Stress affects millions of people.

One of the most common forms of stress is that related to our careers and the workplace. In today's
economic difficulty, work related stress is even more pronounced than ever before. Worries about whether or not people will be able to keep
their job, their health insurance, and even keep their homes, plays a large role in stress, and the possibility of losing a job can be scary.
Another word for stress is tension or anxiety. When someone experiences stress, there are many different symptoms and repercussions.
Depending on the level and frequency of stress, some of these symptoms can become serious and cause a myriad of problems. Stress
affects people both mentally and physically. The heart rate increases, headaches can develop, and often people become irritated much more
easily. Individuals who work in high stress or dangerous jobs as well as those who are employed at a place where there is a high pressure
environment are often prone to experiencing stress. Work environment, coworker relations, and customer pressures can all contribute to
stress at work. Understanding how to manage, minimize, and deal with stress can help people feel more relaxed and react when stressful
situations as they arise.

Stress is your body’s way of responding to any kind of demand. Its symptoms may be mental, physical or social and include

headaches, frustration, loss or increase of appetite, oversleeping or sleeplessness.

Everybody experiences stress at some point of life, stress can be work or job related, family related or can be because of your

studies, poor health, financial problems etc. At times the death of a close person also causes stress. Some people handle stress

effectively while some people fail to take appropriate steps to distress their life.

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Following are some of the easy ways by which you can handle your stress:

Be positive:

Being positive is the most effective way of handling stress. Have a positive outwork towards and belief in life. Always believe that

you are living in a friendly universe and whatever is happening in your life is happening for your own good. Use positive self-talks

and visualize positive things in your life.

Practice gratitude:

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Gratitude is the key to a happy and peaceful living. You can either feel tensed or grateful, you cannot experience these two feelings

together. There is always something to be grateful for in your life even in a hopeless situation. You can be grateful for the simplest

thing such as the air you breathe to bigger things in your life like your home, your family, your health etc. Stop and count your

blessings.

Smile more often:

Smile as much as you can. As said by Mother Teresa “Peace begins with a smile.” and “Every time you smile at someone, it is an

action of love, a gift to that person, a beautiful thing.”

Meditate:

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By meditating every day you can develop a great balance in your life. You will see a remarkable difference in the amount of your

stress, if you can take time out and meditate for at least ten minutes. There are different ways to practice meditation, choose the one

which fits you and your lifestyle.

Health:

Take care of your health and body by the way of eating healthy foods and snacks. Exercise every day and drink loads of water and

avoid oily and unhealthy foods. Develop a good sleeping habit.

Distress:

Learn to relax yourself. There are various relaxation techniques you can either listen to a soft music, or visit a spa or best go for a

vacation either all by yourself or with your family.

Music:

Soft and calm Music is a great distress agent. Music makes a person light and happy. You can listen to your favorite song or even

sing along with the song, this will lift your spirits up and you will again feel wonderful and happy.

Be realistic:

Do not push yourself harder towards fulfilling your goal. Have patience and be logical and realistic. Don’t strain yourself by trying to

accomplish everything in one single day. Learn to say “no”.

Laugh:

Laughter is the best medicine. Laughs as much as you can, you can watch comedy movies and serials.

Friends:

Friends are a great stress buster. Take some time out to hang out with your friends and enjoy your life.

You are born to enjoy your life, so worry less and be happy!

Home ››

Stress is your body’s way of responding to any kind of demand. Its symptoms may be mental, physical or social and include

headaches, frustration, loss or increase of appetite, oversleeping or sleeplessness.

Everybody experiences stress at some point of life, stress can be work or job related, family related or can be because of your

studies, poor health, financial problems etc. At times the death of a close person also causes stress. Some people handle stress

effectively while some people fail to take appropriate steps to distress their life.

ADVERTISEMENTS:

Following are some of the easy ways by which you can handle your stress:

Be positive:
Being positive is the most effective way of handling stress. Have a positive outwork towards and belief in life. Always believe that

you are living in a friendly universe and whatever is happening in your life is happening for your own good. Use positive self-talks

and visualize positive things in your life.

