Inputs strategic plans target elements of change and outputs

Organizational Communication For Leaders

Kurt Lewin developed a three-stage model of planned change that explains how to initiate, manage, and stabilize the change process (see this week's chapter for details). Using a previous or proposed major organizational change at your workplace as an example, take it through Lewin's model to see if you can improve the process (if it's a proposed change) or look back and evaluate what went well and what didn't with a previous change.

Stress in the Workplace
In today's world, it is nearly impossible to get through the average day without experiencing some level of stress. Stress caused by your job, combined with stress external to the workplace, can be almost overwhelming. What to do first? How to balance family needs and work priorities? Who picks up the children after school today? How to accommodate an unexpected meeting that lengthens the workday? Everyone has had similar experiences; yet, most of us feel as if it is only happening to us. Moreover, most of us are particularly unprepared by our schooling or experience to manage stress, with the exception of individuals who have gone in deliberate search of those skills.

As a manager, you will be managing not only your level of stress, but also that of your direct reports. Like yours, their stress is likely caused by some combination of work and personal issues. Many companies are just coming to grips with the impact of stress on their bottom line, found in the cost of health care for their employees, as well as lost productivity. The move away from a "disease model" of medicine to one that also includes wellness and preventive coverage may, in fact, have been driven in part by the needs of the 21st century workplace. Employers want healthy, productive employees, which calls for understanding and managing stress in the workplace.

The first personal computers were supposed to be the answer to stress in the harried worker's life. So much more could be achieved because the computer would make it possible. Now we know that was a myth, however well intentioned. It is difficult to "unplug," even for a weekend, let alone for a real vacation.

Controlling the Causes and Effects of Stress
Like every condition that debilitates or handicaps people, stress is more easily prevented than cured. Managers in the 21st century have a more subtle challenge: to distinguish between "good stress" and "bad stress," and to recognize the extent to which they can control the causes and effects of both. When management is inattentive to employee needs, or allows stress to build while motivation wanes, the reason is usually a failure to control those aspects of the business that can be effectively managed. The result is a lack of momentum that would enable management to get the organization through the ill effects of less controllable factors.

Stress is a common phenomenon, and in the workplace, stress has become a business challenge. Keeping employees healthy, motivated, and productive requires a work/life balance that is increasingly difficult to achieve and maintain in the era of digital communications and a 24/7 global economy. Not only do employees face physical and mental demands in their jobs; the effects of stress can graduate to physiological damage that can result in illnesses and absenteeism. Managers have an increasingly difficult time balancing the demands of business with the reality of the human capacity to adjust to stress, and they neglect either one at their peril.

Common Sources of Work Stress
Certain factors tend to go hand-in-hand with work-related stress. Some common workplace stressors are:

· Low salaries.

· Excessive workloads.

· Few opportunities for growth or advancement.

· Work that isn't engaging or challenging.

· Lack of social support.

· Not having enough control over job-related decisions.

· Conflicting demands or unclear performance expectations.

Effects of Uncontrolled Stress
Unfortunately, work-related stress doesn't just disappear when you head home for the day. When stress persists, it can take a toll on your health and well-being.

In the short term, a stressful work environment can contribute to problems such as headache, stomachache, sleep disturbances, short temper and difficulty concentrating. Chronic stress can result in anxiety, insomnia, high blood pressure and a weakened immune system. It can also contribute to health conditions such as depression, obesity and heart disease. Compounding the problem, people who experience excessive stress often deal with it in unhealthy ways such as overeating, eating unhealthy foods, smoking cigarettes or abusing drugs and alcohol.

In our quest for strategies that will keep employees motivated and able to manage "good stress," we should not overlook the importance of "rest." Workers in the U.S. leave more vacation days unused than workers in any other industrialized country. Managers must begin to insist that employees balance work and life, with no negative repercussions for their jobs or their careers if they take the time necessary to do so. Achieving the dubious distinction of being the most over-worked and stressed-out nation in the world is unlikely to promote the United States' ability to compete globally.

Taking Steps to Manage Stress
· Track your stressors. Keep a journal for a week or two to identify which situations create the most stress and how you respond to them. Record your thoughts, feelings and information about the environment, including the people and circumstances involved, the physical setting and how you reacted. Did you raise your voice? Get a snack from the vending machine? Go for a walk? Taking notes can help you find patterns among your stressors and your reactions to them.

· Develop healthy responses. Instead of attempting to fight stress with fast food or alcohol, do your best to make healthy choices when you feel the tension rise. Exercise is a great stress-buster. Yoga can be an excellent choice, but any form of physical activity is beneficial. Also make time for hobbies and favorite activities. Whether it's reading a novel, going to concerts or playing games with your family, make sure to set aside time for the things that bring you pleasure. Getting enough good-quality sleep is also important for effective stress management. Build healthy sleep habits by limiting your caffeine intake late in the day and minimizing stimulating activities, such as computer and television use, at night.

· Establish boundaries. In today's digital world, it's easy to feel pressure to be available 24 hours a day. Establish some work-life boundaries for yourself. That might mean making a rule not to check email from home in the evening, or not answering the phone during dinner. Although people have different preferences when it comes to how much they blend their work and home life, creating some clear boundaries between these realms can reduce the potential for work-life conflict and the stress that goes with it.

· Take time to recharge. To avoid the negative effects of chronic stress and burnout, we need time to replenish and return to our pre-stress level of functioning. This recovery process requires “switching off” from work by having periods of time when you are neither engaging in work-related activities, nor thinking about work. That's why it's critical that you disconnect from time to time, in a way that fits your needs and preferences. Don't let your vacation days go to waste. When possible, take time off to relax and unwind, so you come back to work feeling reinvigorated and ready to perform at your best. When you're not able to take time off, get a quick boost by turning off your smartphone and focusing your attention on non-work activities for a while.

· Learn how to relax. Techniques such as meditation, deep breathing exercises and mindfulness (a state in which you actively observe present experiences and thoughts without judging them) can help melt away stress. Start by taking a few minutes each day to focus on a simple activity like breathing, walking or enjoying a meal. The skill of being able to focus purposefully on a single activity without distraction will get stronger with practice and you'll find that you can apply it to many different aspects of your life.

· Talk to your supervisor. Healthy employees are typically more productive, so your boss has an incentive to create a work environment that promotes employee well-being. Start by having an open conversation with your supervisor. The purpose of this isn't to lay out a list of complaints, but rather to come up with an effective plan for managing the stressors you've identified, so you can perform at your best on the job. While some parts of the plan may be designed to help you improve your skills in areas such as time management, other elements might include identifying employer-sponsored wellness resources you can tap into, clarifying what's expected of you, getting necessary resources or support from colleagues, enriching your job to include more challenging or meaningful tasks, or making changes to your physical workspace to make it more comfortable and reduce strain.

· Get some support. Accepting help from trusted friends and family members can improve your ability to manage stress. Your employer may also have stress management resources available through an employee assistance program (EAP), including online information, available counseling and referral to mental health professionals, if needed. If you continue to feel overwhelmed by work stress, you may want to talk to a psychologist, who can help you better manage stress and change unhealthy behavior.

The average business professional has 30 to 100 projects on their plate. Modern workers are interrupted seven times an hour and distracted up to 2.1 hours a day. And four out of 10 people working at large companies are experiencing a major corporate restructuring, and therefore facing uncertainly about their futures. This may be why more than 40% of adults say they lie awake at night plagued by the stressful events of the day. Hopefully, the above strategies will help you when you are feeling stressed.