10 Symptoms of Workplace Stress

It is no secret that stress and related disorders are the most frequent cause of employee disability (National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health). As far back as 1992, a United Nations report called job stress a "world wide epidemic.

Control of workplace stress is a leadership responsibility. Good leaders who recognize the symptoms of stress can control situations to create more desirable workplaces and to improve both productivity and the bottom line.

Corporate leaders who have served in the military recognize employee stress when they observe symptoms such as:

1 Anxiety

2 Indecisiveness

3 Irritability

4 Complaining

5 Forgetfulness

6 Loss of self confidence

7 Argumentativeness

8 Insomnia

9 Rapid emotional shifts

10 Physical exhaustion

Symptoms such as these cost companies billions of dollars each year in health care costs, absenteeism, accidents, quality control, personnel turnover, and various interpersonal relationship problems.

Some managers mistakenly try to control stressful problems by increasing demands and supervising details. Increased urgency and focus on details typically generates even more stress. The problems shift from slight distractions, such as back pain, headaches, and inattention, to more drastic reactions such as absenteeism and medical problems, both good indicators that stress levels need attention.

Just as in the Army, most business leaders must be taught to manage stress and to observe for negative stress reactions. All managers need to understand the importance of positive stress in maximizing accuracy and productivity. And they need to know how to control the negative stress for the benefit of those involved and the bottom line.

If you don't have qualified staff in your company, outside consultants and trainers can help you evaluate current stress levels and train everyone involved. Remember, stress control is a leadership responsibility.

Get my article about controlling the top ten workplace stressors by sending blank email MailTo:10stressors@couragebuilders.com

You may edit this article for length or content to fit your space and audience requirements and publish electronically or in print free of charge. Include my full byline and add a hyperlink for web postings. When you publish, please send a courtesy link or email to collie@couragebuilders.com

Dale Collie (MailTo:collie@couragebuilders.com) speaker, author, and former US Army Ranger, CEO,and professor at West Point. Selected by "Fast Company" as one of America's Fast 50 innovative leaders. Author of "Frontline Leadership: From War Room to Boardroom," and "Winning Under Fire: Turn Stress into Success the US Army Way." (McGraw-Hill) http://www.couragebuilders.com

MORE RESOURCES:

RELATED ARTICLES

The Best Stress Relief and Its Free!
"Let your mind be quiet, realizing the beauty of the world, and the immense, the boundless treasures that it holds in store." by Edward CarpenterThe Best Stress Relief and It's Free!Sometimes it's the simple things that are the most moving.

Stress Relief - An Industry For Self Inflicted Stress
Stress ReliefStress is a big business in Western society. We live what we regard as hectic lives, that prime us with stress.

Stress Managment and Mastery: Too Much to Do Stress - Write it Down, Break it Down, Knock it Down
"I've got too much to do, I've just got too much to do!"We have all said it and we have all lived it. I call this particular kind of stress Too Much To Do stress, or TMTD stress.

Dont Let Technology Psych You Out!
We've all experienced it-computerized technology that doesn't function properly. PCs that crash on Monday morning, copiers that melt transparencies, printers that smear ink on Board reports, phones that crackle during crisis calls, Internet viruses that destroy everything but non-essential data, faxes that send documents to the wrong long distance number, and so forth.

7 Solutions for Practical Stress Management
Stress is amazingly persistent, even seductive. We get used to feeling tight and tense.

10 Ways to Monitor Corporate Stress Levels
10 Ways to Monitor Corporate Stress LevelsGood military leaders work hard to balance thepositive and negative stress. Positive stressencourages high performance.

Stress- What Is It?
Whenever we think of 'stress', negative thoughts come into our minds. Most of us believe that stress is similar to worries, tensions, failures, sadness, pressures, and what not.

Self Indulgence: It Isn't Just About Chocolate
It's no secret that we women, by virtue of our genetic make-up I suppose, seem to feel it is necessary to be superwomen-simultaneously balancing the demands of managing a home, caring for children and aging parents, and usually working in a demanding profession. This syndrome, which was first labeled in the 1980s, continues 20-some years later despite zillions of articles and talk shows discussing it.

9 Warning Signs of Stress
Stress is the nastiest 4 letter word you ever met. Don't stress, I know it is six letters but it packs the wallop of the meanest 4 letter word you ever heard.

An ADD Case Study: When the Pace Picks Up, Learn to Slow Down
The fall season signals a shift in most people's minds. The summer is coming to a close, and it's back to school, work, and the other things that we haven't put as much effort into since Memorial Day.

Secrets to Aromatherapy II - Psychological Complaints
Aromatherapy is very therapeutic when it comes to healing emotional and psychological conditions. This is because the essential oils from plants contain all kinds of compounds, phytoestrogens and phytochemicals that have the ability to subtly alter brain chemistry for the better.

Permission to Play
At what age does the benefit of play cease? Child development experts agree that play is very important in the learning and emotional development of all children. But do we ever grow out of a need for play? I answer with an emphatic no.

Stress Relief in Minutes
For those who are suffering from stress, just about the hardest thing to find is stress relief. Stress can often continue itself on its own energy and, as it mounts up upon itself, it builds itself into an absolute mental frenzy.

Understanding Your Stress Levels
In order to understand stress better, it is a good idea to understand that there are different stress levels. These levels vary in the form of stress they take and they can often provide an indication of how to treat the stress.

Stress Management: 5 Questions to Get Crisis to Work for You
Q: Someone told me that the Chinese symbol for crisis means danger and opportunity. I just lost my job, and I see nothing but bad stuff in this.

What The Most Dangerous Job In The World Taught Me About Coping With Stress
I just got through reading some troubling news in the New York Times this morning.62% of employees now say that work-related stress leaves them overwhelmed and overtired.

Relieve Anxiety with Hypnosis
There are two types of anxiety:*Situational *Existential.Most of us experience both kinds.

10 Ways to Reduce Commuting Stress
Do you get out of your car with a queasy stomach, a headache and your blood pressure registering through the roof? If you do, that energy vulture called stress may have sent your pulse skyrocketing. In a study conducted at the University of California at Irvine, researchers found that the stress of commuting takes a major toll on health.

7 Tips to Help You De-stress & Handle Your Problems
Life would be so wonderful if it weren't for other people. Let's face it, people will upset you.

Managing Stress From Another World
Modern stress is habitual, and is something that the vast majority of Americans and Britons succumb to in their material driven lives. Whether mildly or overwhelmingly, stress will cast its powers across most of us at some stage in our lives, often increasingly as we get sucked into a pattern of working and living that gradually strips us of our individuality.