Imagine this scenario. After a hectic work day of back-to-back meetings, trying to meet deadlines and lots of brainstorming, analyzing and all the dramatics that come with a work day, you leave the office exhausted and have to deal with rush hour traffic and bad drivers.
You swear under your breathe at the woman in front of you who has just swerved without indicating. Did she buy her driver’s license? You arrive home and the children are hungry, looking to you to whip up a tasty meal.
The little one refuses to eat his veggies; a tantrum is thrown, you shout, tears flow.
Just as you are about to settle to down to your favourite TV show, there is a power cut. You grit your teeth, try to calm the crying children, find a torch and switch off the power points.
While on social networks you get into a “cyber war” over your “rantings” about Botswana Pau Corporation (sic). Late in the night as you are about to crawl into bed you remember that you have a 7.30 am meeting the next day and have to prepare a presentation. And just as you think that is bad enough, your husband tells you your mother in-law is ill and has been admitted to hospital.
There is so much that we go through in life, many small challenges and experiences which can culminate into full blown stress. We also live in challenging times of instant gratification and surviving the rate race.
The economic recession, ever increasing prices of commodities, political matters and other social problems do not make things any better. Further, high levels of unemployment and job uncertainty remain and many organizations use a smaller workforce to cut down on expenses but this may result in individuals being stressed and run down, which negatively affects the business itself, in the long term. Some people exist in a permanent state of anxiety and worry and this can lead to stress and burnout.
According to the World Health Organization, stress is the health epidemic of the 21st century. While there are no local statistics available, WHO has shared that stress costs American businesses an estimated 300 billion US$ per year. This hefty amount can leave you agape. Although there aren’t any official statistics from Botswana, stress does affect many people in our community.
There are various aspects that result from stress: poor performance, lower staff turnover, absenteeism and costs of medical bills and workers’ compensation. Although there aren’t any official statistics in Botswana, across the world it has been proven that stress can keep employees away from work which has a negative impact on human capital. Although it’s often assumed that experience alone will guarantee better performance and productivity, it has been proven that stress can have an impact if not managed.
Most doctors have also said that stress is the underlying causative factor of illness which underlies about 70 percent of visits to the doctor. Stress has symptoms like sleep disorders, anxiety, and lack of focus, fatigue and change in sex drive. In worse scenarios, the stress leads to anger outbursts, alcohol or drug abuse, cigarette smoking as well as social withdrawal and awkwardness. Because stress doesn’t have obvious signs, some people may be unaware that they are stressed.
Some researchers have argued that a little bit of stress can motivate people and get them out of their comfort and get creative juices flowing. However, negative stress has proven to have a detrimental effect on many people’s health. Whether physical burnout, mental fatigue, emotional imbalance or spiritual emptiness- when we operate on zero, we are as good as useless to ourselves, family and most importantly organization of employment.
Stress is work’s greatest foe because when you are stressed you will not put in the needed performance. Pressure and personal troubles can affect our output and cost the company; employees who skip work often creating pending work, missing opportunities…all which can even lead to employment being terminated or the company suffering declined quality of service and products. While within the workplace there are many other hindrances to optimized productivity, like: red tape, company politics, and bureaucracy; which distract the company goal, there are other external influences, whether social or personal which affect employees’ ability to work as required.
Kelebogile Modikwa, 43, suffered stress for many years but was unaware that she had a serious problem. It is only when a friend, who noticed her irritability, regular upset and constant mood swings began to suspect that her friend could be suffering from chronic stress. She suggested that Kelebogile seek professional assistance. Kelebogile was offended and convinced herself and her friend that she was fine. However, things got worse over time.
“I never understood the impact of stress until I had mental blackout and my body was regularly stiff and tired even though I was physically fit. I consulted my doctor who suggested that I relax often, get more exercise and change my diet to healthier options. While we had a chat he asked several questions to identify the cause of my stress. Yes, I had many problems; what with going through marital strife, dealing with my unruly teenagers and trying to keep my job amidst threat from younger graduates. Combined with everyday chores and social commitments, I was running low and struggled to strike a balance between work and home life!”
Her doctor suggested she seek assistance from a psychologist. She did and although it didn’t change her life instantly, at least she understood what was happening and could deal better with it.
Most practitioners have agreed that the first step to managing stress is to acknowledge it. “It’s important to take time to reflect on the state of your health and understand stress. I did research on the internet and found that exercise and meditation. It also helps to speak to someone trusted about your problems,” says Thabiso Moleme, 36, who once found himself unable to function to his optimum best at work. “Marketing can be a grueling career so at times I found myself feeling run down. I also had to make ends meet and take care of my two children and sometimes chip in to help extended family. The constant running around got to me and I found myself de-motivated and with a negative attitude. This affected my job opportunities because some people thought I had no passion for what I was doing. I am glad I identified that I had stress and effected ways to combat it.”
Many organizations are beginning to understand that a holistic approach is needed to deal to ensure that workers are productive, and so have introduced incentives like flexi or shorter work hours; open communication between staff and management, recreational sports and activities and even workshops. Some companies even have in-house gym facilities for employees to take time out to relax. However, the onus lies with every individual to identify the triggers of their stress and manage it.
