We all have stress at our jobs from time to time. I think that is universal in America. What you do about it can mean the difference between continual success and burnout. Being that I'm feeling the job stress lately as we have officially entered the busy season at work, I thought I would offer tips that I've used.
Understand yourself
The first step towards stress management is identifying what causes you the most stress. For some, it is the sheer amount of work they've been given, for others it's working against deadlines, and still others it's working with demanding clients. Knowing what causes stress can help you identify the areas to focus on during peak work times.
I find that if you lack self-awareness you're more inclined to get to the point of burnout and not know how you got there. Take few minutes every week or every day to assess what is causing you stress. That will help dictate what you do to eliminate the stress you're feeling.
Take Care of Yourself
This is something that everyone knows, but most people don't do. If you're not sleeping the right amount of hours, eating the right foods, or exercising this can exacerbate the stress that you're feeling.
I know that if I don't get enough sleep I work at approximately half of my typical pace, and it affects my relationships with othres. Although it can be difficult to walk away from work at the end of the day everyone needs that time to recharge and decompress, no matter how demanding your job is. Sometimes rest can give you fresh eyes to solve the problem in front of you and isn't that what's important to your work?
Say No
I have the toughest time with this one. Sometimes, simply saying no is the easiest thing to do, and yet I will live with the guilt of not being able to fulfill every last request. In the end, I know that saying no to certain projects will help my work-life balance, promote my happiness, and reduce my stress. But it becomes so hard to endure the feeling of letting people down. Saying no to additional projects can be tough, but it's often necessary.
Ask for help
Since "saying no" isn't always an option for the demands of work, asking for help is often the next best thing. I ran into a colleague that said she was trying to figure out how to do something on her computer, but had tried for hours to figure it out with no success. She came and asked me to help and I was able to fix it in 5 minutes. Using the resources around you can be such an asset. I know that I would rather ask a colleague to take 5 minutes to help me than recreate the wheel. In fact, I asked a colleague the other day what language she used when sending an announcement out to her clients about a particular hotel. It saved me so much time and took her only 5 minutes to look up.
Asking for help doesn't mean you're weak or incapable. It means you're smart enough to use your resources and the people on your team to further the work you're doing. A great worker always uses their resources efficiently.
Resist Perfectionism
One of my goals as a mom and working professional is to try and do it all, while making it look easy. I strive to create this image that I will never say no, meet all the deadlines, and keep all the plates in my life spinning at the same time. This goal is not realistic and that is why it is on my New Year's resolution list, to try and stop striving for perfection. In the end, perfection will be what breaks me.
Control the controllable
This is another tough one. The difficult co-worker or client that you have to work with is completely out of your control. Rather than try and get him or her to do what you need them to do, offer many solutions to solve your problem. After all, you can't control their negative attitude or whether or not they meet your deadline. What you can control is your attitude and yourself.
Now I'm not saying take on more projects and start doing their work on top of yours. I am saying that each individual needs to take responsibility for themselves. Sometimes by covering for other people you are shielding what could potentially be a larger issue within your organization. Of course, it is hard to let a project fail, but there is so much to be learned from failing that I think every once in awhile it really is worth it. This one is hard, especially for the event planners out there, that strive for perfectionism and try and take care of every last detail. I certainly struggle with this one the most.
Here's to letting go of things out of your control, getting more rest, and de-stressing your life. Do you have any tips for de-stressing your life? Leave a note in the comments!