Why be concerned, particularly in the workplace? There are many
reasons. What seems normal and familiar—a feeling of worry and anxiety about
your daily activities—may be preventing you or your team members from reaching
personal and professional goals. Left unchecked, toxic stress can:
- Reduce productivity. Toxic stress contributes to decreased productivity,
absenteeism, and employee turnover. When employees start making mistakes
or slow down on the job, stay home to avoid stressful work situations, or
even quit, hoping to find a less stressful position somewhere else, the
productivity of your team or the people you supervise can be directly
affected.
- Affect health. Too much prolonged stress can make you physically ill,
and can even kill you. Your body reacts to stress as it would to any
dangerous physical situation, raising blood pressure and alerting the
senses. This response protects you and can be beneficial for a brief time;
however, prolonged stress, worry, and anxiety can strain your body beyond
its limits.
- Drain energy. Excess worry, stress, and anxiety can drain you of
energy, causing your work and your personal life to suffer. You need
energy to concentrate well, respond effectively, and judge situations
appropriately. Worry uses up your energy, depriving you of the physical,
mental, or emotional resources needed to do the job well.
- Damage relationships. Stress can disrupt relationships—whether at work or at
home. While there are often mismatched personalities in work situations
that can cause interpersonal conflicts, stress can accentuate these
negative feelings or can aggravate existing situations, causing small
problems to seem large and disturbing the functioning of an entire team.
No comments:
Post a Comment