Practice gratitude:

ADVERTISEMENTS:

Gratitude is the key to a happy and peaceful living. You can either feel tensed or grateful, you cannot experience these two feelings

together. There is always something to be grateful for in your life even in a hopeless situation. You can be grateful for the simplest

thing such as the air you breathe to bigger things in your life like your home, your family, your health etc. Stop and count your

blessings.

Smile more often:

Smile as much as you can. As said by Mother Teresa “Peace begins with a smile.” and “Every time you smile at someone, it is an

action of love, a gift to that person, a beautiful thing.”

Meditate:

ADVERTISEMENTS:

By meditating every day you can develop a great balance in your life. You will see a remarkable difference in the amount of your

stress, if you can take time out and meditate for at least ten minutes. There are different ways to practice meditation, choose the one

which fits you and your lifestyle.

Health:

Take care of your health and body by the way of eating healthy foods and snacks. Exercise every day and drink loads of water and

avoid oily and unhealthy foods. Develop a good sleeping habit.

Distress:

Learn to relax yourself. There are various relaxation techniques you can either listen to a soft music, or visit a spa or best go for a

vacation either all by yourself or with your family.

Music:

Soft and calm Music is a great distress agent. Music makes a person light and happy. You can listen to your favorite song or even

sing along with the song, this will lift your spirits up and you will again feel wonderful and happy.

Be realistic:

Do not push yourself harder towards fulfilling your goal. Have patience and be logical and realistic. Don’t strain yourself by trying to

accomplish everything in one single day. Learn to say “no”.

Laugh:

Laughter is the best medicine. Laughs as much as you can, you can watch comedy movies and serials.

Friends:

Friends are a great stress buster. Take some time out to hang out with your friends and enjoy your life.

You are born to enjoy your life, so worry less and be happy!

Home ››

every day with multiple deadlines, meetings, and all the other demands of putting out a
quality product -- demands which in his case led to some destructive coping mechanisms.

"I used to take my wrist rest and slam it against the keyboard, or take my phone and
slam it down on the receiver a few times," recalls Charla, a 28-year-old San Franciscan.
"But I've tried to calm down since then. I still want to smash things, but what I do now is
tell myself not to slam anything and instead to take a walk."

Charla can talk himself through times when emotions run high. What he can't do, though,
is talk with others. "If I go to my supervisor," he says, "not only is it an admission that I
screwed up my time management, but it's an admission that I can't do my job."

It may seem that there’s nothing you can do about your stress level. The
bills aren’t going to stop coming, there will never be more hours in the day
for all your errands, and your career or family responsibilities will always be
demanding. But you have a lot more control than you might think. In fact, the
simple realization that you’re in control of your life is the foundation of stre ss
management.

Managing stress is all about taking charge: taking charge of your thoughts,
your emotions, your schedule, your environment, and the way you deal with
problems. The ultimate goal is a balanced life, with time for work,
relationships, relaxation, and fun – plus the resilience to hold up under
pressure and meet challenges head on.

Learning healthier ways to manage stress

If your methods of coping with stress aren’t contributing to your greater

emotional and physical health, it’s time to find healthier ones. There are
many healthy ways to manage and cope with stress, but they all require
change. You can either change the situation or change your reaction. When
deciding which option to choose, it’s helpful to think of the four As: avoid,
alter, adapt, or accept.

Since everyone has a unique response to stress, there is no “one size fits
all” solution to managing it. No single method works for everyone or in every
situation, so experiment with different techniques and strategies. Focus on
what makes you feel calm and in control.

