Posted On 08 Jan 2021

Anxiety

Anxiety disorder, one of the most common mental health issues affecting the American population, often goes unnoticed at the workplace. Though largely ignored, . The condition not only severely affects employees’ emotional and physical health but also impacts their careers by interfering with their productivity and performance.

According to the Anxiety and Depression Association of America (ADAA), employees have admitted that stress and anxiety most often impact their workplace performance (56 percent), relationship with coworkers and peers (51 percent), quality of work (50 percent), and relationships with superiors (43 percent).

Overall, a certain level of anxiety, preferably within a comfort zone, at the workplace is not always bad as it helps one in staying focused and improving performance. However, if stress-triggered due to the pressure of meeting deadlines, interpersonal relationships, etc., begins to interfere with one’s personal life, it’s time to seek help or reflect.

I remember in my IT cybersecurity career while I was working as the lead on a project, I started to feel anxiety but because I had never had it before, I didn’t know what it was.  I’d go to the datacenter and I’d start feeling agitated, short of breath…sometimes I even had shaky hands.  Of course, the first thing you think about is, “I’m having a heart attack”.  Then I started paying attention when I’d get this…we were under extreme pressure to meet deadlines and my feeling at the time was that management was not behind the project; we were left to sink or swim. I had to learn to prepare myself to go into the datacenter, deal with the application engineers and others while at the same time care for me.

Nevertheless, there are some simple techniques that one can adopt to overcome on-the-job anxiety. Here are some of them:

1. Keep oneself busy: Generally, it is believed that after office hours should be used to take a rest. But, it is also important to make sure that one’s brain is not left idle and is engaged in some activity that keeps work-related thoughts at bay. Spending time with friends and family, creating new memories, or engaging in a hobby are a few of the simple ways to make sure that work does not bother one at home. At the same time, it is important to ensure that work-related thoughts or problems at work do not make one sulk.
2. Exercise: Being a stress reliever, exercising before and after work hours can help one feel better and improve his or her mood. This can help in relaxing both the mind and body. Exercise releases endorphins, natural painkillers, in the body, which help in improving mood and reducing discomfort. By burning the stress hormone cortisol, it helps in relieving the symptoms of anxiety. Further, exercising before work is supposed to be particularly beneficial in alleviating stress throughout the day.
3. Be creative: One of the best ways to turn mundane office tasks into something more interesting is by being creative. Besides one should ensure that he or she takes criticism positively. One can also try setting new challenges for oneself, such as completing work in less time and making work more exciting, engaging, and fun.
4. Get enough sleep: Stress and anxiety can cause insomnia that can further disrupt emotional balance, which is essential for coping with any kind of stress. The inability to take proper rest also triggers anxiety. Therefore, it is important for an individual to ensure that he or she takes proper rest and does not engage in any kind of stressful activities closer to bedtime. Being away from technology at least 45 minutes before bedtime can also help improve the quality of sleep.
5. Set realistic goals: It is possible that the workplace may overload a person with work. Being a dedicated employee, he or she might desire to complete all the assigned tasks in one go and with perfection. This is quite an unrealistic goal. A person should always make sure that the goals set by him or her are realistic. He or she should also pat his or her back even on the smallest of accomplishments to stay positive. Above all, one should try and find humor in the smallest of situations to beat anxiety.

Boost performance by curbing anxiety

It is important for every individual to enjoy his or her workplace. This can be accomplished by prioritizing tasks, breaking the entire project into smaller tasks, and celebrating accomplishments. One should never let his or her job become a burden…remember that you always have choices!

Check out our Stress Workshop.  Also, our compassionate and caring team is ready and waiting to help, so contact us today to make an appointment.