Professional stress: professional stress scale, teacher stress

Employee stress is a problem for companies, because it reduces their desire to work, interest in the result and quality of the work performed.

But stress is not always negative. Alternatively, a stressful state may prompt a person to discover a new, more comfortable and smarter way of doing things. Such stress is called eustress and it has a positive effect on the psychophysiological state of a person.

But often, stress is negative in nature. Such a destructive process is distress - stress associated with expressed negative emotions and having a harmful effect on health.

Thus, we can say that stress causes some people to win, and others to be defeated.

Causes of stress

Factors that cause stress are called stressors. Conventionally, stressors affecting employees can be divided into the following types:

Organizational factors:

As the business grows, so do the company's organizational factors, which can cause stress among subordinates.

Some of these factors:

biased wages;
ineffective communication between the manager and subordinates;
pressure from colleagues and supervisors;
unclear responsibilities of the position;
lack of organizational structure of the company;
lack of employee participation in decision making;
excessive management control;
improper working conditions;
lack of understanding of the essence of the result of the work of one’s position and company.

Individual factors:

Temperament, character and personality traits play an important role here.

Stress can be caused by various family, financial problems, changes in career and personal life. Different expectations of family members, loved ones, employees, and managers can cause negative feelings in a person, especially if he himself is not able to understand these expectations and meet them.

Nature of work related to factors:

For example:

monotonous work;
too active work;
exaggerated rivalry in the team;
unhealthy working conditions.

Extra-organizational factors:

Social and political problems, situations in the country, can also affect the psychological state of the employee.

Stress Management Strategies

The stress experienced by subordinates negatively affects their health, performance and behavior. Therefore, it is necessary to combat it effectively to minimize harmful consequences.

Organizational management strategies:

High-quality active communication with employees. Every person must understand how to communicate in an organization. And the employee will understand that the request must be submitted in writing, this is not because they do not want to communicate with him personally, but because this type of communication is effective and productive for everyone.
Encourage employee participation in decision making. This will make it possible for the employee to understand that his opinion is important and in the future he will approach his decisions with greater enthusiasm and responsibility.
Give employees more independence. Yes, this might be a bit of a risky move. But, over time, one way or another, you will see how creative, responsible and interested in the result of the work this person is. Such independence will show whether a person is a professional in his field and whether he can be relied upon.
A company must have a goal. It should be realistic but not easily accessible. The goal should stimulate subordinates, be specific and understandable.
Delegate. You, as the owner, retain important decision-making and strategic management, and delegate other powers to subordinates. Again, this is a great opportunity for your team to prove themselves and prove their level of professionalism.
Fair distribution of incentives and salaries. If a person is motivated solely by money, he will leave you as soon as the opportunity to earn more comes along. And of course, trying to keep such a subordinate is pointless. But on the other hand, your employee should know that decent work is decently paid. But remember, this is not the main type of motivation.
Fair career advancement. The best leader is the one you grew up in the company. And if an employee has proven his responsibility and competence, and you just happen to have one of the management positions available, this is a great opportunity for the employee and for the company - you have a dedicated person who is ready to reach the goal and improve the company.
Comfortable working environment. Do your employees spend their leisure time together, communicate with pleasure, and understand the importance of each other in the company? Great! This means they are comfortable. They will be very happy to go to work and be hand in hand with colleagues for 8 hours a day.
Effective recruitment and induction process. The new person is familiar with the company, colleagues and his responsibilities. He has the opportunity to learn and develop. This means there can be no talk of stress.
Appreciate employees for achieving goals and increasing statistics. Every person wants to feel needed. If your subordinate tries, fulfills and exceeds the plan, then he values his work, and you value him too. “You’re doing great!”, “I’m proud of you!”, “Good job, keep it up!” - phrases that everyone wants to hear. So why don't you say them if they are appropriate?

