Lowering Stress At Work

There is little denying that project management is a stressful job. High levels of stress are not only experienced by the project manager, but the rest of the team too. It is important to reduce stress amongst the entire workforce to enable you all to work better, achieving your project goals and deliverables. Read on to discover some important stress reduction tips to follow.

Encourage training – You should encourage training across the board. This not only means taking project management training courses or an accredited online MBA program yourself, but encouraging your team to take training courses to plug any skills gaps they have. By doing this, you and your team members will feel more confident when tackling any tasks, and this makes a massive difference in terms of reducing stress and tension across the team.

Become more positive – Reducing stress begins with you and your attitude. If you adopt a positive attitude, the rest of your team members will feel happier and they will be better able to cope with stress. You need to try and alter the way you look at things.

Take short, frequent breaks, and encourage your team to do so as well – Taking frequent breaks throughout the day will help you and your team members to de-stress. Taking time away from the computer screen is so important, as it enables you to revitalise and refresh. During your break, it is vital to make sure you stay away from anything related to work. So, this means don’t tackle paperwork or check your emails!

Learn to say no – Are you guilty of saying yes to everything? If so, it is no wonder you are feeling stressed. By over-committing, you are giving yourself too much to do, and you are setting you and your team up for failure. It is important to be realistic. If your client or stakeholders request changes and/or additions to the project, make them aware of the impact this is going to have on the timescale and budget. You’re not a magician after all!

Plan better – Last but not least, sufficient planning is one of the most important tips in terms of managing stress. Most unpleasant surprises and stressful issues could have been prevented by ensuring the right amount of planning was put in beforehand. This may seem like more work, but it will actually save you time in the long run. Plus, by anticipating anything that can come your way, from threats to opportunities, you will ensure your team is prepared for anything.

If you follow the tips that have been provided in this blog post, you are bound to notice that stress levels reduce considerably throughout your project team. Plus, if you feel stress levels rising, you will be better placed to deal with them.