Stress often leads to withdrawal into self and prevents you from seeing the potentials of people in front of you. This article will guide you on how to overcome it and attract great employees.
When people are stressed, they often fail to maximize the skills at their disposal, because they are more focused on how they feel at that time than what’s in front of them, or needs their attention. Stress prevents individuals from seeing the big picture, and often a stressed employer will miss out on hiring a great employee because he or she could not thoroughly interview or understand the capabilities of the person.
Stress makes the brain shrink a little, which is why people who are stressed move inward and make themselves a priority over their job, and those around them. As an employer or someone in a leadership capacity in an organization, knowing how to overcome stress would go a long way in helping you function effectively as a leader and attract the right kind of people to work for you.
In today’s world, people crave a healthy work environment, with an excellent work-life balance, with little or no stress. Thus, if you want to reduce stress, attract great employees, and have an all-round success in the workplace, here are five ways that will work for you:
There are talented people everywhere, who can easily translate to being great employees when given a chance. As an employer or business owner, you shouldn’t stop sourcing for new and employable people because someone is occupying every position. Sometimes, people up and quit without giving their employer the required notice, thereby creating a stressful situation.
You can prevent getting stressed in such a situation if you already have a talent pool to pick from. It means having a list of shortlisted talented individuals that you can reach out to take over when a scenario like the one above happens. The person can be in-house or outside your organization, but the vital thing is to have someone available, and not get stressed.
Note that a great talent who lacks interpersonal skills, and is not a team player, will only make you stressed upon employing him or her. Thus, when sourcing for new talents, ensure the person’s emotional quota (EQ) and intelligence quota (IQ) are evenly balanced. Also, stress can cause you to discourage a potentially great employee, so ensure that you keep your options open to prevent getting stressed.
In as much as people mostly relate a stressful working environment to the employer, employees are equally a contributing factor. No one wants to work in a stressful situation, and when word gets around that an organization is hostile to work in, people shy away from such, and you can be sure you won’t attract any significant talent.
To prevent the above, you have to start from the interview stage to eliminate potential stress contributing employees and ensure they never step a foot into your company. Set up effective interview methods and templates that ensure you only get the best of prospective employees.
Note that when an employer is stressed, he or she might want to skip the template and rely on his or her gut. It does not only lead to biased decisions; it makes you employ people you might regret hiring, which later becomes a stress trigger. Thus, use a consistent and validated method in screening for new employees.
Effective interview practices and template helps you reduce stress; it keeps you in control and focused all the time, and enables you to sort out those who’ll help you achieve the goals and objectives of your organization efficiently, and stress-free.
One of the leading causes of stress in the workplace is one person doing too much at a time. Sometimes, multi-tasking stops being a skill, and becomes selfishness, especially when you are stressed but rather than delegate, you want to do the work alone, and get the glory for yourself.
Rather than do the work alone, and bring yourself a high level of stress, build, and groom leaders. As an employer, you have to learn how to trust those who work for you. The best way to do that is by teaching them and grooming them into the image you have in mind.
As a leader or an employer, you must reproduce yourself, skill set, and values in those who work for you. Having like-minded people working for you does not only alleviate your stress, it gives you a team focused on the things you’re focused on. Show interest in top performers in your organization, and begin from them to select those who’ll make great leaders.
Also, note that today’s employees are looking for organizations that will harness their leadership skills and give them opportunities to grow into becoming one. Thus, building and grooming leaders help you overcome stress, by delegating, and equally attracts great employees.
Lastly, as a leader, recognize when the work becomes too tedious for you and your staff, and take some time to recharge, and catch your breath. Take some breathing exercises, walk around the office, or take a few minutes to practise meditation. It helps put things in perspective and reduces stress.
One of the indicators of stress in the workplace is unmotivated employees. When those who work for you start acting uninspired and appear to want to be anywhere other than the office or cubicle they work from, then they are stressed to the limit.
As a leader or employer, you have to pay attention to these signs and confront them head-on. Motivating and mobilizing your employees will go a long way in reducing their stress levels. Always remember that those in your team look up to you, so while motivating them, ensure you are equally motivated, and not stressed.
In doing this, give your employees the best tools to work with. For example, don’t provide old desktops, and expect them to work and produce the best results with them. Don’t keep your staff in a hot office, and expect them not to try to cool off from the heat to the detriment of their work.
Giving your employees the best tools to work with equals to happy employees, which equals to a stress-free work environment. Another way to mobilize and keep your staff motivated is to encourage them to learn a new skill. Plan for workshops, and work retreats where they get trained, and equally have moments of relaxation.
Motivated employees will work to produce an excellent result, and apart from alleviating stress, great talents will get attracted to you; after all, people want to work for an organization that pushes them to be their best, with zero stress involved.
Flexibility is one of the highlights of today’s work environment. It speaks to balancing home and work life, and what most great employees are looking for. A flexible working environment is also a great stress-free indicator because it offers everyone an opportunity to do their best work and live their best life.
It sends the message of “You can have it all,” and does not work only to attract employees but helps to keep the ones you already have. Losing employees because of a hostile work environment and not getting people to replace them immediately leads to stress, which can hinder performance, and in the long run, cause your business to lose money.
Thus, create a work environment that helps reduce the pressure your employees feel. You can do this by allowing parents with young children to resume early and leave early for school runs, providing a daycare center at the office for mothers whose children are too young to start school, and allowing some employees to work remotely when possible, among others.
It helps your employees have an excellent work-life integration, live stress-free lives, and attract great employees to you.
Stress affects people at different levels and in different ways; some easily get affected by it, while others get to their breaking point before it materializes. The best way to treat it is to get ahead of it. Don’t let your employees get stressed to the point that they can no longer function; it is bad for business.
Also, always have in mind that no one can sell you better than those who work for you. If your employees’ testimony of your organization is terrible, be assured that you won’t attract any significant talent. People are looking for more than a job, and the latter has gone beyond a place where people get paychecks to a community of individuals with like minds.
Thus, it’s in your best interest to create a stress-free work environment where your employees can thrive, which will translate to a successful business, and attract great employees to you. It’s a win-win situation, where everyone gains and nobody loses.
Author’s Bio: Cheryl Hearts is a passionate journalist from Boston, Massachusetts. She decided to dedicate her life to writing because she thinks this way she can be the most useful for the community. After obtaining a Master’s degree in Journalism, Cheryl started running her own blog CherylHearts.com where she’s covering topics of great interest to society.
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