What is your suggestion for survival skills while I wait for something to come open?
Tony…
Many thanks for your kind words re The Career Accelerator. I really appreciate the good responses I get.
Frankly, I was surprised boss relationships didn’t rank higher–even number one–in the list for causes for stress I noted in my posting.
Frankly, I doubt that your boss ever changes. I think you’ll find the higher your climb up the ladder the harder it will be to get what I call atta-boys. (If you will send your e-mail addess to me at ramon@commonsenseatwork.com I will provide you with a copy of The Accelerator I wrote early on that deals with this subject.)
In the meantime, learn to get your atta-boys from within.
I wish you success….Ramon
Ramon…I’ve got a boss that has caused me so much stress over the years, I have no idea why I stick around for it. He’s one of those guys who never gives me any feedback except when it’s negative. I’m not looking for an ego stroke but it sure would help my stress level if every once in a while he would say, “nice job”. Thanks for listening. I enjoy your Accelerator…keep them coming!