Work has always been one of the most painful parts of our lives. Throughout history, people always had to work and it was also not uncommon to be forced to do some work. However, all of this has passed and today everybody has their own freedom to pick a job they want.
But still, this doesn’t mean that people can’t have troubles at work. One of the biggest problems for working people today is stress. The business environment has become very competitive and everyone is rushing forward, hoping to beat their competitors. This kind of environment takes its toll on organizations and people working in them.
Stress is one of the major issues of a modern work environment and it’s important to know what causes it so that you can deal with it. Luckily everyone can do something about it and make their work stress-free.
Stressed managers
Managers have a great effect on everybody else in the company, and if they are stressed this could rub off on the whole business, creating an unhealthy atmosphere. There are countless research and studies conducted by companies which show how positive management creates a collaborative and friendly work environment.
In reality, managers have a lot on their plates. Everyone thinks that managers don’t do anything but, in fact, their workload is very intense and this stresses them out. Because of their busy schedules, managers start to feel worried about their job security, but at the same time, they don’t have the time to get everything done.
On top of that, managers don’t leave their work behind them once they leave the office, and they often think about it even outside their work hours. What’s even worse, the highly competitive atmosphere means that there are others that want their jobs and are just waiting for them to slip up.
Colleagues with whom you share an office or a desk
We all have to work with other people. Almost every job today includes a shared workspace where employees spend a good portion of their every day and this could create problems. In a lot of cases, this means that people share desks as well, or sit very close to each other.
Everyone has their own habits, personalities, upsides, and downsides, and when people spend a lot of time near each other, these things can climb out to the surface. This is when people start to annoy each other and make work more difficult. After a lot of time has passed, those tiny things could create a pile of stress which erupts, causing arguments at work.
This could lead to people hating their colleagues just because of those annoying things and then create a spiral of bad relationships within the office.
Money, of course
Everyone does their job to earn money. Even if we love what we do, the main motivation is money and anyone who says otherwise is lying. Today a lot of people work over 9 hours each day and put in a lot of effort to do their jobs well. If they are not paid well, they could have a lot of problems motivating themselves to move forward and finish their tasks on a regular basis.
Still, this not only about the money – there are factors which are not immediately visible. It’s worse to be underpaid than not being paid at all. People who volunteer know what they signed up for and what to expect from their jobs. On the other hand, when you’ve been promised something and you have done your end of the deal, you can feel betrayed and unappreciated for not being compensated properly.
This can create a spiral of negative thinking, such as whether you can trust the company you are working for. Are they lying? If so, you can feel used, and might start feeling that there is no future for you at this place.
The omnipresent deadlines
As we mentioned earlier, modern jobs have a lot of tight deadlines that need to be met. Customers expect to get what they need in a timely fashion, and if not, they will look for similar products or services elsewhere. Heavy competition is pushing the limits of companies every year and this puts a lot of pressure on employees.
The fact that rules and dates are so strict can make us think constantly about when we need to finish our tasks and how. Once you get into this loop of constantly obsessing about deadlines, you won’t be able to do anything properly, no matter if we are talking about work or simply going to the movies to watch a new film.
How to deal with it
Once you recognize these causes of stress, you need to start acting quick if you want to get rid of them. Everyone has the power to do this and blaming somebody else will get you nowhere. Instead, work on it yourself and you will start feeling better:
- When managers are stressed and overwhelmed with work, be proactive and offer them your help. They cannot handle everything on their own, and when you take a bit of workload off their plate they will feel better and start repaying you.
- If you are having problems with a coworker talk to them. Don’t behave like children and passively annoy each other. Have an understanding of each other, and work on changing those annoying things you do and you will create a happier work environment.
- If you feel that you are underpaid, work even harder and don’t start slacking off. Do this for a certain period of time. If, after all the hard work, the management doesn’t give you the deserved raise, talk to them about your performance and give them obvious reasons why you should be paid more.If they still don’t want to compensate you for your work, then maybe the best solution is to find a better job.
- Instead of focusing on deadlines, focus on your tasks. When you do your job, you will meet deadlines without a problem. Additionally, don’t think about your work outside of work hours, do something to relax and get the needed rest, so that you can go back fresh to work and handle all of your tasks.
If you recognize that your work is stressing you out, make sure to take action as soon as possible. Trust me, this won’t get fixed all on its own – if you wait, you will only make things worse.