Adjusting Your Attitude

How you think can have a profound effect on your emotional and physical
well-being. Each time you think a negative thought about yourself, your body
reacts as if it were in the throes of a tension-filled situation. If you see good
things about yourself, you are more likely to feel good; the reverse is also
true. Eliminate words such as "always," "never," "should," and "must." These
are telltale marks of self-defeating thoughts.
The study of human relations looks at the interaction between people in the workplace. From study of Masters in Business and
personal experience, I understand the one major problem for human relations and therefore corporations is how to manage stressful
events/issues in the workplace. “Highly stressed workers are less productive, change jobs much more frequently, and experience
more negative health consequences than their less stressed colleagues” (North Western National Life, 1991, 1992). This is exactly the
reason why good management is needed to combat the problem of stress. This critical reflection will examine stress management
from my personal point of view and reflect on the topics learnt regarding human relations in the workplace. This critical reflection
utilizes the knowledge and experience I have gained from my father’s workplace, HDFC Bank Ltd India. This company like most
banks can be a very stressful and fast paced workplace and like most companies there is conflict, co-operative efforts and group
relationships. From my father’s management in his company I understand that an employee is not just made up of his/her skills. An
employee is a person, a human being, and an effective way of managing human relations is to utilize not just that person’s skills but
the diversity they bring to the company when individual employees make up a team.

Companies must limit the amount of conflict within the workplace in order to increase productivity and maximize the efficiency of
their workers. Conflict arises due to a difference in values, interest, cultures and can also arise due to miscommunication. It is
important when dealing with conflict, that managers understand the underlying factors of why certain conflict arises. With
understanding co-workers, employees become compassionate and empathise with each other as they start to understand and grow
to know one another. On the other hand, too much agreement between employees is said to be unhealthy for a company. This does
not necessarily mean conflict but rather relates to debate over certain issues. Debate is healthy for companies especially if it
generates higher productivity. However, I believe, it is necessary for managers to make sure employees behave in a polite and
constructive manner.

In my opinion, it is also important for managers to have effective negotiation skills. With the arise of conflict, comes in need for
managers to resolve conflict and disputes in a fair and equal manner. The two types of negotiation, distributive and integrative
negotiation can be achieved with the effective management. Distributive negotiation refers to one party winning and the other party
losing whereas integrative negotiation is a win-win situation. Unfortunately the latter cannot always be achieved and with conflict
there is sometimes a losing party. Therefore conflict resolution, as a manager it is important to express the need to compromise
when conflicts arise. As a manger, I am striving to create my skill in negotiating, more importantly I believe managers like myself,
should increase their skill in collaboration and accommodating negotiation skills. In aiming to reduce stress in the workplace,
negotiation skills such as finding a common ground, a common interest can divert attention away from the conflict and therefore
end the stress.

Stress in the workplace does not only come from conflicts between employees. In a bank it is very fast paced and the amount of
work that the employees have can also cause stressful tensions. This type of stress is known as the treadmill syndrome. Another type
of stress can be caused by interruptions in day-to-day processes. This means that employees that are interrupted many times have
higher stress levels. However, other types of stress can come from managers and the employer’s themselves. Uncertainty in company
policies, employee contracts or future employment can also result in tension.
From personal experience I believe the manager must always aim to achieve a good relationship with co-workers and also aim to
decrease the level of stress through effective management skills. I also believe that treating employees as individuals, respecting the
diversity in the workplace can also lead to happy and less tensed employees. In my father’s company one effective way of achieving
this is to be inclusive with all employees. This can be difficult when dealing with large teams however being able to make employees
feel safe, secure and included can reduce the amount of stress in the job. An example of this is where employees share their
knowledge and skills so that the team is not only made up of individuals working alone completing separate tasks, but instead works
as a group to achieve a common goal.

The effective control of self-esteem is also an important element in stress management. Self-esteem when properly managed, can
allow employees to feel engaged and happy in the workplace. An effective level of self-esteem will create an effective worker. From
personal experience creating a balanced self-esteem within employees is all about personal development. Setting goals and giving
employees the knowledge and skills to achieve those goals can boost self-esteem, create confidence in the employee’s abilities and
decrease the level of stress. Another way of creating confidence is by developing a reward system. A reward system allows for praise
to be given when employees deserve it however the management of the system should be carefully scrutinised so that employee do
not become dissatisfied when they cannot achieve goals. From personal experience I have seen this system in use and by giving
employees praise and rewards for doing a good job the workplace can be comparative and employees feel good about success thus
creating high self-esteem and happy effective workers.

