Stress at work. Work related stress is defined as the effect of excessive pressure as demanded by the work employees have to perform. Stress is a fact of life – everyone experiences stress but it affects each person differently. It is not an illness, but rather a state of mind. While it can disable some people, it has a good effect to people who are able to manage their stress efficiently.
Cause of stress. In the workplace, stress can be caused by a number of things. When a work’s demand is greater than an employee’s perceived capabilities, he or she will experience stress. On the other hand, too little demand from work can also cause stress because an employee can feel bored and undervalued. Striking a balance between demands and skills is the best condition to create a happy and productive workforce.
Stress has psychosomatic symptoms and can lead to sickness such as hypertension, obesity and heart problems. People who are unable to manage their stress become unproductive and might incur a number of absences leading to greater frustration on the part of the employee and lowered overall productivity on the part of the company.
Dealing with stress. In order to address stress properly, a person will have to analyze his/her situation and determine the cause of his/her stress. A person’s background and culture, skills and experience, personal circumstances and health status are called stressors. If you are a manager, it is your duty to ensure that the work does not make your team ill. You will need to spot the different signs of stress and you also need to know how to address them.
At present, many companies use stress monitors in order to determine the psychological effect of the work to their employees. Biodot stress monitors and stress monitor cards are most popular today. These two products work by the same principles – through bio feedback. This isn’t really a new invention. As a matter of fact, for a long number of years, doctors have obtaining information on the state of our mind and body through biofeedback using tools such as a blood pressure gauge and a thermometer. The stress monitors we know today are a just one of those many biofeedback devices.
The ability to determine anybody’s stress level real time has many advantages. First, managers can implement immediate interventions to assist their employees in dealing with stress. Giving your employee a 10-miute break will help prevent the build-up of stress which can then cause sickness and ultimately, employee absences. Stress monitoring is important especially in work environments involving customer support and brokering. By addressing the issue before it becomes a problem, a manager does good for both his/her subordinates as well as the overall state of the economy.
At a time of global economic recession, stress levels are at its highest. Many have lost their jobs and those who have retained theirs are in a lot of pressure to perform well or risk losing their jobs. Through stress monitors, both the employee and his manager will be immediately informed of the need for intervention, thereby cutting down the possibility of sickness, lowered productivity and absences. Number of stress monitors users from Health Reviser significantly increase every day. Number of people that successfully treated their stress using Stress Sweeper goes up too.