Stressed out at work? You might be making your job harder?
The job market is starting to improve and the economy is showing small signs of getting back on track, but the average employee is still struggling. For those who are lucky enough not to be looking for a job, a day at their job is still overwhelming. Employers are asking more and more of their staff and over a long period, workers get stressed out, overworked and become bitter over the long hours and less pay.
If you are in this situation, there may be some things you are doing that are actually making your job harder than it needs to be. Here are 5 ways you could be adding to your stress:
- Not prioritizing effectively – This happens to me sometimes. There is a difference between urgent and important. When you have a lot of projects that are all due at different times it's hard to decide which one should receive the largest portion of your attention. Of course, we all wish that we could do everything, but unfortunately, it just doesn't work that way. Instead of prioritizing based on which project is due first, try organizing your work by which things are the most important.
- Not taking breaks to socialize – When you have a lot on your desk, the natural tendency is to put your head down and try to plow through it. This might work in a pinch every once in awhile, but as a long term strategy, it ends up costing you a lot. When you take a break and talk with your co-workers, you can get new ideas, ask others for help or opinions and the socialization builds team morale.
- Not keeping your boss in the loop – A lot of the time, when I'm overworked, I assume that my boss is as well. The last thing I want to do is break my momentum just to give them an update. However, keeping your boss in the loop is crucial. There is no way that they will understand what you have been working on unless you fill them in. Also, keeping your boss informed will ensure that you are working on the right projects.
- Getting too comfortable – After you have been in your position for a year or more, it's easy to start getting really comfortable with the way things are. Just because you are happy with your job doesn't mean that it's a good time to let your other skills get rusty or that you should stop thinking about career development. Even if you never want to leave your company, adopting a “go-getter” attitude will make you happier at work and keep you challenged.
- Leaving your desk a mess – With all the work you have going on, the last thing you want to spend time on is tidying your desk. It is a chore but it can make your workday much easier. The time you invest in tidying up each day will make you work more quickly and more efficiently.
What other things do you think should be on this list? Let me know in the comments.
By Melissa Kennedy-Melissa is a 9 year blog veteran and a freelance writer for RealEstateJobSiteBlog, along with helping others find the job of their dreams, she enjoys computer geekery, raising a teenager, supporting her local library, writing about herself in the third person and working on her next novel.
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