Stressors You Can Control

The impact of specific stressors is determined by the total amount of stress a person is experiencing. What might be considered a small irritant on one occasion might be the straw that broke the camel's back on another.

While businesses can't control all external stressors, action can be taken to minimize internal stressors such as the following:

• Unreasonable expectations for greater productivity, manufacturing or administrative
• Positioning people in jobs that do not use skills and abilities
• Underpaying for the level of responsibility assigned to individuals
• Vague and arbitrary promotion policies
• Management's failure to consider employees' perspectives in decisions affecting their jobs
• Excessive overtime with or without compensation
• Arbitrary assignment of unpleasant tasks
• Failure to enforce policies for some individuals
• Poor top-down and bottom-up communications procedures
• Poor problem-solving strategies or mediation of conflicts between employees
• Family separation, through transfers or frequent business trips
• Demonstrated lack of concern for employees' welfare
• Intolerable environmental conditions -- temperature, hazardous, noise, light, odors, and so on.

1. Survey your team and add to this list.
2. Determine how many of these you have.
3. Consult with your team members to find ways to alleviate the stressors.