Happy effective workers may be easy to establish, however the continuation of this emotion and the deliverance of a low stress
workplace can only be achieved through effective management. My view of effective management begins with the ability for
managers to be able to set an example of how they want their employees to work. This is closely related to the topic of self-
management, which enables a manager to lead by example. The concept of leader and follower is very important to establish for
managers. Being able to direct and instruct employees in an appropriate manner can also effectively manage stress. I have seen this
when personally dealing with lecturers and teachers. An effective leader, manager or teacher should be able to make people feel
calm, valued and secure through their attitude towards work and also the manner in which they conduct themselves. In personal
experience teachers have made me feel calm, valued and secure by their positive attitude, friendly personality and ability to “live
what they preach” (they lead by example).

The manager’s ability to lead by example also relates to gathering information on employees likes and dislikes and making sure
communication between employees is at an effective level. “The main aims of communication are knowledge management; decision
making; coordinating work activities; fulfilling relatedness needs; inform; express feelings and influence.” (Evans, (2010)
Communication: Interpersonal Effectiveness, [PowerPoint Slides] retrieved from www.jcu.edu). Although these aims are not directly
related to stress management, it can be devised that if these aims are achieved the employees work load and general day-to-day
tasks will become less stressful. In this day and age, intellectual technology has allowed fir communication to become more
efficiently received. However, communication which has been received electronically has more of a chance at being misread. Email,
memos, voicemails etc. can create greater conflicts than there would be with face to face communication. Through personal
experience and observing my father I have learnt that extensive training in electronic communication and how to write without
mistakenly offending people is very important. Face-to-face communication also allows for employees to disclose certain
information, allowing people to become comfortable with each other and work more closely as a team. The stress reduction factor in
the ability for employees to communication effectively is seen when communication lowers the risk of conflicts and also decreases
the amount of mistakes employees make due to miscommunication. In my father’s company I have heard of many mistakes made
due to miscommunication, such as Bank Policies on human relations and employment conditions causing panic and unrest with
employees and decreasing efficiency. The miscommunication between bank departments and the creation of rumours results in high
levels of stress which could be avoided if better management had been in place. The kind of manager that I want to be relates
closely with the ‘Johari window’ and the four panes of relationships. I believe that by developing a close, professional relationship
with employees can generate trust and great communication skills. I also believe that a manager should have the ability to criticise
employees in a way which will make them more efficient at their job. Constructive criticism, as many call this, is the ability to point
out a person’s behaviour in a way which makes that person examine their behaviour but is done in a positive manner. Learning to
restructure the way in which I give criticism so that my communication is positive and employees are able to learn from the criticism
I give them. I learnt from my father that the way he manages his employees, that positive language generates more positive
responses to productivity. This ability to disclose information, communicate and take criticism can only happen if there is a certain
level of trust already gained between co-workers. An example, Employees’ perceptions of low role overload-quantitative, role
overload qualitative and lack of career development as sources of stress most likely result in low job stress; in turn, this would benefit
both the organizations and the employees themselves. Low job stress should result in better job satisfaction and organizational
commitment, since researchers have found significant negative associations between job stress and both job satisfaction and
organizational commitment (Jamal & Badawi, 1995).

Although communication is vital, being able to communicate with a diverse range of employees can be difficult. That is why it is
necessary for managers to learn how to communicate in different styles. For example, in the workplace there may be employees
which are able to process instructions which are verbally communicated. However, others may be more visually inclined and
therefore managers will need the self-disclosure and close relationship with co-workers to develop and understand what
communication styles are needed.

