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Well that’s not entirely true. Yes, too much stress can be very bad for your physical and mental health.
However, stress can be a good thing...you can turn stress into bliss. A tight deadline that inspires a burst of hard work and creativity can be seen as positive stress.
It is the negative stress that can be extremely harmful to employee motivation and in creating the right environment.
An important thing to remember is that the sources of stress vary considerably from one individual to another. Some people might find public speaking stressful and others thrive on it.
All the more reason to find out what’s making your employees tick. Knowing what they find stressful will help you in helping them managing stress.
Stress is in the mind of the beholder. Events and circumstances are not necessarily stressful. So when we are talking about managing stress, it is rather the level of perceived stress, from person to person to consider.
Strike a Balance
You need to strike a balance. A certain amount of stress is good. With too little stress, people become bored, move into a comfort zone and start to under perform.. Too much stress result in burnout| If you strike a balance between being stressed and enough time to recover, it will actually increase your mental, physical and emotional energy over time…just like top sports people alternate periods of extreme physical stress with periods of recovery. |
The key is to get that balance between stressful periods and time for recovery just right…almost like Goldilocks’ porridge.
So when you plan a particularly stressful event for you and/or your employees, make sure that you plan your recovery time.
| I have mentioned that the first step to employee motivation is to be aware of its importance and impact. Most leaders only focus on the bottom line and they plan around it like mad…nothing wrong with that. But if you become aware of the importance of employee motivation, you will plan recovery time after a stressful period for both yourself and your employees. Make it part of a project. |
How to Manage Stress Recovery Cycles
There are many ways to incorporate beneficial stress recovery periods into a normal day. The key to managing stress is changing the habit of linear, non-stop, harmful stress.| Your stress cycles operate throughout a normal day and in the long term over weeks. The ideal stress and recovery cycle has regular breaks for recovery throughout the day, ideally about every 90-120 minutes. A longer period of stress, such as an intense two-month project, would require a recovery cycle of a few days. |
Recovery time doesn’t mean the absence of activity. It can be a change in the rhythm or nature of your activity.
For example, after a cycle of sustained intense interaction, many people recover by doing some quite, individual work or activity.
Stress and recovery cycles can be used intelligently in combination with other positive wellness behaviours such as these:
- Conscious Living. This is the cornerstone of stress management. Read more about how present moment awareness can dramatically reduce stress.
- Live with Gratitude. Find out how to make Gratitude a daily habit...It's one of the best stress relievers available.
- Stop resisting your life. Read more about how to stop resisting your problems and your life. It will create positive thoughts and reduce stress.
And here is an article on how to say YES to life.
- Laughter
- Breathing
- Music
- Visualisation
- Meditation. Here is a basic meditation technique. It can be done in a short space of time at your office or at home.
- Sleep
- Contact with nature
Take the mystery and suspense out of corporate event planning with Dynamic Event Solutions. |
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Return from Managing Stress to Sustainable Employee Motivation
