It’s safe to say that it’s become very known how stress can have a detrimental impact on people. Believe it or not, stress can be one of the worst things for employees to experience, with its impacts being catastrophic to businesses. We’ll go over some very simple activities you can introduce into your work environment; the purpose of these is to help reduce the negative mental effects and to create an environment where people can thrive.
Identifying Stressors at Work
The first thing we must do is to identify the stressors in a work environment. These can cause stress to an employee; think of things such as high expectations, lack of support, and unclear objectives. Once you understand the triggers and can identify the ones you may observe in your business, it’s easier to intervene and mitigate the stress caused.
Mindfulness and Relaxation Techniques
Though they may sound cliche, mindfulness and relaxation techniques are incredible at reducing stress, anxiety, and depression. Knowing a few and being able to offer these tips to employees may come in handy.
- Deep Breathing, specifically the 4-7-8 breathing technique, involves breathing for four seconds, holding the breath for seven seconds, and exhaling for eight seconds. This can be done virtually anywhere and anytime stress levels spike.
- Guided Imagery involves guiding the person to visualize a peaceful scene or a successful outcome. Many apps, such as Calm, can be utilized for this technique.
- Short Meditative Breaks is another technique which has been proven to help reduce anxiety, forcing the person to be present and relax, rid of any anxious or stressful thought.
The Role of Physical Activity
Physically moving can help relieve stress, so here’s a couple of ideas you could incorporate:
- Walk-and-talk meetings are much more beneficial than the typical sit-down meetings. Simply moving your body releases endorphins, which reduce stress levels. Give it a try.
- Office Yoga Sessions are another way in which you can promote wellbeing. Either allow staff time for yoga themselves or invest in someone to come in to do a team-wide yoga session.
Creating a Supportive Environment
Employees who are not supported will likely feel stressed, anxious, or even depressed about their role. Here are two ideas you can adopt in your work environment to promote a supportive environment:
- Encouraging Open Communication: Promote an open-door policy where employees feel comfortable discussing their stressors without fear of judgment or repercussions.
- Recognizing Achievements: Regularly acknowledging and rewarding hard work can alleviate stress by making employees feel valued.
Final thoughts
Reducing stress in the work environment has tons of benefits, not just for the employees but for the business. The simple techniques outlined in this article will help you achieve a stress-free environment, or at least from the job’s perspective. Stress is unavoidable, but we can do things, such as engage with a company culture consultant, to help. You’ll see a positive return by simply showing that you care and offering some techniques to help.
