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How can the negative effect of stress on productivity at work be managed at all levels of management?

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Question added by bukayo ekunwe , Business Development Manager , Aktion Energy, Nigeria Subsidiary
Date Posted: 2013/07/30

Stress is a common desease in business. Where stress is responsibility to deliver and maintain your company or the asset is not far. Control your stress is having a control on your business as well. Eliminate your stress with exercises and avoid negativity and conflictual discussion or issue at the Office.

Keep self control of yourself and analyse the situation in all case scenario.

Rasha Swwan
by Rasha Swwan , Sales Adminstrator , Khaleel Electromechanical Est.

I think you have to solve your stress to stop its affects on every aspect of your life, not only your productivity at work. So, solving the whole picture - as I would like to call it - of the stress will solve the productivity problem.

And depending on the stress indicators; you can manage the stress at all of the managing levels by dealing with these indicators; which are as follows (from my answer to "What are the indicators of stress?" question):

I check helpguid.org; and I found out that stress indicators has4 types (in my words):

1. Cognitive: Your memory, concentration and judgment (you only see the negatives) are badly affected. So, you become always anxious. Your thought will be racing.

Depending on the cognivite indocators; you can easily notice the stressed person, he is the one who's complaining about his head, he point at and say: "My problem is here!" although all other indicators.

2. Emotional: Stressed people are moody, short temperd and agitation; so I say, to maintain your realtionships with others, and in order not to heart who you love and always care about their feelings; you have to treat with your problem. (Don't break what you can't fix!). And for your own sick; because when you are stressed; your can't relax, you are overwhelmed, feels lonely and isolated. And as I mensioned earlier; you feel depressed or generaly unhappy.

3. Physical: You are suffering from digestive symptoms strikes, you are dizzy, you have chest pain, your heartneats are rapid, you have loss of sex drive and you have frequent colds.

So in order to be effective in your life; you have to treat your stress; it would be much better for your body, instead of taking madications for the previous symptoms or indicators.

4. Behavioral: When you are stressed; you eat more or less (so stress is one of the biggest nightmares for those who have weight problems). Sometimes you sleep too much or too little (which provokes more stress and tension). You keep on isolating yourself from others (which would affect your relationships).

A very important point; neglecting responsibilities (so, as a parent or if you have someone you are responsible for; he/she will be badly affected. And I always say, we should always take care of the kids; if you have kids - especially mothers - ; your kids might grow stress in any time of their life.).

You start using cigarettes and/or drugs, alcohol; in order to relax and finally you grow nervous habits (e.g. nail biting, pacing).

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Now, lets be specified about the productivity at work:

I would ask you to start monetaring, or lets say observe your stress. Please note that; there are - as we call it in psychology - Indivioual Differences - amonge the stressed employees; each one has his own special problem and way of dealing or managing it.

For example; an employees might be streessed, because a problem with his boss, which provokes stress, that effects his productivity. So here we are; dealing with this problem would solve the stress and productivity problem.

As mention in helpguide.org; to manage job stress (in my words); you need to take responsibility; don't negalect it which provokes more stress. Avoide bitfalls; which you can always avoid it easily if you pay more attention. And finally; improve your communication skills.

You can find more about in the following link:

http://www.helpguide.org/mental/work_stress_management.htm

Arash Lajevardi
by Arash Lajevardi , National Sales And Marketing Manager , Bastan group

Team leaders can Manage all Negative Effect and Stressful events in the office or working place , They need to find the root of the stress.
and see how they are facing with , Good Relations with employees , talk about the problems inside and outside of workplace ,

Deleted user
by Deleted user

Stress is fact of life in corporate world and loss of resultant productivity is a fact.
However, the origin of stress and its tollerance is varied and is different for each individuals.
Therefore you cannot have a generalised answer to it.
  As an manager, the best thing we can do is to mitiagate the origins of the stress or send out messages of reassurance if required.
First task is to identify and locate the reasons/ orgin of stress.
Second, find out how it can be resolved or mitiagated.
[Most often the stress is due to the personal issues which corporates can hardly get involved.] Third, the ease of resolution also depends on the heiracrchy and the responsiveness of the concerned person.
Stress of persons in the lower heirarchy can be more easily managed, especially work-related, as manager can offer multiple options without having a big impact on team's performance.
Its harder to move or reschedule or change roles of people higher up in the order.
Fourth, provide a little window of time for these changes to take effect.
Once these changes are made by the company, the productivity of the employee should be back on track.
  It is important to note that stress has to be handled calmly.
Stressing on it is not going to help :)

Ashraf Alsinglawi
by Ashraf Alsinglawi , Medical Supply Chain Planner , International Committee of the Red Cross

By one day off !!

Muhammad Azam
by Muhammad Azam , Program Manager , Differnt Institutions of Pakistan

Often Negative thinking boost up due to stress and productivity down while stress management is a technique of personality

Deleted user
by Deleted user

If you overpass the limit of stress you won't get good results.
Stress is necessarious to be in alert and be aware but we cannot overpass that limit.
To do that means make mistakes, people blocked, and so on

khaled Ibrahim Sayed Abd El Salam Ibrahim
by khaled Ibrahim Sayed Abd El Salam Ibrahim , Chief Accountant , -ElMehy engineering company

in sample answer , I think by making a meeting in door all over the company and inform them about the status the company face and try to use the Key Personal in the company in order to make the positive effect on the other negative Key Personal , Finally you must open channels in all your company sections and in your different division between the manager in each section and they stuff in order to let that stress pass away , BUT if the managers in going in way and the team working in another way that will not only lead to stress but to disaster in your company , Finally my personal advice to any company MUST make monthly meeting in different company divisions in order to make positive communications with the team and the manager to reduce any gap between them and to discover any negatives as well.

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