Workplace stress is nothing new. In fact, 1 in 4 employees view their job as the No. 1 stressor in their lives. What's more: three-quarters of employees believe the average worker has more on-the-job stress than a generation ago.
\r\nThe impact of stress has serious consequences on productivity and, at the end of the day, a company's bottom line. The infographic reveals just how much time and money are actually being lost due to workplace stress and compromised productivity.
\r\nTwo of the most common workplace threats are stress and anxiety. To make matters worse, many people feel that their job is one of the most stressful things in their life. For these reasons, it is essential for supervisors, managers and employees to recognize the signs of stress and anxiety, and take the steps necessary to reduce work-related stress, such as reducing employee pressure.
\r\nWhether it is related to family, health, work or school, everyone experiences stress at some time. It is physical and mental and is often caused by life events, such as a change in responsibilities, job loss or promotion, death of a loved one, or illness.
\r\nAlthough stress can be beneficial, it can also be a disadvantage, especially when it comes to job productivity. Stress can have a significant impact on your physical and mental well-being, which may ultimately affect your productivity. Here are some of the signs that stress is negatively impacting your productivity.
\r\nOne of the most common ways stress affects the overall production of a company is through absenteeism. Research has shown that employees who are suffering from high levels of stress are prone to frequent sick days. Stress-related symptoms such as difficulty sleeping, high blood pressure and headaches take a toll on the person, causing even those with good attendance to begin missing more and more work.
\r\nThese are some other ways stress may affect your company's productivity:
\r\nIt's important to be informed as to how stress can impact you and your employees, but how do we change it? Here are some helpful ideas:
\r\nThere are various things you can do to reduce the amount of stress in your business, communication being the most beneficial. Encourage communication among teams as well as between management and employees. If a specific team member is displaying signs of stress, discuss and offer options as to how other team members and/or management may be able to help. Offer employees regular breaks, and encourage exercise and healthy eating.
\n","docType":"article","guid":"articles_4eacbb62474d2158c788d94c9b89e408","lastModified":"2020-04-01T10:00:00.000Z","published":"2016-02-22T20:00:00.000Z","structuredData":null,"subtitle":"Stress is a necessity in life, and sometimes, it can be a good thing. But when there's too much of it, stress can be a monster.","template":"v1","title":"Stress and Productivity: What the Numbers Say","type":"infographic","author":{"avatar":null,"bio":"The purpose of our community is to connect small business owners with experienced industry experts who can address their questions, offer direction, and share best practices.","name":"business.com editorial staff","image":null,"slug":null,"social":{"facebook":"","linkedin":"https://www.linkedin.com/company/business-com-/","twitter":"https://twitter.com/businessdotcom","website":"https://www.business.com/"},"status":"enabled","title":null,"type":"Old BDC Member","user":{"imagePath":"https://staging.business.com/images/uploads/user/profile/b14a2c1fa0158a2f46854597139a2067ee8ef.jpg","profile":{"company":"","jobTitle":"","website":"https://www.business.com/"}}},"breadcrumbs":null,"channels":{"primary":{"name":"Business Basics","slug":"business-basics"},"sub":{"name":"Business Solutions","slug":"business-solutions"}},"meta":{"robots":"index, follow","description":"Sometimes stress can be a good thing, but when there's too much of it, stress can be a monster. Here's how to alleviate it within your business.","title":"How Stress Connects to Productivity - business.com"},"parsedContent":{"toc":[{"id":"the-impact-of-stress-on-productivity","title":"The impact of stress on productivity"},{"id":"how-stress-affects-company-productivity","title":"How stress affects company productivity"},{"id":"how-to-reduce-stress","title":"How to reduce stress"}],"json":[{"component":"p","children":["Workplace stress is nothing new. In fact, ",{"component":"a","props":{"href":"http://www.cdc.gov/niosh/docs/99-101/","target":"_blank","rel":"nofollow"},"children":["1 in 4 employees"]}," view their job as the No. 1 stressor in their lives. What's more: ",{"component":"a","props":{"href":"http://www.cdc.gov/niosh/docs/99-101/","target":"_blank","rel":"nofollow"},"children":["three-quarters of employees"]}," believe the average worker has more on-the-job stress than a generation ago. "]},{"component":"p","children":["The impact of stress has serious consequences on productivity and, at the end of the day, a company's bottom line. The infographic reveals just how much time and money are actually being lost due to workplace stress and compromised productivity."]