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Individual management strategies:

Employees should make a daily list of tasks for the day, set priorities and plan for their implementation. Breaks from work, lunch with colleagues, discussion of an interesting topic will help you relax a little, and then start working with renewed vigor.
You need to strive for your goals, work hard and efficiently. But not at the expense of personal space, family, or hobbies. Everything needs balance.
Sports-sports-sports. Physical activity distracts you from work thoughts, keeps you in shape, and is an excellent tool in the fight against bad mood and moral fatigue.
Lead a healthy lifestyle. Sleep and healthy eating are a must. There is no need to describe this point; I hope everyone understands its importance.
No negativity. Avoid contact with people who are always dissatisfied with everything. In return, surround yourself with friendly, cheerful and productive society. You will definitely notice changes for the better in your life and psychological state.
Employees must have emotional intelligence. self-awareness, self-confidence, self-control in the workplace - without this it is impossible to build work and relationships with the team.
Social support. A person must understand that he is not left to his own devices. As in your personal life, so at work there should be people you can trust with your problems.
If your company has the opportunity to install a table tennis table, table football or other interesting ways to relieve stress, this is very good and useful for your employees.

How to relieve stress after a hard day?

You come home from work and feel very tired. You are depressed and irritated. You don't want to do anything. Just lie down on the sofa and forget about your work problems. Common situation?

Unfortunately, many working people these days face it. Let's find out how to relieve stress after work. Here are a few methods you can use depending on the situation.

Think about the problem.

If you have a problem at work that worries you, think about it. After all, you still won’t be able to completely get rid of unnecessary thoughts from your head.

ADVICE! Ask yourself, “What's the worst that could happen?” Answer the question honestly. And then look at the answer options.

Will the client be unhappy and write a negative review? Perhaps he will demand a refund? Or will your boss yell at you for failing at work? Will it be difficult to find your next client?

Well, so what? Although this is unpleasant, it is definitely not worth your nerves. In any of these cases, your life will not change dramatically. All these problems can be solved. Is it worth it to cheat yourself because of them and thereby ruin the evening?

Meditation.

Let me guess - you have heard about meditation before and even read somewhere that it helps deal with stress. But you’ve never practiced it yourself, because you don’t know how to approach it.

IMPORTANT! If you are reading this article, then it’s time to figure it out. Meditation is very simple. And you will soon see this for yourself.

And it's free: you don't need a gym membership, you don't need to travel anywhere, you don't need special clothes. It is enough to allocate 15 minutes of personal time. By the way, meditation can be done even at work.

Here's a quick guide to meditation for beginners:

dim the lights in the room - it’s good if the room is twilight;
sit on the edge of a chair;
straighten your back (this is very important!), tilt your head slightly, relax your facial muscles;
set a timer for 15 minutes;
now close your eyes and do not open them until the end of the meditation;
take 5-6 deep breaths, inhale through your nose, exhale through your mouth - while mentally letting go of all problems;
further, do not control your breathing, it should be natural;
listen if there are any sounds around you, accept them, they will not bother you;
Now try to feel your body, how do you feel in general?
take turns scanning all parts of the body, starting from the head and ending with the feet, do not rush;
it's time to count your breath - breathe evenly and calmly, count your breaths: 1, 2, 3... and so on until 20.
when you finish counting, just track your breathing and concentrate on it;
if suddenly you realize that you have been thinking about problems for several minutes, do not scold yourself, just return to your breathing and continue;
when the timer rings, smoothly end the meditation, open your eyes, and sit like that for a little longer.

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Remember that meditation cannot go wrong. You can't go wrong. Simply because there is no room for error here.

Meditation is the process of disconnecting the mind from external bustle. It reduces anxiety and various nervous conditions. In situations of stress, meditation is especially useful. In terms of effectiveness, it is comparable to the effect of medications - antidepressants.

Physical training.

If you have a mental job, then you should devote time after work to physical exercise. You probably think that you are very tired and will not be able to study.

