Occupational Stress

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Work provides an income and also fulfils a variety of other human needs- mental and physical exercise, social contact, a feeling of self-worth and competence. Work, however, is also a major source of stress, arising from the nature of the relations between management and employees, and that between colleagues in the workplace in general.

The modern world thrives on the work ethic, and we are taught at a very early age to equate personal adequacy with material success and professional status. Few of us are immune to the pressures placed on us by society to desire things-bigger televisions, faster cars, exotic holidays-that are symbols of status.

Advertising and marketing strategies tap into this competitive urge we all have and create in us a need to go one better than people around us, in other words succumb to the 'keeping up with the Joneses' syndrome. This starts at an early age-basically in tandem with the learning process. The fear of failure and the challenge of peer pressure motivates us to work to achieve. In moderation, this can be healthy, as achievement goes hand in hand with self-esteem, but it also creates a cumulative stress that follows us from school to higher education, through to our working lives.

For many of us, however, it is a struggle to keep up, and we often work unnaturally long hours in unfortunate working conditions just to keep our heads above water. It has become a truism nowadays to say that no job is for life. Temporary employment contracts and the threat of unemployment are now features of more and more peoples' working lives, and many feel lucky to have a job at all. Society, therefore, is forcing us to change our expectations of how we work, and this is taking its toll on our physical and emotional security.

In coping with the structural changes of our working lives, it is vital to try to embrace the positives among the negatives. Flexitime, job sharing and increased communication through technology and the 'information superhighway', offer new ways of working, which, if we are able to adapt to them, can offer us greater freedoms. More emphasis on leisure time and recreation should also mean more time to relax and relate to family and friends.

We are starting to see worth in activities not necessarily related to the working environment. This control can be used to create a healthy, more relaxed style of living. Stress is a plague of current working practices, and even if we can't change our overall working situation, there are certain steps we can take to de-stress our days.

There is a lot of truth in the saying that a messy desk portrays a messy mind. Being chronically disorganized can be debilitating at work, where lack of planning is one of the most common causes of stress. Stressful environments are minimized when we impose a form of structure that can offer security against problems appearing 'out of the blue'. Too inflexible a pattern would be impractical, but keeping a diary, writing lists and prioritizing duties all help to stem stressful situations.

Writing down objectives, duties and activities helps to make them seem more tangible and surmountable. Don't try to overload your mind with too much information-if you are already stressed there is more chance of you forgetting vital references and data-but if you take steps to keep control of things then you will work more efficiently.

People have different tolerances for routine and variety. Some personalities thrive under the security of a routine working day. In many ways it can be quite liberating, as adhering to a pattern means that you can fully concentrate on one task at a time and not get in a muddle attempting things that there may not be adequate time for. On the other hand, too much routine can be boring and demoralizing and eat away at your enthusiasm for the job. Variety at work holds interest and enthusiasm, but too little structure leads to overloading, confusion and stress.

Most of us need to strike a balance between routine and variety in order to enjoy work and maintain levels of efficiency. Monotony can be broken by looking ahead and planning when to switch from one job to another. Perhaps there is a way to inject some variety into your tasks-can you open up your job description? Those suffering under too great a workload should learn to say 'no', and not be afraid of the consequences. Pacing yourself is one of the most vital practices in achieving a relaxed lifestyle. Learn when to stop and stand back from your activity, the odd moment of calm will increase efficiency when you do return to your task.