},{"component":"p","children":["Two of the most common workplace threats are ",{"component":"a","props":{"href":"https://hbr.org/2016/04/are-you-too-stressed-to-be-productive-or-not-stressed-enough","target":"_blank","rel":"nofollow"},"children":["stress"]}," and anxiety. To make matters worse, many people feel that their job is one of the most stressful things in their life. For these reasons, it is essential for supervisors, managers and employees to recognize the signs of stress and anxiety, and take the steps necessary to reduce work-related stress, such as reducing employee pressure."]},{"component":"h2","props":{"id":"the-impact-of-stress-on-productivity"},"children":["The impact of stress on productivity"]},{"component":"p","children":["Whether it is related to family, health, work or school, everyone experiences stress at some time. It is physical and mental and is often caused by life events, such as a change in responsibilities, job loss or promotion, death of a loved one, or illness."]},{"component":"p","children":["Although stress can be beneficial, it can also be a disadvantage, especially when it comes to job productivity. ",{"component":"a","props":{"href":"https://www.stress.org/workplace-stress","target":"_blank","rel":"nofollow"},"children":["Stress"]}," can have a significant impact on your physical and mental well-being, which may ultimately affect your productivity. Here are some of the signs that stress is negatively impacting your productivity."]},{"component":"ul","children":[{"component":"li","children":[{"component":"strong","children":["Lack of energy:"]}," Although stress is known to give you a burst of adrenaline, following the initial burst, it will rapidly drain your energy, which ultimately leaves you emotionally and physically drained. The lack of physical and mental energy can prevent you from doing your best, which will have a significant impact on productivity.",{"component":"br"},{"component":"br"}]},{"component":"li","children":[{"component":"strong","children":["Lack of focus: "]},"Good production requires focus, but stress will take over your mind, making it extremely difficult to focus on the task at hand, because you are more focused on what caused your stress.",{"component":"br"},{"component":"br"}]},{"component":"li","children":[{"component":"strong","children":["Constant worry: "]},"Have you ever been so consumed with worry about something that may happen? Stress has a way of taking up your time by making you continuously worry about something that may or may not happen; this is time lost that could have been spent on more productive tasks.",{"component":"br"},{"component":"br"}]},{"component":"li","children":[{"component":"strong","children":["Reduced creativity:"]}," Being stressed causes your mind to wander, preventing you from locking in on new ideas. It basically limits your ability to come up with creative, new ideas.",{"component":"br"},{"component":"br"}]},{"component":"li","children":[{"component":"strong","children":["Negative effects on personality: "]},"Not only does stress affect your emotions and physical abilities, but it also affects your personality. For instance, you may snap at peers without realizing that you are doing it, or you may become angry and/or yell at others without knowing you're doing it. Many jobs require teamwork in some form, so when you are snapping, moody or yelling at peers, it affects your ability to be productive, plus it affects the productivity of peers."]}]},{"component":"h2","props":{"id":"how-stress-affects-company-productivity"},"children":["How stress affects company productivity"]},{"component":"p","children":["One of the most common ways stress affects the overall production of a company is through absenteeism. ",{"component":"a","props":{"href":"https://www.thehrdirector.com/business-news/health-and-wellbeing/stress-biggest-cause-of-absenteeism/","target":"_blank","rel":"nofollow"},"children":["Research"]}," has shown that employees who are suffering from high levels of stress are prone to frequent sick days. Stress-related symptoms such as difficulty sleeping, high blood pressure and headaches take a toll on the person, causing even