ADVICE! Try to force yourself to start by force of will. And then - who knows? Maybe you don't want to stop?

Turn on a video with a suitable set of exercises. They can be found on the Internet, including YouTube. Choose what you like at the moment:

Groovy Zumba;
calm Pilates;
focused yoga;
and so on.

All this will help combat the stress that you regularly receive at work.

Qigong.

Continuing the topic, I propose to dwell separately on Chinese qigong gymnastics. Surely you have already heard this word.

If you do not like or are not suitable for some reason for active physical education, then qigong is an excellent choice. This ancient practice has a number of benefits:

the exercises are very simple, they are suitable for people of any age and level of training;
they allow you to replenish the lack of energy in the body;
and also improve immunity, speed up metabolism and cope with stress.
during classes, not only the body is involved, but the mind also relaxes;
Qigong has virtually no contraindications.

BY THE WAY! Even if you feel like a squeezed lemon after work, try to find some time for simple qigong exercises.

If you've never tried it, we can assure you that they are so simple and enjoyable that you will love them. You don't have to strain like you would in the gym, you don't need stretching, and your muscles won't be painfully sore after exercise.

Hot bath.

Fill the bathtub with hot water. Dissolve sea salt in it - it takes away all the negative energy. Add foam if desired.

And now a little secret: light a few candles in the bathroom. Watching fire calms the nervous system and helps to discard bad thoughts.

If you wish, you can add a few drops of essential oil to your bath and play relaxing music that will help relieve tension and overcome stress.

IMPORTANT! Absorb this atmosphere, set yourself up for relaxation and get maximum pleasure.

Care procedures.

This method will allow a woman to relieve stress after work. How long has it been since you last took care of your body? It's so relaxing. Buy in the store or prepare your own body mask that will nourish and moisturize it. Don't forget to use a scrub.

Take care of your face. Remember the old method: rubbing your face with ice cubes. Make ice from a decoction of chamomile or other herbs. Apply cream or face mask. Such procedures are great for calming and helping to relieve tension.

Drawing.

You’re probably thinking now: well, I can’t draw, literally AT ALL. However, this is no reason to doubt.

BY THE WAY! There has long been a right-hemisphere drawing technique that will help anyone learn to draw from scratch.

Even if you have never been able to depict something more beautiful than an ordinary face, trust this technique. It allows you to activate the right hemisphere, which is responsible for creativity.

What does it mean? That's right, the left hemisphere (which endlessly analyzes problems and situations) will finally calm down and temporarily hand over the reins to the right hemisphere of the brain. This means you can disconnect from problems, resist stress and arrange a little holiday for yourself.

Have you ever dreamed of relaxing and drawing? It's probably time to do it.

Walk.

Another surefire way to relieve stress after work is to go for a walk. Of course, it’s better if you walk not along a noisy avenue, but in nature. City dwellers should get out to a park or square and admire nature.

IMPORTANT! Every season has its own charm. Go outside to experience it to the fullest.

This is a good exercise to relieve stress. For example:

In spring, enjoy the blossoming leaves on the trees, the singing of birds, puddles and streams that indicate the imminent arrival of summer.
In summer, enjoy the rich colors of greenery, warm rays of the sun, flowers in flower beds, and the buzz of insects.
In autumn - bright colors of leaves, a cool, but not yet too cold breeze, flocks of birds that fly south.
In winter, enjoy the snow, frosty air, and a walk in the light of lanterns, because at this time of year it gets dark early. Just dress warmly so as not to freeze.

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This way you can quickly cope with the stress you get at work.

Your appetite changes frequently

Sometimes when you are stressed, you don't feel like eating anything. In other cases, feeling anxious and depressed may lead you to eat fatty or sugary foods, such as cookies or pizza. Some people go to these extremes all the time. Researchers in the field suggest that there is a complex set of associations between mood and eating. For example, a study published in the journal Psychoneuroendocrinology shows that women who are prone to stress feel the need for sweet foods when they feel anxious.