However, managers are not able to control every little event that happens in the workplace and conflict can still arise even with good
management. A manager’s ability to observe, notice and counter act any possible conflict is a great skill to have. However, no
manager is able to control people’s emotions in this can develop into conflict. The manager’s job in this case is to educate
employees on the proper ways of controlling and handling their emotions in times of high stress. In my point of view, I believe that
company retreats where employees get to know one another in an environment other than the workplace can lead to high levels of
trust between co-workers and also creates opportunities to develop their ability to handle emotional stressful events. From my
personal experience in studying I have learnt how to deal with stressful events and control my emotions so that I make rational
decisions through observing how my father deals with stress (Exercise and Hobbies) and also through seminars which have taught
me how to understand how people think and react to different saturations.

As mentioned above, positive language, communication and good management are all good ways to deal with stress in the
workplace. One other way to create a stress free environment is to motivate employees in the belief that if workers are motivated
and believe in their job conflicts will be diminished, emotions and irrational behaviours will decrease and staff will be happy within
themselves and productive. Motivation, I find is a very hard skill to learn and can sometimes take years to develop. From the
personal experience I have witnessed great management and motivational skills from one of my teachers. Her motivational skills
came from her passion for her subject and the belief in what she was doing. Her passion and excitement motivated her whole class
and her creativity and ingenuity for teaching and learning pedagogies catered to a diverse yet successful classroom.

Along with motivational skills comes the ability to be able to observe and distinguish learning capabilities. Not every individual has
the ability to learn in the same way, and as mentioned before, some may be visual learners others may be auditory and lastly,
managers may come across tactile learners. In believe the ability to encourage employees to continue their lifelong learning is an
important skill and through learning comes the ability to gain knowledge and ultimately understanding and consideration for others.
As a manager, I believe it is this consideration which is also important to stress management. From personal experience I know that
knowledge can bring wisdom and the ability to act rationally when conflicts arise.

According to my point of view work life balance can be achieved through proper prioritising between “work”, career and ambition on
the one hand and “life”, pleasure, leisure and family on the other hand. Through this the manager should be able to promote
workplace health and understand the work or family conflict. Stress can be related to this, if an employee is does not have a good
work life balance he will undergoing stress in all the ways. I believe that there should be a work life balance in the working
environment where the employees should be happy and they can give their own effort to achieve the common goal. An example,
“Singaporean employee perceptions of a supportive HR environment will be negatively related to their perceptions of role overload
and responsibility.” (International Journal of Stress Management July 2002).

In summary, it is very important for managers to learn this significance of stress management. As a manager I believe it is important
to keep in mind the organisations, although made up of individuals are essentially individuals that work together. There may be
different departments with different managers and therefore different ways of dealing with tasks however, these departments work
as a whole in order to successfully achieve a common goal. This is a significance of why stress management is important. If
employees are stressed and goals are not achieved, productivity and the company suffer. As expressed above in the critical reflection
stress can arise from many situations caused from over work, interruptions or general conflicts between employees. In dealing with
stress in the workplace it is important to continue learning new skills in how to deal with conflicts. Some of the factors underlying
conflicts which were examined above included miscommunication, lack of knowledge or understanding over diverse workplace etc.
The importance of these factors allows for managers to develop a process or plan helping to deal with these factors. I.E self-
disclosure will hopefully create a better working environment due to greater knowledge and understanding of each other and thus
the ability to communicate more efficiently and effectively with each other. With conflict comes the need for negotiation in order to
resolve conflicts and establish a united workplace. My personal experiences and study has allowed me to develop into the kind of
manager I believe is most efficient. This involves the ability to communicate effectively with a diverse range of learning abilities and
also able to negotiate to the best of my ability so that compromises can be reached when conflicts arise. But most importantly, I
believe in setting a good example for my co-workers which includes continuing my learning through professional development,
sharing my knowledge and skills with fellow co-workers, listening and learning from my co-workers and lastly gaining the ability to
be emphatic and understanding of diverse cultures and people which I may come across both personally and professionally.