those with good attendance to begin missing more and more work. "]},{"component":"p","children":["These are some other ways stress may affect your company's productivity:"]},{"component":"ul","children":[{"component":"li","children":[{"component":"strong","children":["Staff turnover:"]}," Stress in a company may lead to restless employees who have the desire to find a less stressful job. This ultimately creates problems with an increase in staff turnover, which forces your company to put more funding and time into hiring and training new employees.",{"component":"br"},{"component":"br"}]},{"component":"li","children":[{"component":"strong"}," ",{"component":"strong","children":["Tardiness: "]},"Almost every company has a few people who occasionally struggle with being on time, but when employees who are typically punctual begin to have an increase in tardiness, it may be an indication of stress. This may be due to the fact that stress and anxiety often interrupt sleep, which makes it more difficult to wake up in the morning.",{"component":"br"},{"component":"br"}]},{"component":"li","children":[{"component":"strong","children":["Peer relationships:"]}," Unfortunately, stress also prevents otherwise energetic conversationalists from interacting with their peers. This is often due to them isolating themselves and being deprived of the energy required to make small talk or polite conversations. The lack of peer relationships and communication may eventually impact the company's productivity.",{"component":"br"},{"component":"br"}]},{"component":"li","children":[{"component":"strong","children":["Quality of work: "]},"Stress can lead to fatigue, changes in personality, withdrawal from others and a decrease in enthusiasm, all of which can significantly impact the productivity of your company. "]}]},{"component":"h2","props":{"id":"how-to-reduce-stress"},"children":["How to reduce stress"]},{"component":"p","children":["It's important to be informed as to how stress can impact you and your employees, but how do we change it? Here are some helpful ideas:"]},{"component":"ul","children":[{"component":"li","children":[{"component":"strong","children":["Get physical."]}," One benefit of exercise is the effect it has on stress. Not only does it pump your body full of feel-good endorphins, but it can also help you sleep better and aid in relaxation. ",{"component":"br"},{"component":"br"}]},{"component":"li","children":[{"component":"strong","children":["Take a breathing break",{"component":"i","children":["."]}]}," ",{"component":"a","props":{"href":"http://www.webmd.com/balance/guide/blissing-out-10-relaxation-techniques-reduce-stress-spot","target":"_blank","rel":"nofollow"},"children":["WebMD recommends"]}," taking five minutes to yourself and focusing on your breathing. This will help to slow your heart rate and lower blood pressure. ",{"component":"br"},{"component":"br"}]},{"component":"li","children":[{"component":"strong","children":["Try a creative outlet."]}," Focusing on an art project or a creative project is a great way to focus on a nonwork-related task that stimulates your brain. Adult coloring books are all the rage for this reason."]}]},{"component":"p","children":["There are various things you can do to reduce the amount of stress in your business, communication being the most beneficial. Encourage communication among teams as well as between management and employees. If a specific team member is displaying signs of stress, discuss and offer options as to how other team members and/or management may be able to help. Offer employees regular breaks, and encourage exercise and healthy eating."]}]},"resource":{"cta":"Download infographic","description":null,"path":"https://staging.business.com/images/content/56c/b52d62f87b1ed7128905c/0-0","placeholder":null,"preview":"56cb52df3087b1ff6779110c"},"sponsorship":{"sponsorType":"","name":null,"thumbnail":null,"bio":null,"slug":null,"status":null,"social":{"website":null,"linkedin":null,"twitter":null,"facebook":null}},"thumbnail":{"path":"https://staging.business.com/images/content/5e8/4a17e7b43746a0f8b4572/1500-0-","caption":"scyther5 / Getty Images","isBlurred":false},"bestPicks":null},"related":{"relatedArticles":[{"title":"Stress and Productivity: What the Numbers Say","canonical":"https://www.business.com/articles/stress-and-productivity-what-the-numbers-say/","slug":"stress-and-productivity-what-the-numbers-say","thumbnail":"https://www.business.com/images/content/5e8/4a17e7b43746a0f8b4572/1500-0-","dek":"Stress is a necessity in life, and sometimes, it can be a good thing. 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