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How to avoid?

So, you have found out what causes stress. Now let's talk about how to avoid stress at work. What can I do to make the tension less intense or not arise at all?

If your stress comes from interacting with other people, the best advice is to learn successful communication and business skills. Sign up for psychological courses, learn NLP techniques. This is especially important for a leader.
If you don't have enough time to complete tasks, learn to use every free minute wisely. The site already has an article about how to keep up with everything at work.
If you are stressed by working conditions, refer to the Labor Code. The employer may have a duty to take corrective action. Well, try to fix the rest yourself, for example:
buy a humidifier/air ionizer for work;
use earplugs;
install air flavors;
place a table lamp for additional lighting.

IMPORTANT! This will require additional financial investment, but, you see, personal comfort and stress reduction are worth it.

If the reason is high responsibility or heavy work pressure, learn relaxation and stress-relief techniques to restore brain function. In previous sections we have already written about meditation, breathing techniques, qigong, etc. Some of this can be done even at your workplace, especially if you have a personal account.
Well, if the whole point is low pay or bad attitude towards you from management, then the advice here is simple - look for a new job.

Stress in professional activity: types and stages

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A huge number of workers face work stress every day. Those with a sensitive nervous system, empathic and psychologically unstable individuals are most susceptible to it. Life is much easier for stress-resistant employees, but their percentage is not so high.

Professional stress is stress that arises as a result of difficult situations related to work activity. If we literally translate the term from English, we get “pressure, tension.” These phenomena are the result of prolonged exposure to serious emotionally negative factors.

In psychology, there are 3 types of work stress:

Emotional . The reasons for its appearance are various kinds of conflict situations. Such stress involves a person’s internal experiences, feelings of resentment, guilt, injustice and anger that arise due to problems in the team.
Informational . It is caused by too much intellectual load, overload or lack of information, and the need to adhere to strict time frames. Overly responsible people are most susceptible to information stress.
Communicative . Its reasons: misunderstandings with colleagues, superiors, inability to cope with manipulation, to take the right position in a team, communicative aggression.

In addition to the types of professional stress, there are also 3 stages:

Anxiety is an extremely negative factor; it provokes a feeling of fear, increases anxiety, and leads to a sharp increase in mental stress.
Resistance - at this stage the body joins the fight, trying to overcome the problem. A person adapts to an unhealthy environment, gets used to it and, as a result, becomes completely immersed in a stressful state.
Exhaustion develops if there are no attempts to change the situation at the previous stages. Stress becomes chronic, it gradually leads to depletion of the body's resources, causing health problems, often even dangerous pathologies.

Important! A common consequence of stress at work is professional burnout.

In a new place

It is also worth noting the high likelihood of stress in a new job. Many people face stress during adaptation, which appears due to:

the need to establish contacts in the team with new people - both work and personal;
difficulties in understanding professional tasks that are not always clearly defined;
the desire to get into the working regime as soon as possible, arrange the workplace and get acquainted with the unspoken norms accepted in the team;
insufficient support from close relatives.

It will be easier to cope with stress in a new job if you follow these important rules:

Never be late. This is completely unacceptable, especially in the first months in a new place. It is better to arrive half an hour before than to be 5 minutes late.
Don't stay late after work. You don't want to always be burdened with additional responsibilities, do you?
Never show that you are not doing anything at the moment.
ADVICE! If you really have nothing better to do, read any document regarding your job responsibilities or rules of conduct at your new job.
Keep personal conversations on the phone to a minimum. Conversing with relatives or friends during working hours is considered indecent.
Do not gossip or participate in gossip discussions. Otherwise, you risk making irreconcilable enemies or being known as a gossip.
If something is unclear to you, do not hesitate to ask your colleagues. Especially during the first three working days. And remember your first and last names so you don’t end up in an awkward situation at a new place of work later.

What else will help you become stronger?

