140 brilliant stress management
Having to take on other people’s work (to cover for
absences, for example).
Other sources of stress
It may not all be down to you or your workplace. People bring
stress with them to work from home, family and social lives.
While these are usually the primary
source of stressors, workplace
stressors can often be the triggering
factors to major physical or mental
health problems. These sources of
stress can be linked to crisis and
trauma, problems with home life,
personal problems, nancial problems, or physical and health
problems. In addition, certain life events are likely to trigger
serious stress responses. These include pregnancy or birth,
divorce or relationship breakdown, a death or family illness,
family conict, or nancial loss and debt.
How to not impose stress
This section offers managers a series of useful ways to reduce
your impact on overall stress levels of your staff. It is arranged
under six headings, reecting the six management standards
developed by the UK Health and Safety Executive (HSE). These
are well researched and you will nd a lot of supporting informa-
tion on the HSE’s website.
Manage the demands on staff
The principal demand that an employer places on its staff is
their workload and the working patterns that form it. However,
there are others, like the physical environment it offers, the tools
and equipment it provides and the managerial processes and
styles to which staff are subjected.
people bring stress
with them to work from
home, family and social
lives
Manage stress at work 141
Workload
As a manager, it is your responsibility to assess each person’s
work, their workload and their working hours to ensure that they
are consistent with their training and with safe practices. Identify
any potential harm and deal with it immediately. Continue to
monitor and manage workloads and resolve issues as they arise.
This means that wise managers will always have a contingency
plan – a ‘plan B’ – that will allow them to step in with alterna-
tives, and offer support where needed.
Physical environment
Beyond what should be obvious – that the physical environment
should meet all health and safety at work criteria and be subject
to a suitable risk assessment – part of your role as a manager is
to act as a champion for your team and ght for the best pos-
sible tools and equipment, which will help them to do their work
effectively and efciently.
Managerial style
It isn’t possible, in this small space, to t a whole book on good
management style, but three management behaviours are par-
ticularly relevant to minimising the stressors you impose on staff:
1 Motivate positively. Apply the carrot, not the stick,
and offer appropriate recognition and rewards for good
performance, rather than rely on threats, punishments or
inducements.
2 Give effective feedback and constructive advice. Good
feedback will help team members to develop their abilities
and perform better. Base your feedback on observed
behaviour and balance any recommended changes with
credit for things they do well.
3 Think before you speak or act. Diving into a situation
without fully assessing it or getting staff perspectives can be
142 brilliant stress management
one of the most stressful behaviours. Always take time to
SCOPE the situation.
Give staff control over the way they work
A sense of control is essential to avoid stress, so what do
too many organisations do? They remove all control over the
working day from large numbers of staff. Yet it is these very
staff who probably know best how they can improve their own
efciency, deliver better services or make improved products.
Consult your team and listen to their ideas. Give them as much
autonomy as you possibly can – which is probably a lot more
than you think you can now. Let them plan their work patterns
where possible and, where they cannot, sit down and plan their
workload for them in a way that shows real consideration for
them and their personal lives.
Provide support to staff
Three things people want from their managers are honesty,
respect and understanding. Create a supportive culture where
people feel able to ask for help and you have the time to give
it. You need to be respectful of people’s needs both in and
outside work. Although you are not obliged to always act
on needs arising from their personal lives, it is wise to take
them into consideration and, where you can, accommodate
them. This will make people more effective at work and build
loyalty.
Talk about stress
Stress is a reality of work, so mature managers acknowledge this
and build a dialogue about it into their day-to-day work. Keep
your eyes and ears open for signs of stress, and identify who
is vulnerable. Take decisive action to pre-empt serious conse-
quences. Remember your remote workers on different sites or
working from home.
Manage stress at work 143
Promote positive workplace relationships
Most of us spend more of our waking time with our work col-
leagues than we do with the people we choose to make a life with
– our family and closest friends. So, workplace relationships are
very important to people. Get to know each of your team members
personally and give time to each person. Appreciate their differ-
ences and accommodate them, as best you can, when making
choices about work allocation and development opportunities.
Promote effective and respectful workplace communication and
consider whether and how to use formal team-building activities
in addition to your day-to-day management.
Be clear about staff members’ roles
People want to know what you expect of them. If they do not
have enough certainty about their role, they will lose condence
in your leadership, leaving them fearful and subject to stress.
On the other hand, however, if you subject people to roles that
are too rigidly dened, that will be stressful too, because of the
lack of control. The only solution is to get to know each of your
team members well, so that you can get the balance just right
for each one.
Consult team members and listen
to their opinions and ideas, involve
them in planning roles and respon-
sibilities, and keep them informed
of any changes. Review their devel-
opment needs regularly and act on what you learn. This whole
process must begin with clear job descriptions and person speci-
cations and a rigorous recruitment process, to ensure that the
people you recruit are well-suited for their jobs.
Change is unsettling, so manage it well
Change is such an important workplace stressor that we have
given over a whole chapter, Chapter 8, to the topic. Here,
consult team members
and listen to their
opinions and ideas
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