Taking the stress out of a stressful workplace environment
We have all been there. It’s first thing in the morning, gulping down breakfast, if you have time, getting the family ready for work or school and then raging as you sit in traffic jams to reach the office already feeling exhausted.
A study published to coincide with Stress Awareness Month last month highlights a disturbing picture of mental health in the accounting industry. It calls on businesses to carefully consider the support they’re offering to employees and recognise that health and wellbeing are integral to the success of their organisation.
The study, conducted by chartered accountants’ wellbeing charity caba, the well-being found that 56 per cent – said they were suffering from stress and burnout, compared with 41 per cent of employees across a wider range of sectors, business sizes and job roles.
Almost a third of accountants said they would be concerned about their manager or HR department believing them to be unreliable if they sought help for their mental health.
The survey suggested businesses could help by identifying stress and having measures to deal with it including:
Establish a process to deal with stress: Caba research suggests accountants have a real fear of being stigmatised for seeking help and fear their credibility being questioned. It’s easy to feel frustrated when people are reluctant to open up, but their resistance is understandable. The first step is to understand where the resistance is coming from and put measures in place so that team members feel at ease.
Support from management: Those in a position of authority must take care to listen to their people and design their support around what they hear.
Making use of role models: It can be difficult and not a normal thing to speak about mental health in the workplace. One of the most powerful ways to put team members at ease is to have role models within the organisation who can talk about their own mental health journey.
Developing line managers: These managers can do much to alleviate poor mental health and must be properly trained to feel confident in discussing problems. They need to ask questions about mental health when discussing normal management and development processes.
Staff who are feeling stressed can also help themselves in other ways including:
Being clear on what is required
Have a chat with the boss if you find yourself never knowing if what you are doing is enough.
Trying to avoid conflict
Conflict can be difficult to escape, so it’s a good idea to avoid it at work as much as you can. If conflict finds you anyway, make sure you know how to handle it appropriately.
Staying Organised
Planning ahead to stay organised can greatly decrease your stress at work and means less rushing in the morning to avoid being late as well as less hustling to get out at the end of the day.
Taking some exercise
If your schedule allows for it, you might try taking short exercise breaks throughout the day. This can help you blow off steam, lift your mood, and get into better shape.
For help and advice on stress in the workplace and any employment matters, contact our expert team at AGS HR Solutions today.