Here we want to say just three things that should definitely be taken into account by anyone who wants to become more stress-resistant and less susceptible to stress factors.

First, learn from your past experiences and learn from mistakes. Analyze the events that happened to understand in which situations you were less effective and in which you were more effective, which strategies and actions helped you achieve success and solve problems, and which only went to your detriment.

Secondly, develop flexibility and strive for balance in stressful situations. Don't allow yourself to go to extremes and give in to negative emotions. If they exist, they must be compensated with positivity. Also remember that active actions and work should be replaced by rest and recuperation.

Balance also suggests that while relying on the support and help of others, one should never forget to rely on oneself. Do not abuse the help of your family and friends, learn to help yourself.

And thirdly, do not neglect additional sources of support. This includes various self-help groups, where people with similar difficulties and problems gather, as well as forums. Feel free to share your experiences, emotions and ideas with people, accept help and offer it yourself.

Read books, blogs and articles by people who have learned to successfully cope with difficulties in life, including those just like yours. Today there is the Internet, where you can find information on absolutely any topic. Believe me, even a few lines about what is close to you will give you confidence, because you will understand that you are not alone.

And finally, one more thing: many people are quite capable, on their own and with the help of the methods discussed in our article, to overcome stress and develop stress resistance. But there are also those who encounter difficulties on such a difficult path, cannot achieve progress, and are not able to move forward on their own.

In such situations, it would not be superfluous to contact an experienced specialist, for example, a psychologist. Professionals have extensive experience in developing individual strategies for people experiencing stress problems. And the only condition for success here is to find a really good mentor.

But still, we are of the opinion that in most cases a person is able to carry out effective and high-quality work on himself. You can find a million examples of people who, as they say, made themselves. And the only thing that distinguishes you from them is that they did it, and you haven’t yet.

Learn to cope with everything life throws at you on your own. This alone can take you to a completely different level of personal development. And the more often you remember this, the stronger you will become. We are confident that you will succeed, and we sincerely hope that a piece of this confidence has rubbed off on you.

Keep your head up and move forward boldly! We wish you good luck!

We also recommend reading:

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Stress while studying: causes and prevention
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Stress and psychology: how they are connected

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Psychologist's advice

Psychologists often hear clients complain that work only brings stress. Sometimes it gets to the point that a person is afraid to go to work every morning because he only experiences negative emotions.

Above we have given recommendations and a list of practical exercises to relieve stress. Now let’s give advice from psychologists to increase the body’s resistance and reduce the likelihood of stress.

Sleep at least 7-8 hours a day. Lack of sleep has a negative impact on all of us, increasing anxiety and ultimately depleting the body's strength.
Take a break from work. Leave all thoughts about work outside the office. Come up with activities for the weekend that combine relaxation and active pastime.
Try to think positively. Don't take problems at work as tragedies.
IMPORTANT! Remember that all this is temporary: even if your boss scolded you and didn’t pay you a bonus, don’t be too upset. The only things that really matter are our health and relationships with loved ones.
Maintain your health, take vitamins, eat natural and healthy foods.
If every day you ask yourself: “should I continue to endure or quit?”, perhaps you should seriously start looking for a new job. Just don't go anywhere. After dismissal, you should have further prospects or a financial cushion.

You get tired easily

The intense mental struggle with high levels of stress takes a toll on your body. Just a few days of chronic stress is enough to cause fatigue. Poor sleep, negative thinking and poor nutrition often coexist, and it's a deadly combination that can lead to severe fatigue. People who get little sleep are unable to concentrate and are more likely to experience daytime fatigue than those who get regular sleep. If you feel tired even during periods of low productivity, you may have taken on too much work or responsibilities.

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If you notice any of these signs, then it's most likely time to stop and evaluate your stress levels. Is there a chance that you are denying its very existence? Listen to your body and remember: there is nothing wrong with seeking help from loved ones or professionals if you are feeling overwhelmed.